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12/05/25 Newsletter - Chasing the Light (3/6)

  • Writer: Max Flores
    Max Flores
  • 3 days ago
  • 3 min read

In our quest to make paintings about the way light affects perception, we have discussed light microscopy and different ways we can illuminate a specimen. Today we are finally ready to explore who or what our specimen might be.


Finding the Models


The possibilities of what can be put under the microscope are essentially endless. However, pond samples tend to be the most popular among hobbyist microscopists, and for a good reason. A tiny water droplet from a pond can be filled with an incredible variety of organisms, ranging from crustaceans to algae and even microscopic animals like rotifers.

Although life doesn't stop during winter, the snow, ice, and cold certainly make it harder to collect such samples. If only it was possible to have a pond at home...



Ecosphere


If you add the right amount of water, substrate and plants to a glass jar and keep it sealed, you can create what is called an ecosphere. Your jar becomes a miniature, self-sustaining ecosystem. It's the same principle of a terrarium, but with a water environment instead.


I created one with the help of the community guides at r/ecosphere. It was made using samples from a pond at Forest Park back in November. I later added guppy grass and a few snails to it with the help of r/ecosphere. It is still teeming with life and a variety of species. 


There are many contenders for the role of model in this jar: Hydras, annelid worms, copepods, stenostomums and many more!



Preparing the Sample


In order to find and observe microorganisms under the microscope, I have to pick a small amount of water from my ecosphere using a pipette. It is important to always pick some substrate and algae/plant material, as most microorganisms prefer to cling to those instead of swimming freely in water.


Once found, we can try to isolate the organism from the dirt by pipetting it from one slide to another, over and over... Each time you repeat the process, less dirt comes along. This requires quite some skill, and unfortunately, I ended up crushing a few specimens, as can be seen in the picture.

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Alternatives


As I did not have the appropriate tools nor skills to do this without harming several specimens, I decided to look into other possible "models" for my pictures


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Pre-prepared slides: Those are pretty straightforward, you buy them and put them under the microscope. They will usually contain a stained specimen. The downside is that they are mostly unchangeable, and might have undesired elements that are not removable.


Plants and non-living subjects: Other than the advantage of not killing an entire organism, it is also not necessary to pick up debris for the most part. The samples are thus cleaner, but it can be hard to make them thin enough to obtain good results under the microscope depending on the subject.

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Crystals: Making crystals at home out of ordinary substances such as table salt, vitamin C and caffeine is very easy. It can be as simple as dissolving a little bit of salt in distilled water and waiting for it to dry, but the results are stunning images.


What's Next?

So far we have discussed:



In the following newsletters, we will go over:


  • Photographing specimens

  • Making paintings based on the photographs

  • Results



If you have any questions, send an e-mail to contact@maxflores.art.


See you next week!






References

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