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Freshly Fallen Snowflakes Make for Stunning Close-Up Photos

Here's how photographer Alexey Kljatov captures his macro images of snow crystals.
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We're all familiar with the idea that "no two snowflakes are alike," but, thanks to macro photography, their microscopic individuality comes full-frame. Since 2012, Moscow-based photographer Alexey Kljatov has been snapping pictures of them up-close, using a custom DIY rig that might put MacGyver to shame. His images, including a 2014 photo update, put the spectacle of the snow crystal on show, giving an elegant, frigid form to their chaotic chemistry and freezing weather conditions.

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To create his images, Kljatov wields a compact camera with an inexpensive Helios 44M-5 macro lens taped to a wooden board, shooting inside a studio comprised of just a stool and either a gray woolen fabric or green plastic carpet on his open balcony. After snapping a series of photos at the ridiculous magnification gained through his reversed macro lens, he averages them together to get a crisp, clean, Christmas card-ready crystal. Kljatov sometimes also swaps out wool and carpet for a backlit glass table, using a sliced plastic bottle as a vertical tripod to capture the sea of snowflakes that gather below.

Below, check out the gorgeous fruits of Kljatov's labors, and follow his in-depth instructions and schematics to build your own version of his snowflake-photographing contraption.

Visit Kljatov's website here for more of his work.

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