Rory Lewis is an internationally acclaimed portrait photographer and a commissioned artist whose work has been acquired by the National Portrait Gallery. In the epicenter of global entertainment, Rory brings a world-class standard to every session, ensuring your professional image carries the prestige of museum-quality artistry.
From high-level studio executives and talent agents to world-renowned actors, Rory provides a fully guided experience designed to project authentic presence, confidence, and visual authority.
“Serving clients from the Sunset Strip, Hollywood Hills, Larchmont Village, and Melrose District.”
“Trusted by the world's leading talent agencies and the city's most prestigious law firms."
Three Pillars of Hollywood Visual Branding
I. Executive & Industry Leadership (Corporate)
In a town built on image, the leaders behind the scenes—agents, managers, and studio heads—require a visual brand that commands respect. Rory Lewis specializes in Executive Portraits that convey leadership, stability, and intellectual depth for Hollywood’s decision-makers.
Visual Authority: Specialized lighting and posing designed to project the confidence required for the C-Suite and high-stakes negotiations.
Brand Identity: Essential for corporate press releases, LinkedIn profiles, and agency "About Us" pages.
II. Editorial Branding for Creators (General Portraits)
Hollywood is the home of the world’s most influential authors, publicists, and creative founders. Rory provides Creative Editorial Portraits that bridge the gap between "corporate" and "cinematic".
Museum-Grade Mastery: With work in the National Portrait Gallery, Rory brings a fine-art edge to your press kit and personal brand.
The High-End Press Kit: Ideal for speakers, consultants, and public figures who need a distinctive visual presence that stands apart from standard photography.
III. The Definitive Actor Headshot
Trusted by icons like Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Ian McKellen, and Dame Judi Dench, Rory creates cinematic headshots that define careers.
The Rory Lewis Hollywood Studio Experience
Located in the heart of the 90028 and 90038, Rory Lewis offers a refined studio environment or a Mobile On-Site Studiofor agencies and PR firms who require visual consistency for their entire leadership team.
Every session is a masterclass in direction—from wardrobe advice to expert posing—ensuring the final, professionally retouched images are both timeless and contemporary.
Actors/Theatrical
There is a unique thrill in photographing the “bad guy.” In the landscape of modern television, the antagonist is rarely just a two-dimensional obstacle for the hero to overcome. Today’s villains are complex, layered, magnetic, and often entirely steal the show. As a portrait photographer, capturing the essence of these actors requires navigating the space between the terrifying characters they portray and the brilliant, multifaceted artists they are in reality.
When you strip away the scripts, the sets, and the costumes, what remains in the studio is raw presence. Here is a look behind the lens at my time photographing three of television’s most iconic and deeply loved antagonists: Brian Cox, Mark Margolis, and Ian McShane.
In the world of acting, a great performance is immortalized on film, but a truly iconic presence can be captured in a single portrait. As a portrait photographer, I have had the immense privilege of photographing some of the finest actors in the industry—artists whose faces tell the stories of their careers, their struggles, and their triumphs. Among them was the late, great Mark Margolis, a true Hollywood legend whose impact on the industry remains indelible.
Mark was a force of nature, widely celebrated for his chilling, Emmy-nominated portrayal of Hector “Tio” Salamanca in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, as well as his unforgettable roles in Scarface, The Wrestler, and Hannibal. Through my lens, I was fortunate enough to preserve two distinct moments in time with this remarkable man.
There’s a certain kind of actor who arrives in the studio already carrying weight — not ego, but experience. Brian Durkin is one of those actors.
Working with Brian in my Los Angeles studio was about refining that presence — stripping things back, sharpening the signal, and creating a set of headshots that feel immediate, grounded, and unmistakably castable.
Some actors walk into the studio and you immediately sense the depth they carry. Natalie Amey is one of those people. Before she ever stepped in front of a camera as an actor, she spent years as a therapist, ICU nurse, and transplant nurse — witnessing the human spirit at its most vulnerable. That kind of experience doesn't leave a person. It lives in the eyes, in the stillness, in the way someone holds a moment.
As a United States Marine Corps veteran, Kevin served honorably as a combat correspondent and documentarian during OEF and OIF. That transition—from the intensity of the front lines to the high-stakes creative machinery of Marvel Studios—is a narrative in itself. I recently had the privilege of hosting Kevin at my Los Angeles studio to capture a series of portraits that reflect his journey from Marine to a leader in the creative industry.
There is a distinct, electric energy that hums through the streets of Studio City and the surrounding Hollywood studio lots. This is the historic epicenter of storytelling, where soundstages rise like modern-day colosseums and the line between reality and imagination is constantly blurred. Over the years, working out of my Los Angeles studio space, I’ve had the distinct privilege of photographing the very actors who anchor the biggest science fiction and fantasy franchises in cinematic history.
When you are tasked with photographing the captains of starships, the leaders of mutant rebellions, and the wizards of Middle-earth, the challenge is unique. How do you strip away the uniforms, the capes, and the visual effects to capture the raw, human gravitas of these genre giants?
Here is a masterclass breakdown of what it’s like to photograph Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Ian McKellen, and William Shatner in the heart of Hollywood.