Instagram: @geraintradfordmacro

Geraint is a professional wildlife macro photographer and tutor, an insect’s best friend, vegan and cake addict. Growing up in the beautiful Welsh valleys his days were often spent with his younger brother exploring the outdoors and searching for bugs, slow worms and other mini beasts. This is where he found his deep love and appreciation of nature and wildlife. Macro photography is his way of sharing with others the amazing creatures and plant life that often goes overlooked and he does so with the welfare of the subject as a priority. Geraint’s photographs have been used by The BBC in calendars and magazines and can be seen in various photographic magazines and online articles. 

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"I absolutely love damselflies, they have such amazing features and faces which are full of character. I added two sets of extension tubes to my Olympus 60mm macro lens to gain enough magnification for a portrait and as I was focusing I noticed that the damselfly appeared to be smiling!"

"Robberflies have been on my photographic wish list for quite a while, it was such an amazing experience to have found this beautiful creature stay still and allow me capture a focus stack that shows it's really cool looking compound eyes!"

"Whilst taking a stroll through my local woodland I spotted (get it?) an adorable ladybug crawling through some moss. I spent a few minutes following it around and luckily, it paused for a few seconds for me to capture this image before it carried on with it's journey."

"How EPIC is this Nettle Weevil? He paused mid walk just long enough for me to snap this some pictures! These are some of my favourite beings ever! This is 10 images, shot handheld and focus stacked." 

GARDEN TAKEOVER WITH GERAINT RADFORD

See how Geraint tackles macro photography right in his own back garden.

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MACRO AT HOME

Watch this video and discover wonderful macro photo opportunities in your own back garden.

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MACRO FOCUS STACKING

See how you can improve your macro photography with Focus Stacking.

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"How cute! Towards the end of a rather uneventful day if macro photography, this little weevil saved the trip. By the time I'd found it the sun had set and the woods were beginning to get spooky. Holding my EM1-X in one hand I had to use the torch of my phone just to focus. The sparkles of the weevil and the beautiful colour of the bluebell really made me happy."

Instagram: @innis2winnis

Chris McGinnis is a graphic designer, photographer, and macro photography enthusiast based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He obtained his degree in graphic design from Moravian College and, after a stint in the publishing world, joined the creative department at Olympus America. Chris currently works as the Director of Creative Services and oversees all phases of Olympus’ graphic design, photography, and video production. As Chris ventured deeper into the world of macro, he soon shifted his efforts toward featuring the beauty, design, and intricacy of arthropods which often go unnoticed.

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"Trying to photograph dragonflies can be incredibly frustrating ... but also incredibly rewarding. Here, for example, patience and luck aligned just enough to let me grab a shot of this meadowhawk’s face. Besides looking awesome, these amazing eyes are also awesome at looking (get it?). With 30,000 facets, these (ultra-)compound eyes allow dragonflies to see colors that are beyond human visual capabilities ... even UV light!"

"For the last few years, on Father’s Day, my wife has gifted me a full day of recreation – chasing bugs. Yesterday, I spent the majority of the day exploring local meadows and wooded trails as I snapped shots of whatever tiny critters I found along the way. While I haven’t yet had the chance to closely review all of the images, I just had to jump on sharing this one. I seriously love horseflies and when I saw this male striped horsefly (Tabanus lineola) on the bright orange rail of a footbridge, I knew there was potential for something cool."

"Long-legged flies like this one are always on the move. They only stay still for a few seconds and have one of the fastest reaction times in the animal kingdom. With a lot of patience and a little luck, I was able to shoot a sequence of three handheld photos. I initially set focus at the front of the fly’s face and slowly pushed in while my shutter and flash fired. After capturing the images, I focus stacked them to create a single, composited image that shows the entire face in focus." 

“My three-year-old daughter found this tiny jumping spider walking along our living room’s window sill. She wanted me to photograph it (and so did I, of course). I gently coaxed the spider onto a piece of paper so I could relocate it onto our coffee table where it would be easier to shoot. I then let the spider climb onto a multicolored faux fur pom-pom that provided a comfortable space for the spider and a multi-colored scene for my shot. I captured the shot with my OM-D E-M1 Mark II and 60mm F2.8 Macro, outfitted with a Raynox DCR-250 conversion lens. To light the scene, I used an FL-700WR flash that was mounted to my camera’s hot shoe and diffused the flash with a homemade softbox diffuser. Working at 1:1 and F13, I was able to keep the spiders eyes and palps in focus while achieving a soft pastel background.”

Watch the recording of the Chris' #HomewithOlympus Facebook Live and learn how to capture amazing insect photos.

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