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I’m Rory J Lewis, a Macro Wildlife Photographer based in Wiltshire, UK.
I specialize in stylised invertebrate portraits, using ethical techniques to capture intricate wildlife images in their natural habitat.
I’ve been around photography for most of my life. My father is an enthusiastic photographer who passed on his experience to me some years ago. However, my journey into macro came much later.
The first time I toyed around with diopters and reversed my lenses, I instantly became hooked on what seemed like a journey into another world, and being able to pass that wonder onto others through my photography became my absolute passion.
Since then, my work has often been published, awarded, and exhibited, and I have been lucky enough to work with some of the top brands in the medium.
Canon EOS R7 – I am currently on my third Canon camera body, my latest and absolute favourite.
I usually go for a high-quality APS-C, as the effective increased working distance and depth of field are handy for macro.
As most of my images are handheld, manual focus stacks, the superior burst speed of the Canon EOS R7 has been a game changer for me.
Less time creating the focus bracket means more chance of success. As all my images are of healthy subjects in the wild, being able to capture the image before they decide to move away is of the essence.
The class-leading pixel density for a crop sensor was of enormous appeal to me, too, as retaining as much detail as possible when resizing and cropping to create exciting compositions can be very useful.
Pairing with the Canon EOS R7, I mostly rely on Laowa lenses for my macro, as their increased magnification makes them so versatile.
They’ve also been an incredibly supportive brand along my journey, and I’ve had the opportunity to work with them occasionally.
Laowa RF 90mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO – As a fully manual lens, this may not be the best choice for beginners, but it’s an absolute beauty when you get to grips with it.
The 2:1 magnification ratio means that even the most minor subjects are within your grasp, and it’s also one of the sharpest lenses I’ve ever used.
Its slightly more compact size and reduced weight over its 100mm predecessor make it a much more balanced pairing for a mirrorless set-up, and these days, it rarely comes off of my camera.
Laowa EF 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO – My trusty back-up lens. This was the last macro lens that Venus Optics made with an auto-aperture.
It makes for a lens that’s difficult to part with; even though it’s been superseded by the 90mm, it remains a beloved member of my kit bag.
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM – On rare days, I want some slightly more casual ‘from the hip’ single-shot type macro, and my reliable old 60mm never fails.
It has snappy auto-focus for even the busiest bees, and it can also be paired up with the R7’s in-body auto bracketing. I never use it, but it’s there if I decide to, which is nice.
A good quality flash that can keep up is imperative as I create all my focus brackets handheld and manually by pushing forward in high-speed bursts.
Godox V860II-C – One of my favourite and most indispensable equipment items in my bag, this flash’s large, rechargeable battery pack gives it an incredible recycling time.
When set to mechanical shutter, the Canon EOS R7 gives me a max burst speed of fifteen frames per second, and with the power set below 1/32, the Godox can keep a consistent pace for a good run.
With this combination, I can create a focus bracket of around fifty exposures in just a few seconds, which is critical to the success of my images.
It can feel a little heavy after a while, but that aside, I love this flash.
If you’re using flash for macro, you also need sound flash diffusion, and after years of creating my own, only to see them get crushed out of shape while travelling, I eventually decided to let someone else do the work.
Cygnustech Diffuser – For those who don’t know, using bare flash at close range on shiny invertebrate bodies can create horrible specular light reflections, crushing all that fine detail.
A decent flash diffuser setup can soften the light to such a degree that it can almost be indiscernible from natural daylight.
The Cygnustech Diffuser has the added benefit of a straightforward design, meaning it can be taken on and off the camera in seconds and folds flat as a sheet of paper.
The guy behind the design, Brendan, is a well-known character within the international macro photography community and is always on hand to discuss what solution will best suit your set-up, as all are bespoke designs.
Until recently, these diffusers were only available through Instagram, but these can now be ordered directly from their brand-new website. I’ve ordered many of these, as I use them for my clients in my workshops, which they love!
Finally, I edit on an NVIDIA RTX 4090 Workstation, using mainly Helicon Focus to stack my brackets and a combination of Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom for all my other edits.
So there’s my kit!
It’s not a lot, but I am a bit of a one-trick pony. I use many other less-specialized Canon lenses for ubiquitous family photos, but I’m not skilled enough with those to boast about them!
Thanks so much for taking the time to read about my gear.
Please look at my photos to see what it’s all about!
Website | Instagram
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