Alexey Kljatov Photographs Stunning Close-Ups of Snowflakes

As fascinating as macro photography is, most of us think we can’t do it because it needs specialized equipment. Russian photographer Alexey Kljatov, however, is an inspiration to aspiring amateur photographers everywhere – he created a home-made rig capable of capturing stunning close-up pictures of snowflakes out of old camera parts, boards, screws and tape. His pictures give us an enchanting close-up view of snowflakes that we could never hope for without specialized equipment.

He captures most of the snowflakes on the basic studio on his balcony - comprising a sheet of glass balancing on the legs of an upturned stool. Mr Kljatov, from Moscow, often points an LED torch at the glass from underneath to provide lighting. Some of the darker images have been taken using natural light and woolen fabric placed underneath the glass.

Mr Kljatov takes his pictures using a 12.1MP Canon PowerShot A650, along with his customized add-ons. Given that he once used a plastic bottle to steady his camera, with pictures taken in the camera's macro mode, his new setup looks sophisticated. But it just entails a lens taken from an antiquated USSR Zenit SLR camera strapped to his camera and the aforementioned aids.