Want critique Crystals and cross polarization at x4 magnification

[Chavezshutter]

Hello,

After watching a video from my favourite macro photographer - Don Komarechka, i decided to try one his crazy experiments, it involves creating a thin layer of crystals with some chemicals on a glass surface and then using cross polarization (2 CPL filters) to bring out the colours of the crystal, without cross polarization these crystals are fairly bland in colour. I first tried doing this using my Laowa 100 x2 macro lens but after cropping into one of these images I knew I needed to get more magnification so I pinched my brother's bellows and his x4 microscope objective and got this:


Sony a7iii, x4 microscope objective lens on bellows, ISO 100, 1/8 second, single photo (not stacked)

 

[Greg Shchepanek]

Those colours are so amazing, psychedelic and like an alien stain glass masterpiece. Something I have never seen before.

 

[Helix_2648]

Looks a bit like oil mixed with water! I never have heard about something similar! What kind of chemicals have you used? Really cool!

 

[Chavezshutter]

It is 50% water and 50% isopropyl alcohol as the base solution, to this I add one of the following : Beta alanine, citric acid, or tartaric acid. It needs a good amount of one of these acids to make sure you get crystals, when the acid is taking a long time to dissolve after shaking the solution about you know you are ready to smear it unto glass, here is what it looks like after letting the solution dry out overnight...


(Citric acid above and Beta alanine below, both make different crystal shapes)

and here is my setup:


CPL filter on the LED torchlight below and another CPL filter on the microscope lens (hidden under all the step up rings I needed to fit the CPL ), twisting the CPLs will change the colours as well as give you either a white or black background. The same thing can be done with clear plastics and the same cross polarization trick.

Here's some more from today's shoot:

 

[Greg Shchepanek]

Wow Chavezshutter thank you so much for showing the process of capturing that most amazing little world that we don't get to see everyday ... so very well done