THE MAKING OF "PREDATORS"
Daphne Barbieri Placed 3rd Overall
Three years ago I joined a small group in Kenya who were all photographers, and who had come together to film/photograph wildlife with Warren Samuels, a cameraman with the BBC Big Cat Diary. The trip was very successful, so the following year at the end of August, I joined him again to film the migration. I had a preconceived idea of what I wanted, but with nature anything can happen, or not., and in this case I had to revise my ideas.
The good thing about being with a professional was that my camera had a lead to a monitor in the vehicle, and Warren could see exactly what I was looking at, and direct me in taking the shots. Of course, I knew it all before, but being with a pro is a whole different game, and I felt very much the new pupil! Being "taught" this way is very beneficial, but also very hard work!
I had wanted film of the migration, but didn't see huge masses of wildebeest crossing the Mara River. Instead, I filmed the predators with their prey. The closest I got to an animal was when a cheetah, who had just caught a gazelle, pulled her prey across to the shade of our vehicle, and stopped directly under my camera -I could have touched her! This was pure luck, but it gave me a perfect close-up of her eating. The sounds were incredible. We sat and watched her for a full 45 minutes, before moving the vehicle slowly away. That was when the vultures soared down.
Patience, and luck, is essential, and as this was a dedicated filming trip, we had plenty of time to sit for hours, sometimes as much as six hours, just watching and waiting, or following a pride of lions, or cheetahs, to get some good footage.
The film I initially made was almost 15 minutes long, entitled "Life and Death". I reduced this to 5 minutes, including only the gory bits, and naming it "Predators". I know it is not to every viewer's taste, but then nature is raw and full of predators and prey, and the migration provides plenty of both.
Daphne Barbieri Placed 3rd Overall
Three years ago I joined a small group in Kenya who were all photographers, and who had come together to film/photograph wildlife with Warren Samuels, a cameraman with the BBC Big Cat Diary. The trip was very successful, so the following year at the end of August, I joined him again to film the migration. I had a preconceived idea of what I wanted, but with nature anything can happen, or not., and in this case I had to revise my ideas.
The good thing about being with a professional was that my camera had a lead to a monitor in the vehicle, and Warren could see exactly what I was looking at, and direct me in taking the shots. Of course, I knew it all before, but being with a pro is a whole different game, and I felt very much the new pupil! Being "taught" this way is very beneficial, but also very hard work!
I had wanted film of the migration, but didn't see huge masses of wildebeest crossing the Mara River. Instead, I filmed the predators with their prey. The closest I got to an animal was when a cheetah, who had just caught a gazelle, pulled her prey across to the shade of our vehicle, and stopped directly under my camera -
Patience, and luck, is essential, and as this was a dedicated filming trip, we had plenty of time to sit for hours, sometimes as much as six hours, just watching and waiting, or following a pride of lions, or cheetahs, to get some good footage.
The film I initially made was almost 15 minutes long, entitled "Life and Death". I reduced this to 5 minutes, including only the gory bits, and naming it "Predators". I know it is not to every viewer's taste, but then nature is raw and full of predators and prey, and the migration provides plenty of both.
Daphne Barbieri has supported our competition for several years now. Predators is yet another interesting film from this versatile film maker.
