'You think the darkness is your ally....'
Filming in the dark.
The night brings a new set of filming rules, skills and safety implications that Luke has perfected over a 20-year career. Having helped develop, test and build rigs from Infra RED UHD to low light cameras and Thermal imaging, Luke has helped in capturing new behaviour in the dark and under the moonlit skies. Contact him for the latest info and for more details on the many species he has filmed.
Big Cats at night.
Luke has spent a large amount of his filming career filming Big Cats. The extra element of adding the night has revealed fantastic behaviour that is seldom seen in the day. From Ocelot and Jaguar in the South American jungles to leopard, lion, cheetah on the plains of Africa and searching for Puma and Tiger on the top of snowy mountains. There have been a few quite intense moments caught on camera.
Seen for the first time.
That time Luke filmed a Jaguar taking turtles off the beach in Costa Rica. He spent a month in a hide on the beach waiting for the turtles and a hungry Jaguar. With a bite evolved to effectively crunch into the head of a dinosaur it was bit of a surprise when she popped over to hide to say hello. Camera traps had revealed the behaviour before but this was the first time it was filmed in action.
Bats!
They don't normally live in the nicest of places. But there is mystery and a real challenge to get it right when filming Bats. Luke has filmed many species, form Mexican freetail bats in their tens of millions to single Pallid bats. He has been in hollow trees and caves with Vampires and put cameras in Bamboo and over rivers. From Infra Red, to Thermal imaging or high speed Phantom sequences each species needs to be considered for the best technology to tell its story with minimum disruption.
Blood Suckers!
There's nothing like trying to stay awake so that Vampire bats don't pop over for a little nip. Rabies anyone? Fourtunately on this shoot in Peru, right on the edge of the atacama destert the fur seals and sea lions were so loud it kept Luke awake. That and the rat that kept running up his trouser leg. Shot in thermal imaging to keep disruption to a minimum in the colony and Luke can still handle sunlight!
Awake and Live at night
Luke has filmed at night for Live transmissions many times. From the BBC 'Watches' series to Big Cat Live and Earth Live for National geographic He even filmed a tight rope walker cross an erupting Volcano at night in Nicaragua.