Snow flake photography - post your pictures!

[MicroBob]

Hi together,
in many countries it snows now, sometimes even more that absoultely agreeable, so it won't be a problem to abduct a couple of snow flakes for micro photography purposes.
In principal there are two methods to do this: A) using the frozen crystals B) using an indentation in a clear paint or mountant

A) If one would like to try it with frozen crystals it would be useful to think about this:
- microscope has to be cold and microscopist warm
- Breath and wind have to be kept away from specimen
- Don't use your best optics to avoid delamination, Huygens instead of plan-widefield correcting eyepieces, basic achromat instead of planapo
- Catch crystals on dark surface, move them with a fine paint brush
- Keep warm camera batteries at hand
- Some microscope guides won't run well at sub-zero-temperatures

B) several media can be used:
- fluid super glue
- nitro cellulose paint
- Eukitt, Histokitt
- UV-glue, e.g. LOCA (for smartphone-display-repair)
- Collect crystals on coated slides or collect on dark surface, pick with brush
- Keep crystals frozen until mountant is hard

The work of Wilson Bentley is perhaps known to you: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilson_Bentley
Bob

[zzffnn]

Bob, is there online instruction on how to use the B method? What is your favorite mountant?

I have used a macro lens and twin macro speedlites for snowflakes before (please see my Flcikr album for results), but would like to do better: https://www.flickr.com/photos/zzffnn/al ... 2793366647

[MicroBob]

Hi Fan,
I never did that myself so far but sit here prepared. Only problem is that the show fall border is somewhat south of here and only moves slowly, but it might arrive here. I found one description of method B here: http://www.snowcrystals.com/preserve/preserve.html
But I don't find this method very promising as the crystal's water remains trapped. So I would suggest to make an imprint and later make a dry mount from it.
Your photos actually look very good. Most room for improvement will probably be in the choice of the snow flake itself, most are irregular or damaged to some degree but there are especially nice ones from time to time.
I will make my first try with LOCA as it remains fluid until cured with UV and doesn't develop a dry skin. It also flows into gaps easily. All this stuff is in the freezer in a plastic bag as no component must be over 0°C when doing the mounting.

Bob

[EYE C U]

I RIGGED UP A MACRO LENS WITH HOOD EXTENSIONS SO A UV FILTER CAN BE OUT FAR ENOUGH TO BE IN FOCUS. POINT CAMERA UP . WHEN FLAKE LANDS ON FILTER SHOOT..NATURALLY THERE NEEDS TO BE A LIGHT SOURCE .

[MicroBob]

Hi,
good idea, this should make it possible to quickly take some shots without becoming really cold from standing around in th storm. Some cameras even have tiltable displays so one could mount the setup onto a tripod.

Yesterday I have attatched some slides and some cover slips to blocks of wood (storm protection) and spread LOCA on them. They sit outside, one under free sky, one under the overhang of a roof - but no snow so far!

Bob

[EYE C U]

we got snow last night...didn't even know it was coming..

[zzffnn]

I RIGGED UP A MACRO LENS WITH HOOD EXTENSIONS SO A UV FILTER CAN BE OUT FAR ENOUGH TO BE IN FOCUS. POINT CAMERA UP . WHEN FLAKE LANDS ON FILTER SHOOT..NATURALLY THERE NEEDS TO BE A LIGHT SOURCE .

Good idea, but light source should point away from camera sensor, not towards sensor, for good image quality. That means the final sections of your extension tube has to let in some speedlite (LED is not fast enough for motion stopping and handholding).

That speedlite can be a ring xenon.

And such an extension should be rigid enough for handling and precise enough for supermacro focusing. Doable but will take some thoughtful DIY.

We had lots of heavy snow in Boston too. I did pay attention (shoveled outside for 5 hours), but crystals were smaller and clumped together. I think dry and slow falling generally produces larger complete crystals.

[zzffnn]

How about a huge wide hood over ring xenon speedlite. Then somehow support a piece of glass (snowflake holder) about that ring speedlite. Again, placement should be precise and rigid.

I shot snowflakes at f/22, around 3x-4x on micro four thirds sensor, under macro twin speedlites. Handholding that supermacro is difficult, even when pointing down, supported by my knees and hands on ground. I am around 40 years young and athletic.

Pointing up while handholding a macro rig may be difficult. Putting the entire rig on tripod, helicoid extension tube and remote control should be doable.

Now that I think about it aloud, with a locked down trip pod helicoid rig, LED ringlight is possible, because there will not be any motion generated by handholding. Photographer just needs to move around to catch snowflakes.

EYE C U, you are a machinist who like DIY, correct? If you make an extra copy of such a working rig, I will buy it from you.

[MicroBob]

Hi together,
here a couple of shots of fresh snow crystals from this morning. Taken with the Swift FM-31 inverted field microscope, side illumination with batty powered work light, improvised dark field, exposure ca. 1 sec.

Bob

[Javier]

That is very beautiful!

[MichaelG.]

Nice work, Bob !

MichaelG.

[Hobbyst46]

Nice work, Bob !

MichaelG.

+1 !

[MicroBob]

Hi together,
I took a photo of the improvised setup.
Next to the fresh crystals I also tried to make permanent slides. Crystals trapped in a hard UV curing finger nail seal look very good when still cold. A layer of snow in LOCA is too much for a good image.

Bob

[zzffnn]

Great job, Bob. Thank you for sharing!

[EYE C U]

NO MACHINING NECESSARY... I JUST USE HOOD EXTENSIONS AND A UV FITER AS THE STAGE/SLIDE ON THE END

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How about a huge wide hood over ring xenon speedlite. Then somehow support a piece of glass (snowflake holder) about that ring speedlite. Again, placement should be precise and rigid.

I shot snowflakes at f/22, around 3x-4x on micro four thirds sensor, under macro twin speedlites. Handholding that supermacro is difficult, even when pointing down, supported by my knees and hands on ground. I am around 40 years young and athletic.

Pointing up while handholding a macro rig may be difficult. Putting the entire rig on tripod, helicoid extension tube and remote control should be doable.

Now that I think about it aloud, with a locked down trip pod helicoid rig, LED ringlight is possible, because there will not be any motion generated by handholding. Photographer just needs to move around to catch snowflakes.

EYE C U, you are a machinist who like DIY, correct? If you make an extra copy of such a working rig, I will buy it from you.

[EYE C U]

I RIGGED UP A MACRO LENS WITH HOOD EXTENSIONS SO A UV FILTER CAN BE OUT FAR ENOUGH TO BE IN FOCUS. POINT CAMERA UP . WHEN FLAKE LANDS ON FILTER SHOOT..NATURALLY THERE NEEDS TO BE A LIGHT SOURCE .

Good idea, but light source should point away from camera sensor, not towards sensor, for good image quality. That means the final sections of your extension tube has to let in some speedlite (LED is not fast enough for motion stopping and handholding).

That speedlite can be a ring xenon.

And such an extension should be rigid enough for handling and precise enough for supermacro focusing. Doable but will take some thoughtful DIY.


.

I NEVER SAID WHERE LIGHT NEEDS TO BE...ONCE THE SNOWFLAKE LANDS ON THE ACCLIMATED FILTER/SLIDE..YOU CAN MOVE AROUND ALL YOU WANT POINTING UPWARD NATURALLY..EXPOSURE TIME DOESN'T HAVE ANY EFFECT SINCE THERE IS A SOLID MOUNT FROM CAMERA TO THE SLIDE(NATURALLY THE SNOWFLAKE MAY BLOW OFF THAT IS WHAT IT IS)

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IMG_0329.jpg (122.59 KiB) Viewed 5772 times

[MicroBob]

Great set up! With it you work very much like Anthony von Leeuwenhoek only in a different magnification range.

[BramHuntingNematodes]

Bustin out the old fieldmaster nice to see it in action here pretty sharp for such a long exposure on top of this sort of scaffold

[zzffnn]

1-2 were taken last year with macro lens (super telephoto + Raynox DCR-250), snowflake size was about 4mm, under twin macro speedlites. Micro four thirds camera, 300mm lens at 300mm, f/22, ss 1/200, ISO 200.

3-5 were today taken under microsocope, 1.3x -2x objectives (snowflake sizes were 8-16mm), top LED lights, afocal camera. Micro four thirds camera, 28mm lens at f/4, attached over 10x microscope eyepiece, ISO 200, ss about 1 second.

[MicroBob]

Great images with very nice tonality! How different these snow flakes can look...