Functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data are usually registered into standard anatomical space where an anatomical atlas can be used to identify the location of activation. However, standard brain atlases, such as LPBA40, the Harvard-Oxford atlas and FreeSurfer have limitations such as (1) restricted sample size, (2) restricted age range, (3) that they ignore the anatomical variability, and (4) only cover a fraction of the known subcortical anatomical structures. With the development of higher field strengths (7 Tesla and above) and more advanced MRI contrasts, small subcortical structures can be visualised in great detail. In this talk I will present some of the volumetric, spatial, and quantitative MRI parameter changes associated with healthy aging in a range of subcortical nuclei, including the basal ganglia, red nucleus, and the periaqueductal grey.