We've all seen our fair share of rocks, and most of them aren't that pretty. The ones that are though, can be totally mind-blowing. Ryoji Tanaka, a Japanese photographer and chemist, likes to capture some of the most striking elements, minerals, and compounds in close-up (like the Uranium-containing cuprosklodowskite you see above) and the results are crazy awesome.
Adamantane (by sublimation)
Bismuth
Titanium crystals (by electrolysis)
Andersonite
Plain old gold
Vanadinite crystals on white barite
Muonionalusta meteorite
Karpatite
Uvarovite
Bonus Non-mineral: Thenoic acid
Top Image: Uranium-containing cuprosklodowskite. All photos by Ryoji Tanaka with permission