MMC4:

MMC2:

MMC20CL:

Now you need to find a really good MMC6000 ! That has the most complex profile of all! Lovely pictures. I do have an electron microscope picture of the MMC4 somewhere which confirms that it is almost spherical!

MMC20CL (left pic) & MMC20EN which looks very much like the MMC3

I have to say your pictures are in a different league to mine Peter but in defence, mine were taken using a cheap digital camera with the lens from a microscope taped over the camera lens - oh and about 100 rather intoxicated attempts - not something I would ever consider trying sober BTW

I was quite please with my results though

I have to admit to being in total awe of the stone cutters/setters or whatever machinery was involved in creating these gems (no pun intended) - especially the CL & MMC1/2 series which involves drilling the finest hole in a sapphire cantilever in which to set the stylus. Sapphire comes only 2nd on the MOH's scale of hardness (to diamond of course) so even the tooling for such tasks beggars belief to me.

Those are great shots too! I did mine with a special macro lens, but it's tricky no matter which way you go about it... with special lenses you often have only a few milimeters of focal depth to play with.

You can indeed see the hollow sapphire cantilever here (click to enlarge):

 

Very nice pictures, both of yous

A friend of mine just started a job in a shop for professional photography gear so I might have the chance to take a close-up photo of my MMC1 soon.
 

Amazing pictures, very impressed. Do like you method Chris.As they say "Necessity is the mother of invention" or something like that.

 

Craig 

Craig:

Amazing pictures, very impressed. Do like your method Chris.As they say "Necessity is the mother of invention" or something like that.

 

Craig 

Thanks Craig.

It was just one of those strange "eureka" moments I have when I've overindulged on the alcohol. It's amazing the things I take to task which I would think better of in a more lucid state of mind

As with Peters photos, there are only a couple of millimetres of focal length to play with which makes the task extremely difficul with a rather unsteay hand (& mind).hence the 100's of attempt to get just the one decent pic'.