Another desirable filming location
If you think I am taking the mickey, tough luck. This is the what filming wildlife in the UK can be like. This is the latest in my wildlife cameraman locations as a counterpoint to Planet Earth 2. Yet another desirable filming location.
Why is there a picture of a bathroom in this post? It’s one of the perks of filming urban wildlife having a decent toilet right at hand. Badgers come into gardens quite commonly and our latest mission was to film them in a garden. For more information about badgers why not have a look at this badger link.
Luck plays such a big part in wildlife filming. Yes, you can make your own luck, but you cannot control the weather. The night before we went to Aberystwyth to film badgers the heavens opened. Heavy rain and mild weather can change a badger’s habits. Normally ‘our’ badgers would trot down the field from their sett into our chosen garden. Unfortunately the wet weather made feeding in the pastures a better choice for the badgers. We could see them feeding in the distance under the moonlight.
The Bathroom
I don’t think I’ve ever used a bathroom as a hide before. The owners of the garden and the house were very friendly and accommodating. From time to time they made tea and even pizza slices were available. I had my own hide, the bathroom, while other crew members had the top of the landing and a bedroom. Frankly, they might as well have used it to go to sleep. We stood around for many hours. A cat came into the garden at one point and stared right down my lens, just like the leopards in the last episode of Planet Earth 2. Cats behave the same no matter how big they are.
What is a wildlife cameraman
At times like that I often wonder what a wildlife cameraman is. Standing around for hours on end in a state of continual optimism – that’s part of it. Afterwards you shrug your shoulders and say ‘next time’. Learn from the experience. Was there anything we did wrong. Is there anything we can do better next time. Here’s to the next desirable filming location.