Tell us the story behind your photo in the British Wildlife Photography Awards exhibition?
This image shows a slender cellar spider gripping a much larger house spider in its jaws. Before feeding, the cellar spider rapidly wrapped its prey in layers of silk, using its exceptionally long legs to keep a safe distance from the powerful jaws of the house spider while it carried out its attack. The result is a tightly bound victim that perfectly illustrates the remarkable hunting ability of cellar spiders and how they can subdue prey far larger than themselves.
How did you go about getting the shot?
I noticed the cellar spider tucked away in a dark corner of a room with what appeared to be some kind of prey in its jaws. Because both spiders were relatively small, I couldn’t immediately tell what I was looking at, but it was obvious something interesting was happening. I quickly grabbed my macro photography equipment so I could investigate the scene more closely.
Once I started photographing it, I realised I was witnessing a miniature battle between a cellar spider and a much larger house spider. It was one of those moments where photography allowed me to see and appreciate behaviour that would have been very difficult to observe with the naked eye.
Did you use any particular equipment or software?
For this image I used an OM SYSTEM OM-D E-M1 Mark II paired with the M.Zuiko Digital ED 60mm F2.8 Macro lens. At this level of magnification, light quickly becomes limited, so I also used a Godox flash fitted with a Cygnustech diffuser to produce soft, even lighting while preserving the fine details and textures of both spiders and the web.
I prefer to keep my photographs as natural as possible, so my editing is fairly minimal. I make small adjustments in Lightroom, along with some light denoising where needed, but I avoid heavy manipulation. My aim is always to present the scene as faithfully as possible to how I experienced it.
What would you like people to think about when they see your work?
I’d love to inspire people to pick up a camera by showing that you don’t have to travel to remote destinations to capture fascinating wildlife. Some of the most incredible photographic opportunities can be found right on your doorstep or in this case, inside your own home.
I also hope my photographs encourage people to appreciate the lives of the tiny creatures we often overlook. Insects, spiders and other small animals display remarkable behaviours every day, yet most of us never notice them. If my images inspire someone to pause, look a little closer and develop a greater appreciation for this hidden world, then I’ve achieved exactly what I set out to do.
What makes you stop and decide that a scene is worth photographing?
I’m particularly drawn to scenes that tell a story, whether that’s a spider hunting, an insect feeding, or two animals interacting in a way that most people never get to witness. Those are the moments that allow viewers to connect with these tiny creatures and see them in a completely different light.
How do you know when you’ve captured “the shot” and can stop shooting?
I usually know I’ve captured “the shot” when I’ve successfully completed a full focus stack with every important part of the subject sharp from front to back. Of course, that’s only possible if the subject decides to stay still long enough! Even then, I’ll often continue shooting in case the behaviour changes or an even better composition presents itself.
What projects are you working on now or have coming up?
I’m currently exploring a local heathland with the aim of photographing species such as beewolves, sand-tailed digger wasps and ornate-tailed digger wasps carrying prey back to their nests. These wasps provision their burrows by paralysing insects, which provide food for their developing larvae, and I’d love to capture these remarkable moments in flight.
Photographing these scenes is incredibly challenging because the subjects are tiny, exceptionally fast and often unpredictable, so it requires a great deal of patience and persistence. I’m also keeping an eye out for ruby-tailed wasps, whose stunning iridescent colours make them one of my favourite British insects to photograph. Every visit to the heathland brings the possibility of witnessing another behaviour that most people never get the chance to see, and that’s what keeps drawing me back.
Check out more of Adam’s photography: