Faint galaxies are primarily observed by HST in their rest-frame mid-UV. They resemble nearby late-type galaxies, but are they really physically similar classes of objects? To address these questions, we present a systematic imaging survey with the HST/WFPC2 of 37 nearby galaxies in two mid-UV bands (F300W and F255W). This sample was carefully selected for size and surface brightness, and includes a wide range of Hubble types and inclinations. All objects have ground-based UBVRIJHK images, and 15 have far-UV UIT images. Our first results from this Cycle 9 project are:(1) Early-type galaxies show a significant change in size from the mid-UV to the red, reflecting the lack of young stellar population in general. Most noticeable is the number of ellipticals that become point sources in the mid-UV (LINER's, Seyferts), begging the question to what extent the apparently strong cosmological evolution of weak AGN in early-type galaxies is due to the ``morphological K-correction''
(2) Mid-type spirals and star forming galaxies can appear as later or different types in the mid-UV. One shows a spectacular resonance ring full of hot stars. Dust lanes are well traceable from the mid-UV through the I-band. We see a considerable range in scale and surface brightness of individual star-forming regions, illustrating the need for a wide inclination range.
(3) The irregulars/peculiars/mergers imaged so far are a heterogeneous mixture. A good fraction shows a mid-UV morphology that is similar to the I-band, but with important differences due to recognizable dust-lanes blocking out mid-UV light, due to star-formation ``ridges'', and hot stars or star-clusters that are mostly visible in the mid-UV. Others yield significantly different classifications between the mid-UV and I-band.