Demochroa Gratiosa is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.
Welcome to Scienceland! As an artist, you are kinda doing science most of the time but this was full on science and It was incredible. Feel free to scroll past all my nerdy lab images for the actual TEM (transmission electron microscope) images of this wicked cool beetle.
Working through my MFA in photography at Louisiana Tech University, I found myself in the Micro manufacturing building learning how to use the FSEM (scanning electron microscope) and the confocal laser scanning microscope to look at Morpho butterfly wings. I am completely obsessed with structural color and how humans interpret what we perceive. This beautiful beetle has my attention and is inspiring me to learn more about the physical properties of light.
Image by Nathan Lord
The LSU Department of Entomology is a constant resource for continuing my education in understanding light. Sounds bananas right!!!! Insects and photography and a microscopy lab, how do those connect? THEY JUST DO…..
The beetle wing that makes me wonder why nature is so cool. Thank you Demochroa Gratiosa for the inspiration.
John and Mary welcomed me into the microscopy lab at the University of Georgia (UGA), they taught me how to make my own samples for imaging with a transmission electron microscope(TEM). BTW! The University of Georgia in Athens is the most beautiful college campus I have walked across, in case you were curious. I’m sharing a few images from the trip. Enjoy what inspires me to make art and learn more about photography.
Each part of the beetle elytron has a different color so I took samples from each area
Samples in resin (blocks)
I love diamonds so this part was a favorite #diamondblade
Mary explaining the art of microtome, this is art
Shaving a block into a trapezoid
The sample under a light microscope, you can see where the microtome will shave slices.
John explaining how this TEM made images, it is basically photography.
Shutter release cable
Glass plates for imaging
I am 100% sure if I had seen this in college I would be a scientist
John and Mary working together to get great TEM images
Beetle elytron sample image
It only took 4 days to make the sample to get this black and white image
Thanks to Joe and Nathan for letting me look through the UGA Entomoloy collection. The UGA Museum of Natural History has very beautiful Morpho butterflies.