Incredible close-up pictures of snowflakes taken on a photographer's balcony using a simple DIY camera kit

Russian photographer Alexey Kljatov takes pictures outside Moscow home

Camera put on glass surface which is lit from underneath by LED torch

Adds his own macro equipment to camera in order to take close-ups



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Every snowflake is unique, yet their lack of visibility to the naked eye means we are often unable to appreciate their beauty.

Undeterred, a cunning photographer has developed a unique way of circumventing this problem - developing his own DIY close-up photography kit.

Russian photographer Alexey Kljatov takes these incredibly detailed photographs using a basic camera, with a magnification device taped to the lens.

Up close: A snowflake captured by Russian photographer Alexey Kljatov on the balcony of his Moscow home

Simple: Mr Kljatov takes his pictures using a 12.1MP Canon PowerShot A650 with a lens taped on

He captures most of the snowflakes on the rudimentary 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 captured 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 simply entails a lens taken from an antiquated USSR Zenit SLR camera strapped to his camera and the aforementioned aids.

Rudimentary: He captures most of the snowflakes on the rudimentary studio on his balcony - comprising a sheet of glass balancing on the legs of an upturned stool

Lighting: Mr Kljatov usually hold an LED torch under the glass for lighting or sometimes uses natural light and dark wool fabric, as displayed above