Anticipating this snow, I bought some ranunculus and did the deed. Freezing them in a block of ice is the beginning, setting that block out in the snow is the end. Ranunculus are one of the best flowers for freezing, at least with the technique I use. There is a new way to compose them in my containers, now I use magnets to hold them in place. With the magnets, you wire one to the bottom of the stem, let it sit flat or horizontal. The weight will hold the stem at the bottom of your plastic container. After you fill the container with water, use a magnet on the outside bottom to move the flowers where you want. If the magnets get too close, they will stick together, which can also work, but not always. I find that 2 stems is better than 3, only because it's almost impossible to not have the 3 magnets become attracted to each other. The buoyancy of the water will hold the flowers upright, which works better than my former, upside down way. The first photograph is of the ranunculus shortly after taking them out of the freezer (and out of the plastic container). The second is of the block of ice in the snow, several hours later. All of these photographs were taken outside, in the snow. I use a tethered (to camera) flash for fill light.
As you can see, the water bubbles freeze and the ice cracks. I often add a texture layer to the photograph, which can be very effective.
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