Francis Prior makes humble house insects look more like cartoon drawings after mastering the art of the extreme close-up.
The 19-year-old amateur photographer uses a special macro lens to capture the tiniest of details, many invisible to the human eye.
Francis Prior makes humble house insects, like
this ant (pictured) look more like cartoon drawings after mastering the
art of the extreme close-up
The 19-year-old amateur photographer uses a
macro lens to capture the smallest of details invisible to the human
eye, like the mesmerising eyes of this jumping spider
After rounding up dead insects such as this
moths from every corner of his parents' home in Halewood, Liverpool,
Francis sets them up in his insect studio
After rounding up dead spiders, flies and beetles from every corner of his parents’ home in Halewood, Liverpool, Mr Prior sets them up in his insect studio.
He takes the detailed shots of the insects using his Canon 550D digital SLR camera.
Using homemade photographic equipment he created from household objects, he sets about painstakingly capturing every micrometre of the insects on camera.
Mr Prior has devised a way of fixing the insect just 0.1 milimetre from his camera lens.
The incredible images can feature up to 100 shots layered on top of one another, and each one takes up to six hours to produce.
They can be magnified 40 times before losing any picture quality.
Using homemade photographic equipment he created
from household objects, he sets about painstakingly capturing every
micrometre of the insects on camera - like this black ant's antennas
The incredible images can feature up to 100 shots layered on top of one another. A Horsefly is pictured
The photographs, such as this one of a moth, can take six hours to produce
Mr Prior, a biology student at Aberystwyth University in Wales, said: 'Two years ago I bought a digital SLR camera and was keen to learn how to use it properly.
'I came across other people doing macro photography and I was just blown away.
'I spent months researching the technique but because I was on such a tight budget I decided to build my own equipment.'
Francis Prior is fascinated by tony details of
insects. Right is a photo of midgy flies wings at twenty times
magnification and left, a drone fly's eye at the same magnification
Details of a dance fly (left) and green speckled bush cricket (right) in all their technicolour glory
His decision to photograph insects is born from his love of nature as a child.
He said: 'Sometimes I go looking outside for insects to be models but often I just look around the house for spiders and flies.
'I have always appreciated nature and when I was younger I wanted to be a vet.
'Nature is beautiful but there are so many amazing things that you can’t see with your own eyes.
'By taking time to come face to face with a spider as it gazes up at you with its eight wondrous eyes, you can only wonder what else there is to see past our limit of vision.
These macro images unlock a whole new world that
you wouldn't otherwise be able to see, said Francis Prior. Pictured is a
millipede
Macro camera lenses allow photographers to capture every tiny hair, as seen on this hoverfly
The best bit is sitting back and appreciating the image and studying the detail.' Pictured is a wasp
'These macro images unlock a whole new world that you wouldn’t otherwise be able to see.
'Each photo can take around six hours to set up and shoot but the end result makes it all worthwhile.
'The best bit is sitting back and appreciating the image and studying the detail.
'I don’t do this for money - I just do it to show people how amazing nature can be.'
This is the head of an shield bug. Mr prior takes his photos to show how amazing nature is
The Macro lens captures every part of a horse fly's eye at ten times magnification
Even the ugly mealworm looks incredible up close thanks to Mr Prior's meticulous approach to photography
