The Mystery of Snowflakes

[ExomatrixTV]

• The Mystery of Snowflakes

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=ao2Jfm35XeE

Dr Ken Libbrecht is the world expert on snowflakes, designer of custom snowflakes, snowflake consultant for the movie Frozen - his photos appear on postage stamps all over the world. This video is sponsored by Brilliant.

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• Masaru Emoto's Experiment in Gratitude:

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=SDNhH8deZPg

• Masaru Emoto - Water Experiments:

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=1qQUFvufXp4

[ExomatrixTV]

• Meet the Scientist Behind "Frozen's" Snowflakes:

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=k0canuRhwHs

• The Art of the Snowflake - The Mysteries of the Macro Universe - Behind the Shot:

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=swOIerQ5Oxc

• The Science of Snowflakes: Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, Caltech physicist

Dr. Libbrecht has explored the unique designs of snowflakes for many years. Visit SnowCrystals.com or the Library's digital copy of his book to learn more about snow crystals and what you might see in the next snowfall.


Image: Snow crystal photograph by Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, not dated, SnowCrystals.com. Used with permission.

• Snowflake: Winter's Frozen Artistry by Kenneth Libbrecht, Rachel Wing
  ISBN: 1627887334
  Publication Date: 2015
  Library ebook. Off campus users will be prompted to log in using their myStevens username and password.

• Snow Crystals: A Guide to Snowflakes, Snow Crystals, and Other Ice Phenomena (Caltech) SnowCrystals.com, created by California Institute of Technology professor Kenneth G. Libbrecht, has been providing snowflake science info since 1999. Learn more about snow flake designs and classification, snow formation, snow activities and lots of other neat things.

• Guide to Snowflakes (SnowCrystals.com) The next time it snows, get a magnifying glass and bring along this guide to learn more about the snowflakes and crystals that fall from the sky.

• Articles by Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht Research articles authored by Dr. Libbrecht available through Stevens database subscriptions. Off campus users will be prompted to log in using their myStevens username/password.

• Photographing Snowflakes - Wilson A. Bentley and Photomicrography:

One of the first people to record images of snow crystals and discover that the designs were never duplicated was Wilson A. Bentley (1865–1931) of Vermont, who became known as "Snowflake Bentley." Through the use of a microscope and camera, known as "photomicrography", he was able to take detailed images of individual snowflakes before they disappeared.

Image: "A Dendrite Star Snowflake", by Wilson A. Bentley, Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 31, Box 12, Folder 17, Negative no. 332

• Wilson A. Bentley: Pioneering Photographer of Snowflakes (Smithsonian Institution) Bentley gave the Smithsonian Institution hundreds of his snowflake photos to ensure their preservation. Read more about him here and further explore his photos, correspondence, and other materials preserved by the Smithsonian.

[ExomatrixTV]

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=fUot7XSX8uA

[ExomatrixTV]

• Snowflakes, amazing short video, BBC

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=rbW6MsXfPYU

• Snowflake Science to Study Avalanches | Explorer:

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=jQRhefOpkt4

Snowflakes have become an obsession of mine as an extreme macro photographer, but I never thought I would be able to take it this far: 2,500 hours of work across 5 years, all presented as a single composite photo titled “The Snowflake”:

Depicted in the composite image above are over 400 unique snowflakes, all accurately measured and scaled to that they are all in relative size to one another.
On average, 40 separate images are combined for each individual snowflake. This is required to get the crystal in focus from tip to tip with a process called focus-stacking. Due to the nature of the subject and the hand-held approach to photographing each snowflake, 4-5 hours are spent on each image in post-processing. Why so long?

• Each snowflake is photographed on an angle, which allows for reflected light to hit the surface of the crystal and bounce back into the camera lens brightly. If the snowflake was photographed straight-on, the angle would require the light source to be coming from inside the lens itself.

• This angled shooting results in only a tiny slice of the subject being in focus, and the hand-held nature of shooting these sky crystals means vertical/horizontal/rotational shifts need to be corrected for. Photoshop can re-align the layers, but it can’t correct for perspective and it has trouble around certain edges when blending the layers; these problems need to be corrected manually.

• Measuring snowflakes is a time-consuming task, and the right equipment is needed to get accurate results. Thankfully, a hidden piece of metadata recorded by the Canon MP-E 65mm F/2.8 1-5x Macro lens makes this possible: the magnification factor. Combined with the physical size of the sensor and the total number of pixels across the sensor, an algebraic equation allows us to calculate the number of pixels per millimeter and measure the crystals.

• The process of measuring snowflakes is made more difficult by the removal of certain metadata when editing. The “magnification factor” value is stored in a special area of image metadata called “makernotes”, and can be extracted by tools such as ExifTool. This special section of metadata is removed from the file when processed through any Adobe software (and I’m sure others), requiring me to revisit the original raw files for each snowflake to obtain the proper value.

• The largest snowflakes measure just over 11mm in diameter, and the smallest are 0.2mm across. Different storms create different kinds of crystals, some symmetrical but always unique. No two snowflakes falling from the sky will ever be identical. This poster shows the beauty in their variety.

• This image not only shows the beauty of winter, but it’s an eye-opening experience when you dive into the details.

• The working file on my computer is 12 gigapixels in size, so I could theoretically make 60×90-inch print at 480dpi if I wanted, losing no detail in the process. When working on the file, the computer utilizes over 100GB of RAM, so creating something like this required computer hardware up to the task.

• “The Snowflake” is available as a poster print with artist’s proofs available as well.

About the author: Don Komarechka is a nature photographer specializing in macro photography. His work with the subject has been highlighted in international publications as well as being featured in an episode of The Nature of Things with David Suzuki. Don is an author, educator, and adventurer with a passion for revealing “the unseen world”. A gallery of his individual snowflakes images can be seen here and his book on the subject here.

[ExomatrixTV]

• Sky Crystals book - indiegogo campaign video!:

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=qptujhUnUpE

• ‘Sky Crystals – Unraveling the Mysteries of Snowflakes’ Book Review

As far back as I can remember I have always been fascinated by snowflakes. I think a lot of people can probably relate to this. When the winter arrives, we usually anticipate snow falling. Many people associate snow with family holidays, playing outside on cold days and lots of other fun things we generally associate with snow. But it is snowflakes, themselves, that are still a mystery to most of us to this very day. We always hear about each of them being totally unique, and thoughts of these tiny, crystal creations of nature can often leave us feeling like little children again.

It was with these types of feelings that I decided to order a book called ‘Sky Crystals – Unraveling the Mysteries of Snowflakes’ by Don Komarechka. I have been familiar with Don’s work as a nature photographer for some time, and counted myself as a fan. So when I saw the announcement for the release of this hardcover book filled with some of his work, I admit that I was ready to order it on the spot. So that’s what I did. And after waiting with great anticipation for it to arrive, it finally did! Now that I have had a chance to look it over a few times, I am ready to offer all of you my honest review of this book.

I happened to be home when the delivery truck arrived with my copy of Sky Crystals, and I could not wait to get my hands on it. The book was packaged professionally, which made me feel almost embarrassed about ripping it open like a kid on Christmas morning. But these kinds of books really do get me going, so I tore into the packaging with reckless abandon, while still taking care to not damage the beautiful book contained within.

• First Impressions of the Book

Okay, once I got the book out of the packaging, I relaxed a bit. Yes, I get a bit excited when new camera gear or photography books arrived, but I still know how to be calm enough when I have to. And I am glad that I did calm down a bit, because my first impressions of the book really did leave me impressed. I will tell you from jump that the first thing I did was thumb through it to check out the photographs. And I don’t think there is a subpar photo contained within the entire 300+ pages. Every photograph is sharp, clear and detailed as can be; as is suiting for a subject as visually stunning as snowflakes.

The photographs alone more than justify the cost of this book. It is definitely one that I will be proud to keep on the coffee table for guests to look at. Even people who are not certifiable photo enthusiasts, like me, will certainly be mesmerized by the amazingly detailed photographs contained in this book. It is very easy to get lost in the imagery and to spend several minutes gazing at a single photo that Don put into this book. Hats off to this pro for choosing some downright inspiring photographs to place throughout this book.

• What Impressed me the Most?

It’s easy for me to go on and on about how much I like the photographs in this book, but being as I am a macro photographer at heart, and really enjoy the little details, I want to give you a quick list of what really impressed me the most:



– The overall coverage of the different types of snowflakes. There are over 60 pages with different photos and detailed explanations of the different types of snowflakes that one can view/photograph.

– The detailed instructions for photographing snowflakes. To capture great photos of snowflakes, you will need to use the right macro photography techniques and gear. And in this book, I found everything I needed to know – in detail – laid out in the various chapters on technique. This information includes important steps to consider for proper adjustments, image sharpening, and cleaning up mistakes. There are even case studies that walk photographers through editing workflows to enhance their snowflakes photos.

I could go on and on about the things that I found most impressive about this book, including the high quality hardcover that binds this collection together. Suffice it to say, though, that this is a book that people will not only enjoy looking at, but will also learn a lot from in the process of enjoying it.

• Who Should Check out Sky Crystals?

I never say that any book or product is for everyone. We all have different tastes in life, and that keeps things interesting. Who, then, should purchase/read this book? Well, I would say that anyone who really enjoys/admires snowflakes will certainly get a lot from just the pictures and scientific data included in this book. By the time one finishes reading this book, he/she will definitely feel like somewhat of a snowflake expert!

On that same note, I think that parents may want to purchase this book to answer questions that their kids might have about snowflakes. You know how kids can come up with some of the craziest theories about the origin of snow and they almost always make fun snowflake crafts during the winter months. Parents can really break down the science of snowflakes, while sharing some inspiring photographs with their little learners when they use this book as a teaching aide.

Finally, it is certainly macro photographers who want to take better snowflake photographs who will reap the most benefits from this book. No, you can’t learn everything there is to know from a single book, but you will certainly learn some tips, tricks and techniques that you probably never considered before. So if you are looking to shoot some unbelievable snowflake photographs when winter rolls around once again, this is a must-have book!

I’d like to tell you more about this book, but I am just about to crack it open again for another look. I plan on taking some of the best macro photos of snowflakes this year, and am going to put this informative, beautiful book to good use to assist me in achieving this goal. I think you will probably enjoy it too, whether you plan on curling up next to the fire and learning more about snowflakes or if you are seriously contemplating heading outside in the crisp, cold air to get busy on adding some snowflake photographs to your portfolio. No matter what your goal is, I certainly hope that you enjoy this book as much as I am enjoying it right now!

• source

flickr.com/photos/donkom

[dawnawakeningfreespirit]

oohh look a sky crystal - this is what I will be doing this season, opening my mouth to catch the magikal snowflake dust .... just in case you were stuck for idea's over the silly season.. thank you for posting ...

[Frankie Pancakes]

Oh...heh heh...I was thinking this was a generational thread so
I won't post snowflake gestalt.

[ExomatrixTV]

Posted by Frankie Pancakes (here)
Oh. I was thinking this was a generational thread.

I did that on purpose we have had enough daily woke-paranoia last 3 years

• ps. I am subscribed to many different big documentary style (science) YouTube channels that gives me daily news feeds all together, depending on the content I see if it is something that fits for our collective "Project Avalon Radar".

cheers,
John

[O Donna]

At times the morning dew or frost exhibits millions of small diamonds/ crystals. Beautiful wonders of nature.

[JackMcThorn]

This is a really fascinating thread. To think about how much snow falls in winter and there are no two snowflakes alike is truly amazing.

[Journeyman]

These wonderful images are beautiful to behold, even more so in present times. Thank you for sharing them.