Abstract nominee

I crystallize amino acids to create interesting and abstract images. This triptych is of the crystallized mixture of the amino acids, beta-alanine and citrulline. The images appear to have a lot of depth but are taken from a very thin two-dimensional surface of crystals. The interplay of lines is Escher-like and seems correct at first glance, but upon closer inspection that is no longer the case. Hence the name “Convoluted”. The complexity of the images increases from one to three.

I am a chemist by training and worked for most of my life in the chemical industry. I have had an interest in photography from my early twenties. Four years ago I started to delve into the possibilities digital photography offers in visualizing chemistry, thus combining my love for photography and chemistry. For me it has been a real treasure trove.
I use macro lenses often in combination with cross polarized light, and sometimes with wave plates to shift color, to visualize crystals and precipitates. I am continuously experimenting with new ways to form precipitates and to crystallize common compounds or salts from solution. The way in which precipitates or crystals are formed has a tremendous effect on the results. As precipitation and crystallization processes are highly unpredictable, it entails a lot of trial and error.