Underwater Wildlife Filmakers, continued...
THE OCEAN'S STORY continued...
The mighty skiff is a powerful tool for wildlife filming, since large liveaboards don't chase sharks very well. But it is a royal pain for anything else. Try changing film and lenses in a small pitching boat in three-foot wind chop, in the rain, while the dive team floats a few feet away wondering why you are now moving at a snail's pace. The key is not to get any of the delicate internal parts wet, while all the time knowing the action is going on below you. If you don't hurry, you will miss it, and there will be no second chance. But of course, you can't hurry, since if you get the smallest dust spot or tiniest hair in the works all is ruined. Or, if in your haste to get the camera up and running again fast, you clean the lens, screw on the right filter, mesh all the right gears, but forget to plug in the battery you can actually hear your name being taken in vain from 60 feet below.
Only 11 minutes of footage per roll are provided by 16mm film. Unlike video, you cannot bring up the tape and watch it immediately on the boat to see if you "got the shot" or not. The film all has to be brought back and sent up to Los Angeles to be processed and printed. It may be weeks after you return home before you can see the outcome of your efforts. Then, the film has to be transferred to videotape. Here, you spend hundreds of hours in a small, dark editing room, making sure the colors, shadows and exposures are all perfect in every scene. A time-consuming and expensive process.
What makes the whole thing gel is the cameraman. His/her job is unbelievably hard. The cameraman must be an expert diver, having perfect buoyancy control and stealth-like movements. A strong swimmer, he or she must operate in currents most sport divers would have never even considering jumping into. This must be done while carrying around a 40-pound tripod, movie lights attached to the boat by 750' of cable, and last but not least, camera housings weighing anywhere from 50 to 75 pounds.
If you're the cameraman, you hope the film does not jam in the camera and the batteries do not die in the middle of the shot. You can't stir up the bottom since it is already difficult to see through the small, dark viewfinder on the back of the camera. You must be able to chase the big animals in open water as well as wait patiently for hours while the small animals perform specific behaviors. You have to hope the generator in the mighty skiff keeps running, and hope you don't burn out a bulb in the movie lights in the meantime.
Or, you can do ALL these things right and the animals just could not care less. They do not give a hoot about all your preparation and all the money you are spending per day to get halfway around the world just to attempt all this madness. I truly believe they all get together when you are back on the boat, between dives, and say to each other; "Hey, I know we usually spawn this time of year, but lets wait a week until these yahoos take off." This happens frequently. That is why when it all works out and you get "the shot," it is truly magical.
The underwater wildlife filmmaker has preparation, patience, perseverance, and good old-fashioned luck in huge quantities. Granted, the risks are high, but the payoffs are even higher.
Sea Dwellers
On The Air |
Screen Saver |
Secrets Products