Well that was 2014, it started with Orcas in Norway and ended with Penguins in Patagonia, with a few other continents and a varied selection of the weird and wonderful in between. ‘Life Story’ was broadcast in the autumn, and it was great to see the results of 2 years worth of extremely hard work by a very talented bunch finally make it to the screen. I’ve got lots coming up in 2015, including a 2 year authored project for BBC1 which I can’t wait to get stuck into.
The last shoot of the year – Magellanic Penguins in Argentina – was great fun. A beautiful spot with a fantastic range of wildlife, although you really got the impression that the poor penguins were none too amused at what they had to face; often walking a mile or so through a roasting hot desert and hairdryer-like winds to get to their nest holes. Probably not what they thought they were signing up for as penguins.
They really had it tough, and the whole colony had a pretty bleak and desperate feel to it although the imagery was really dramatic.
Fairly typical bedroom floor on location – and most of the kit is in the corridor outside
Home for most of the three weeks – it survived an absolute battering from the gale force winds – only blew away once …
While at home I’ve managed to start finding the time to get back on the bike; I used to race 15 years ago or so. It’s fantastic to see how cycling culture in the UK has changed in the last decade or so – mainly due to the incredible success of the GB cycling team. I used to be one of the very few grown men (and women) dressed as flabby superhero’s making fools of themselves on the road – now there’s loads of us, even car drivers seem slightly less inclined to try to flatten us, which is definite progress. I’m not quite back to my old racing weight (that’s probably never going to happen) but I’m working my way painfully up the Strava rankings – pure joy.
Looking forward to 2015 I wish everyone health, love and happiness.
I’ll be opening a new website in the next few weeks selling my fine art and wildlife photographs – watch this space