Hi,
I've just returned from an unusual shooting trip, it took me to the very top branch of a Noble Fir Tree (70 ft +).
Situated on top of the said tree was an Osprey's nest, with two chicks in it.
I was asked to go along and film the man from the BTO ringing the chicks.
I remembered to take the most important piece of equipment with me?
No not the camera!
A pair of bicycle clips!!!!!
I got some super pictures with the Canon XM1, didn't take the tripod, just hand held, trust me.
This was a fantastic opportunity to tryout the optical stabiliser on this camera and it really performed well.
It was not so much the tree that was shaking, but my hand.
Jim Bird.
Oh, a pair of Scottish Ospreys nested in England for the first time this year, they must have found a secret supply of haggis.
Jim, that sounded like fun. What an experience, how about posting a few stills on a web site somewhere?
Nice work Jim.
Were the images on the website framegrabs from the XM1 or from a stills cam?
The XM1 is a nice little cam and agree on its optical stab - very good.
David.
Jim, I just looked at the site and got 6 identical pages with a "next page" button but no pictures. The URL bar was pointing to HTML pages, and Netscape said it was happy with the pages, but no pictures. I'll try again from home tonight.
Hi Allan and David,
Firstly David, the pictures were taken with the Canon XM-1, it was an overcast night on Tuesday 3rd July, at 20.30 approx.
I had to film using the wide-angle setting, as it was impossible to take a step back at the sharp end of the tree.
The birds were removed from and ringed at the nest, but some ringers lower them in baskets using ropes and ring them on the ground.
The parent birds flew around the tree, squawking, while keeping an eye on proceedings from a safe distance. They return to their young ones shortly after we left.
Alan,
I use IE5 and I checked the pages, both on and offline, so I'm not quite certain what has gone wrong here? It appears David has seen all six pages and pictures.
Thanks for taking the time to look chaps.
Jim Bird.
I'm on Netscape here, and IE4 at home. I'll report back later.
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alan@mugswellvillage.freeserve.co.uk. Delete village for a spam-free diet.
Picked them up on my I.E.5 o.k.
Those guys doing the ringing look awful casual seeming they're perched on top of a blinking great tree!
I also notice what a handful those chicks look. I bet not much older and you would never get hold of them.
Never seen an Osprey before, thanks Jim and well done. I must show my brother who is the world's greatest twitcher. He spent a sun-drenched week on the Norfolk Broads peering through a pair of binoculars. The birds always flew off in the other direction as soon as they spotted him!
Cheers, Red.
Coincidentally, BBC 2 at 8.00pm tonight;
'Profile of the Osprey, maestro of fishing'
Got to be worth a watch.
Hi Red,
Pleased you saw the pics, Alan got me panicking!
You are correct, there was not much room at the top of that tree, but we tie ourselves on with rope and tackle.
Glad to here your brother got some sun though.
Thanks for the TV info.
Jim Bird.
Great pics. My first thought was "THAT'S A CHICK!!!"
The thought of shooting a video up there with the even bigger parents swooping around is not something I'd fancy.
Well done.
Jim, it worked at home on IE4, but still doesn't here at work on Netscape. Hmmm.
Anyway, I saw the pictures and grabbed and printed a few. I'm impressed, splendid job, you've got a better head for heights than I have. Have you tried selling any of the footage to BBC Bristol (Natural History Unit)?
Hi Alan,
I had never though of selling the pictures.
Perhaps I need to get myself an agent!
How much is your commission?
Jim Bird.
Jim, I can't get the pictures on two different machines using Netscape at work. Haven't tried IE on my home machine yet. As Alan said, clicking on "next page" just loads a new blank page with the title "Ringing of the young Ospreys" at the top. Do you think this is Microsoft's way of cutting out Netscape users?
Paul
Jim, I don't charge commission, I just like seeing good pictures. I can probably find some contacts at Bristol if need be.
Paul, thanks for confirming that, I was wondering if it was just my woefully inadequate work PC and the network. Go home anf look again using IE, the pictures are super.
Jim,
We work closely with the National Geographic image/video library (we have a contract with them for some of our wildlife footage).
In most big stock libraries, good quality material is sold for between 100-400 UKP per second. And when putting together a documentary that's still cheaper than hiring a crew and doing it yourself for those hard-to-get short pieces.
Other material is cheaper, and many TV series are put together entirely from library footage. And I'm not just talking about the endless array of WWII 'Nazi' documentaries now doing the rounds. A lot of wildlife programmes are handled that way.
That's why ownership is so important in TV production. Most money is made from stock and resales. By being commissioned you get rather a small return and someone else owns the material at the end.
When that first buzz of seeing your material broadcast wears off, you start asking yourself many questions.
Retaining ownership and selling through a library may not be as glamourous as making an entire programme. But it leaves a warm feeling in the bank. Assuming you have something that the customer wants of course...
David.
[This message has been edited by David Haynes (edited 11 July 2001).]
I couldn't get anything on Netscape either but Internet Explorer was fine.