What they look like up close?

This is an accretion disc, a group of matter that collects around the black hole. The matter gets brighter as it approaches the center (that black dot is really the black hole) because the matter gets hotter. The gravity pulls the matter in at a faster and faster rate, just like a whirlpool. Some of the matter is shot up in lines on the North and South poles of the black hole, as shown to the left. The matter there is moving so fast that it burns white hot, only to be slingshot up away from the black hole or into the black hole past the event horizon.

This is a binary star system with a black hole that has formed from the first star's death.  The black hole is sucking matter up from the nearby star and creating an even bigger accretion disc. The matter moves faster as it approaches the event horizon, friction causes the matter to heat up too, changing the colors as one gets closer to the black hole.