Tiny Wonder

Snowflakes are tiny wonders of nature – the closer you look, the more detail you find. Few, if any, are symmetrical. The imperfections and extra adornments on this snowflake add layers of depth and detail.

Snowflakes are extremely difficult to photograph in this manner. This particular snowflake is a combination of 27 separate images. This is due to the extremely shallow depth of field, the amount you can get in focus. I have to photograph “slivers” of focus and combine them semi-manually using a technique called focus stacking.

What you see is the original, real snowflake, with the focus-enhancement from multiple shots. This same technique is used in all of my snowflake photos to some degree to make them crisp and clear.

Photographed one cold evening in Barrie, Ontario.