I have a Sigma 105 mm f/2.8 macro lens that goes up to 1:1. On my Canon 300D SLR, that gets me to a subject field that is 22.7 x 15.1 mm (the sensor size).So what is your equipment for taking photos up to life size?
I also have a Canon A710 IS point-and-shoot that will reach the same subject size with its built-in auto-focus optics.
You can see here the ambiguity of that phrase "life size". What is "life size" on the DSLR would be "1.6X life size" on a 35 mm camera and is only "1/4 life size" on the A710, whose sensor is 4X smaller. But it's the same framing of the same subject. Only the perspective is different, because of the different shooting distances.
For subjects smaller than 22 mm, I either crop (equivalent to using a smaller sensor with the same long lens), or I use a bellows and any one of several lenses, typically either 80 mm or 38 mm Olympus bellows macro lenses, or a 10X microscope objective, or rarely a 20X objective.
Together, these lenses provide a more or less continuous range from infinity focus down to about 1 mm subject width.
I seldom shoot smaller than 10 mm subjects in the field. If I wanted to do that, either I would buy Canon's MP-E 65 macro lens, which focuses from 1:1 to 5:1, or I would make up a lens combo with long lens in back, short lens reversed in front. Both approaches work well.
Good results can also be obtained by sticking a 2X teleconverter in back of a really good 1:1 macro lens, giving from infinity focus to 2:1. I won't bother trying this with my Sigma 105, as the model I have is a bit soft to start with.
--Rik