Brisbane Extra is a Monday to Friday TV magazine programme which preceeds Channel 9’s main evening news. I was the subject of a segment which included footage from the Archive. As with Totally Wild earlier in the year, it was gratifying to see my material shown on TV.
The forum was held at Griffith University in Brisbane from June 25 – 27. I was particularly interested in presentations about biodiversity projects in South East Queensland by two professors from the university.
I had been in contact with one and the other was known to me by name and reputation. I was able to briefly meet both of them.
There were many interesting talks about rainforest in North Queensland as well as in the local area. A talk about fungal conservation in a remnant gallery rainforest was right up my street, given my love of filming fungi.
Hearing the scientists and naturalists talk at the forum, and some of them touch on wanting to find ways to inform the public about their work, confirmed a feeling which I had started to formulate about the potential value of video archiving biodiversity research projects. I mentioned this to both the professors. One found the presence of a documentary crew filming his project (involving scientists from many parts of the world) intrusive. I said it need not be intrusive. I suggested to the other that he should consider video archiving his project using… Read Complete Text
It became clear after attending the Wildscreen Festival in Bristol last October that in order to add to my archive I needed to buy an HD (High Definition) camera. I chose a Sony HVRV1P. It is a lot lighter than my trusty Canon XL1.
Editing my previous footage took three years. Remastering from digital tape to DVD and getting the website up and running took a further year. So I was delighted to resume filming at last, on 1st April.
My first subject was three Asian water buffaloes gracing a field next to a main road – rather exotic and picturesque. I made the mistake of immediately viewing the footage on an HD TV. The upshot was that having just forked out a tidy sum for the camera, I found myself forking out a whole lot more on an HD TV. Of course it would have been crazy to film in HD without being able to view the footage on an HD monitor.
The camera tapes run for 64 minutes. I have just started my fifth tape. I plan to add to the Archive one 60 minute DVD at… Read Complete Text
I had a half-hour live Queensland-wide interview on ABC Radio with Steve Austin, my favourite presenter, which apparently went very well. I enjoyed doing it – though, as ever, there were things I should have mentioned that I didn’t.
Since we launched the archive and website I have done a number of live radio interviews, either over the phone or in the studio. I only do them live, you know. Seriously, I have so far found them a lot of fun. I particularly recall an interview last year with another excellent presenter, Trevor Jackson on ABC Coast FM.
Five segments from the archive have been posted to YouTube.
The clips can also be accessed here. More will be added from time to time. I'll let you know when.
A segment prompted by the archive was shown in Australia on Totally Wild, Channel Ten’s national programme for children. It included naturalist Doug White with whom I made a very productive foray into MacDonald National Park, filming more fauna species for the archive than on any other visit to a national park. Appropriately, the segment was filmed in the park one morning last November and was fun to do. The young presenter was very good.
Doug and I spoke to camera about the Mountain’s biodiversity, its fragility in the light of the population growth in South East Queensland and the value to the planet of rainforest like that on the Mountain. The segment included aerial footage by Hugh Alexander and footage by me of fungi, birds, insects and views of the escarpment. It was pleasing to have some of my footage broadcast at last.
I was delighted that shots of a giant Cereus cactus as high as a two-storey house and with the bulk of a tree were used, because the conditions which allow the rainforest to accommodate its biodiversity also allow this alien from southern USA and Central America to flourish… Read Complete Text
Tamborine Mountain is famous for its gardens and its gardeners. Its flourishing Garden Club holds an annual Spring Festival which brings thousands of enthusiasts to the Mountain from far and wide.
The Club also looks after the Botanical Gardens which occupy 11 hectares (27 acres) and include a lake which is home to waterfowl, turtles, eels, fish and water dragons.
The Club has just published a completely revised edition of The Tamborine Mountain Gardener. The only colour pages in the book are made up of photos taken from the Archive, which I find most heartening and touching.
The book’s designer, Angela McKinstry, has designed all the Archive’s print material.
I lodge the archive with the State Library of Queensland.
In December 2006 the splendidly enlarged library in the cultural precinct on the south bank of the Brisbane River will open its doors to the public. In due course its Heritage Collections will house my camera-original tapes, the DV CAM master tapes and associated papers.
I am home after almost two months in Europe combining pleasure with pleasure, eg I extended my stay to attend Wildscreen in Bristol UK, which is billed as the world’s largest, most prestigious and influential event for wildlife and environmental film-makers.
I had a blast. I was able to progress my concept for a documentary series on biodiversity (my pet spin-off project, even if it is the longest of long shots). I brought back follow-up work which will continue to keep me busy for quite some time.
The archive and website were very well received. One consequence is that we have exchanged links with some more good websites. (See Links page).
I also had a couple of excellent meetings with a producer from the BBC Natural History Unit. He won the top award at Wildscreen for Life in the Undergrowth and is working on a new blue chip series. There is a move to increase the interactive component of programmes and although it is early days yet, we discussed my possible involvement in helping viewers create their own video records.
Interestingly, both the Eden Project people… Read Complete Text
Clive and I had a productive meeting with two of the creative team at the Eden Project in Cornwall about a video installation using material from the Archive – another of the spin-off ideas I want to develop.
Eden expressed a desire to do a project with me and we plan to look at a number of options.
One thing I am keen to do is to show people how they can make their own Archives. Eden likes to energise people to do their own thing.
