Rory Lewis Photographer Headshots & Portraiture

Richmond in the morning. The castle sits above the Swale on a crag and you come up to it through the market place, and then there is the keep, and then there is nothing above you but a hundred feet of Norman stone. I have photographed in cathedrals and in palaces. There is something about a keep. It was not built to be beautiful. It was built so that men could hold it.

I return to New York this August. From Saturday 9 to Wednesday 13 August, my studio at 580 8th Avenue — twenty floors above the Garment District, a few minutes' walk from Times Square and the theatre houses — will be open for actor headshots, portrait sittings, and corporate headshots.

There's a particular pleasure in a sitter you clock the moment they come through the door, and Alex Wyndham was one of them — Maecenas himself, Octavian's silken fixer from the second season of Rome, standing in my Downtown LA studio some seventeen years on and none the worse for it. I confess I said as much straight away, which is not always the done thing with actors, but there it was. One doesn't forget a face that spent a whole season murmuring political poison into a young Caesar's ear.

The stage actor's face, and what a camera asks of it

There is a particular ease to photographing an actor who has spent real time on a stage. The instrument is already tuned. Francis Price came to the Main Street studio with exactly that — a classically trained presence that knows how to hold stillness without going dead behind the eyes, which is the whole quiet art of a good headshot.

There's a particular kind of session that arrives when an actor steps back into the room after time away. The face is the same. The man behind it isn't — and the work, if it's any good, has to hold both.

Brian Kolb came to the Main Street studio to mark exactly that: a return to acting after a break, and the new narrative that comes with it. The brief was not one look, but range — the proof a casting director needs that a man can be cast in more than a single drawer. So we built six, and we built them to argue with each other.

Spent an afternoon at the Downtown studio with actor Elvis Winterbottom, in for a set of headshots built to carry across casting briefs. We talked a great deal between setups, and he turned out to be genuinely interesting company, the kind of sitter who makes the hours run away from you. We worked through a deliberate range of looks: a plain dark tee and mock neck for the stripped-back theatrical frames, a navy waffle knit, a tailored blazer over a soft blue shirt for the producer and executive read, and a weathered leather jacket for something with more grit. One man, several characters, which is exactly what a working actor needs the camera to hold.

Most of the best things that happen in this trade arrive sideways, by way of a handshake you weren't expecting. This was one of those.

I had been asked to speak at Samy's, here in Los Angeles, on the subject of Godox lighting — a perfectly cheerful evening of light shaping and the usual debates about modifiers, where two photographers can disagree for an hour and both be right. When it was over a gentleman came up, introduced himself, and put a card in my hand. Edward Goldstein. He mentioned, almost in passing, that he did some modelling.

The news from Westminster this week confirms what many in the Labour movement have suspected for some time. Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, has been cleared by Labour's National Executive Committee to contest the Makerfield by-election — the seat vacated by Josh Simons — with a view to challenging Sir Keir Starmer for the leadership of the Labour Party.

There is a particular quality of light inside the keep at Richmond Castle. It falls from high, deep-set openings through stone that has stood since the eleventh century, and it arrives cool, directional, and entirely indifferent to the century you happen to be working in. It is the sort of light a painter would have walked a hundred miles to find. On Sunday I found it waiting for me, and I photographed a king beneath it.

I am honoured to share that my portrait of Field Marshal The Lord Houghton of Richmond, GCB, CBE, DL, has been accepted into the Royal Collection — one of thirteen works from my non-profit archive now preserved within it, and among the most recent.

It is with great pride that I share that three further portraits of His Royal Highness The Duke of Kent — photographed in Royal Air Force uniform — have been accepted into the Royal Collection. They join the Field Marshal portraits as part of a body of thirteen works from my non-profit archive now preserved within that collection.

I am honoured to share that my portrait of Field Marshal The Lord Richards of Herstmonceux, GCB, CBE, DSO, DL, has been accepted into the Royal Collection, completing the thirteen works from my non-profit archive now held within that institution.

It is a moment of real significance for my non-profit archive that my portrait of Field Marshal The Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank has been accepted into the Royal Collection, among thirteen works from the archive now held within that institution. This was the first portrait of a British Field Marshal I ever made, and to see it enter the Royal Collection feels like the completion of a circle.

We are five months into 2026, and I can count the Heroes in Focus sittings I've done this year on one hand. That has to change — and soon, because the pace the archive needs is not the pace it is currently moving at. I want to be straight about that, because the work matters too much for me to dress it up.

This portrait, created as part of the ongoing work of the Rory Lewis Non-Profit, documents General Sir Roly Walker, the professional head of the British Army.

Commissioned into the Irish Guards in 1993, General Walker has commanded at company, battle group, brigade, and strategic levels, with operational service in Northern Ireland, Afghanistan, and Iraq. He commanded the Grenadier Guards in 2009 and later served across brigade, divisional, army, and strategic headquarters.

I am very pleased to be able to provide The Rifles Berkshire & Wiltshire Museum with a portrait of Captain Massey, from the 1st Battalion, The Rifles, for inclusion in their newly redeveloped galleries in Salisbury.

Through the Rory Lewis Non-Profit, I am dedicated to preserving the faces and stories of those whose courage defines our shared history. It was an honour to capture the portrait of Mike Pratt, GC, whose bravery and humility stand among the finest examples of service.

In October 2025, I had the honor of photographing Major General James Bowder OBE, the third consecutive Major-General of the Household Division I have captured for the Rory Lewis Non-Profit. Following my portraits of Major General Benjamin Bathurst CBE and Major General Chris Ghika CBE, this latest sitting continues an evolving visual record of those entrusted with upholding the highest traditions of the British Army and the Crown.

Field Marshal David Julian Richards, Baron Richards of Herstmonceux, GCB, CBE, DSO, DL—appointed Honorary Field Marshal by His Majesty The King in June 2025—sat for my non-profit archive on Monday, 6 October 2025. This portrait marks a significant addition to our mission to document the living history of Britain’s senior military leadership through the art of portraiture.

On October 7, 2023, Israel was plunged into chaos when Hamas launched a brutal surprise attack, leaving over a thousand civilians dead and the nation on the brink of war. Among the Americans closest to the events was Gunnery Sergeant Marcus Lewis, Commander of the Marine Security Guard Detachment at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem.

Among the most meaningful moments in my non-profit archive was the privilege of photographing Field Marshal Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank. It was not simply a portrait sitting, but an encounter with a man whose life spanned the defining military and political chapters of modern Britain.

In the heart of Downtown Los Angeles, I had the privilege of photographing Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Stauffer as part of my ongoing Heroes in Focus (Rory Lewis non-profit) military portrait initiative. This work exists to document service with dignity—creating lasting, museum-grade portraits that honour leadership, commitment, and the human story behind the uniform.

Portraiture, at its best, does more than record a likeness—it preserves leadership, responsibility, and history. In this portrait of General Sir James Everard, recently featured in The Telegraph, the aim was to convey not only authority, but the gravity of command carried by one of Britain’s most experienced senior officers.

My third visit to The Royal Lancers marked a significant moment in the continuing evolution of my long-term military portraiture work, now undertaken through my non-profit practice. Returning to the regiment in 2024 allowed for a deeper, more reflective engagement—building upon earlier sittings to create a cohesive body of work rooted in heritage, continuity, and service.

The Rory Lewis Non-Profit is proud to have funded the latest addition to the distinguished gallery of British Army leaders: a portrait of General Sir Patrick Sanders, KCB, CBE, DSO, ADC Gen. Serving as Chief of the General Staff since June 2022, Sir Patrick’s career exemplifies the leadership, dedication, and strategic excellence that define the modern British Army.

The Soldiery project by Rory Lewis now forms part of the permanent collection of the National Army Museum in London. This landmark acquisition underscores the project’s historical, cultural, and educational importance, and stands at the heart of the mission of the Rory Lewis Non-Profit: to preserve military heritage through museum-grade portraiture for future generations.

The Rory Lewis Non-Profit is honored to have captured and preserved the legacy of Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the current Chief of the Defence Staff, marking him as the fifth Chief of the Defence Staff photographed by Rory Lewis. This portrait continues the Non-Profit’s mission to document and celebrate the leadership and service of Britain’s most distinguished military figures.

Rory Lewis Non Profit is proud to donate a series of portraits to The Rifles Museum in Winchester. Located within the historic Winchester Military Quarter, the museum offers a compelling insight into the heritage and evolution of the British Army’s largest infantry regiment.

In 2022, Rory Lewis Non-Profit was honoured to record a formal portrait of General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith, KCB, CBE, undertaken in London during his tenure as Chief of the General Staff. The commission was created for permanent display within the gallery of former Chiefs—an historic lineage marking the stewardship of the British Army’s senior leadership.