Based in Tel-Aviv, Israel, self-taught photographer Ben Ouaniche has delved into the world of macro photography with a twist.

In this video, Ben used macro lenses, the Syrp Genie for movement and time-lapse control and a variety of homemade tools to expose something we rarely get to see - the beauty behind the process of dissolving pills.

Most of the time-lapses took over 10 hours and presented a steep learning curve that made the lighting setup and environment planning fairly complex. In some cases, the water needed to be gradually heated after a period of time to fully dissolve the pills without interfering with the first thin layer. Between this, adding movement, and naturally occurring changes in light over such a long period of time, ‘Pills Dissolve in Macro’ was an incredibly challenging and time consuming project.

Ben only began dabbling in macro photography about three years ago, going straight to a MPE-65, a super x5 range lens with no auto-focus. Difficult at first, the ability to capture such a different perspective drew him further into the macro world. Adding motion came early on too, being an original Kickstarter backer for Syrp’s motion control device, the Genie, prior to buying a macro lens and having already started to experiment with its time-lapse and video functions.

‘Pills Dissolve in Macro’ is the first of many videos to come from Ben, who has recently started a macro-orientated Youtube channel – Macro Room Channel. You can also find more on his Instagram.

Gear used:

• Canon MP-E 65
• Canon 100mm L
• Canon 50mm 1.4f
• Syrp Genie