MARCH 2024 - Drone operator for a train spotting travel show for BBC

A wild and fun day out filming Francis Bourgeois for a BBC travel show going from south off England right to the north. I was aerial filming for my local patch from Dunkeld up to Inverness and being the nice guy I am handing over some stock footage for their day to Thurso:)

The first thing Francis said to me was how well does it fly in these winds. I said its managing fine just now but as it got windier it was struggling a bit but it was getting very winding as the day went on.

Great crew and always fun filming trains as they do tend to get the adrenaline going as they only pass once and you have to catch it on film and make it look lovely at the same time!

A successful day though:)

Francis chatting to Tom’s camera near Kingussie.

Dalwhinnie

JUNE 2023 - Myself as a drone pilot in the papers for advertising the new National Geographic series 'Europe from Above'

Appeared in a few papers over the weekend to advertise the National Geographic series called Europe from above. I shot a few of the UK parts of it mainly in Scotland with Barra airport, Up Hella Ya in Shetland, an Archeological dig on Holy Island where a few. Great to be involved in this and the second series for me. Below arte a few paper articles and seemingly it ran in around 100 regional papers too. Nice phot of me in the Sun lol.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/22629778/brits-never-heard-traditional-events/

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12178487/UKs-ancient-traditions-leave-modern-day-Brits-baffled.html

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/uk-news/top-unknown-traditional-uk-events-30193275

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/top-unknown-traditional-uk-events-30193038

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1779034/top-traditional-uk-events-competitions-cheese-rolling

Me and my Inspire 2 drone with the X7 camera that I use to shoot the series.

JUNE 2021 - Drone pilot and cameraman in Glencoe for BBC ALBA

A couple of great days in Glencoe on our Dana Tv series with the great team from SOLUS Productions. Myself on Drone and long lens again with Hamish on main camera and directing. Kenny starring and Matt along for the ride. Rowan in production with us and Andy Nelson doing Hamish’s safety on the rock route while I scrambled up curved ridge myself on the first day to get good angles for filming the team on Agags groove a V.Diff climb. The following day we filmed some running on the Devils Staircase.

Agags Groove on the Buichaile Etive Mor

MAY 2021 - Cameraman and drone pilot in Arrochar alps with ITV 'This Morning'

A great day filming with Josie Gibson on the Cobbler, with Dominic Gatt doing the directing. We had Emma a contributor with us and her friend Nick. Was a bit more of a day out that most expected but made for some great footage:) Then a swim in Loch Lomond to finish the shoot. A big day and myself doing camera, sound and drone.

FEBRUARY 2021 - BBC Country file, directing filming and aerial filming in the Cairngorms

So in the past I have sold aerial footage to Country file but as yet I hadn’t filmed for them. So was great to get a call to film two segments for them. We got the first one done but the Reindeer still await the snow to return as we just missed the best snow.

So this days filming was with Alice Goodridge who runs a wild swimming company and runs the Scottish winter swimming championships and other things. She also swims everyday of the year. And this day it was -4 and blowing 20mph and the Loch was frozen over.

Usually for TV things there is often a director and sometimes a sound person, and maybe others but with this pandemic the country file team can’t get out of Bristol so are trying to use local folk, where they can, and also small teams. Which they would do camera wise anyway but usually have a director sent. So I did all the parts and had a fun day with Alice and Alistair her husband on Loch Insh. Alice swimming and getting straight in as spin drift blows over her just in a swim suit is pretty impressive. I was even persuaded to get in after a 7hr shoot day with already numb fingers and toes lol. It was very refreshing and I did indeed (as Alice says) feel much more alive after. (Although maybe not so much while in the water, more trying to stay live I think.

Fun when you can film with normal cameras, underwater and from the air. The producer Helen when she got the footage from me and was in the edit suite sent me a text. It started “you are a wonderful man. There are so many wonderful shots”. So good to hear when shooting for a new TV program and even though I have been making films for a while I still get weirdly nervous until things are in the edit suite:)

A few pics below.

JANUARY 2021 - Road Aerial filming in the Highlands for Transport Scotland

As people (by people I mean road engineers) can’t get out on mass to see where new roads will go and walk the path, if you like, then I have been doing a few fly throughs, so people can watch in isolation in their houses what the landscape looks like and get a better idea of how to quote for jobs and what is feasable.

An old oak for a launchpad

JANUARY 2021 - Drone filming in the Scottish Highlands for BBC

Filming for a BBC Geography Animation for Education. A fun few days and got to go up a mountain as this film traces the River Tay from source to sea. Unfortunately after the first few days filming it snowed so continuity has been lost for the next part of filming so just waiting for the snow to go (as it keeps falling outside haha). But the team are getting going with the animation from the first two days filming. All the shots are static shots from drone and also ground cameras to make the animation onto the shots easier.

The view on Ben Lui from the source of the river Tay.

JULY 2020 - Visit Cairngorms welcome back film

Well it seems apt that my first few days of work since the 16th of March on “The Crown” is a promotional film called “ We miss you!! We are preparing to welcome you back” all about welcoming people back to the Cairngorms National Park, where I live:)

The film was organised by www.visitcairngorms.com and I had two days to shoot it and get round 18 businesses spread over the large park. I came up with a script giving each business one line to say from the message Visit Cairngorms had. This would allow me hopefully quicker filming at each place as I wanted some action shots with the drone also. Mark at Visit Cairngorms luckily did all the logistics and timings on a spread sheet so I could just travel round to people who knew I was coming and knew their line:) We wanted to keep the message positive with a brief mention of COVID as everyone gets plenty of the rules through the media and press to educate everyone on the best practices, and it keeps changing depending on where the country is at while fighting it.

Enjoy:)

We can't wait to share the place we are so proud to call home with you again soon. #CairngormsTogether 💜Get planning ➡️ https://www.visitcairngorms.com/ Like...

AUGUST 2019 - Filming Whisky and Distilleries for WOW Scotland

A tour of some of Scotland distilleries on a tasting tour. Fun day out filming and got to see a barrel of whisky worth £1.2m! It was only a third full as the rest had evaporated! Also got to visit a cooperage where they make whisky barrels. My grandad did this all his life so it was pretty interesting to see. They fairly graft!

The 1953 barrel is worth £1.2m and is only a third full as the rest evaporated:)

AUGUST 2019 - Filming John Torode cooking show for ITV 'This Morning'

Had a great few days working with this team again and this time in Dorset and in the sun. Great we all know each other as it makes the working a lot easier. John made some amazing dishes which we always get to taste and we visited some lovely spots.

Was using my GH5 and steady cam for a lot of the filming here plus the Mavic 2 pro Drone :)

John about to cook in the Vine yard:)

The Team in Dorset

AUGUST 2019 - Drone work tonight on BBC 1

Tonight at 7.30pm some of my drone work from filming on the Isle of Bute with the Syrian refugees will be on.

This was a great shoot to a new Island for me and with a great bunch of people including Ali who I filmed the most of. We also ate in Helmi’s for a lunch a brilliant Bakery/cafe run by one of the Syrian families, well worth a visit if you are there:)

The filming was organised by Caledonia TV in Glasgow who I have done quite a bit of drone work for over the years:)

Myself and Ali on Bute

AUGUST 2019 - British Kayak Surf Champs film online

A few days ago Glenmore Lodge released the Surf Champs 2018 film. This was a great fun day up in Thurso on the North Coast of Scotland filming teenagers to folk in their fifties surf Kayaking. Great atmosphere and fun to watch and to film. Pretty fun drone flying too. Trying to get close but not get wave spray on my drones:) I used my DJI Inspire 2 with X7 Camera and the Mavic 2 pro. And used all of the combined 27 batteries haha.

All the action from the 2018 Surf Kayaking British Championships

JUNE 2019 - Some of my Antarctic aerial filming in Godzilla:)

Some of my Antarctic aerial filming got into the newest Godzilla film. Brilliant to be a drone pilot for part of a big blockbuster with so much history. One of the clips shown below which appears in the film has a mountain ridge in the foreground which is aptly called Reptile ridge:)

MAY 2019: CASIO F30: The making of film

Here is a little look back at the second Casio watch advert I have made over the past 12 months. This goes into the details of what goes on behind the scenes and how Scottish weather can make things change quite a lot!

Just noticed this was a while back and I definitely look that 3 and 1/2 stone heavier than I am now, kept me solid on the windy days though hahaha;)

Had a great team with Warren the script writer and presenter and initial ideas man from Casio. Then we added into the mix this time: Joe Kirk (kayaker and biker), Jess Creber (biker), Iain Rudkin (photographer) and Will Copestake (photographer).

Have a look below and the actual advert is below that again:)

DRONE SHOWREEL 2018

A new aerial showreel for Perfect View productions from jobs working as a Drone pilot in Scotland over the past year.  I had a bit of spare time this week so good to put this together.  I hope you enjoy it:)

New drone showreel of Scotland for www.perfectviewproductions.co.uk. This showreel shows a few highlights from the last 12 months of work with my drones:) The first eight clips are the Cairngorms near home. This was my first trip out on my own with the new DJI Inspire 2 with X7 Camera before a few jobs I had with it so I could get used to it. The best new thing apart from the great footage from 14 stops of dynamic range is the fact I have four prime lenses. You’ll see from the clip of myself walking on Facial Ridge the 50mm (35mm equivalent to 77mm) is great for giving a different look from the standard wide angle drones all have. Brings the background closer to me in this shot. Same lens was used with the shot of the top of Shelterstone crag and the couple on the summit of Ben MacDui. The next five clips are of the Strathspey Steam engine (based in Aviemore). This was an awesome day on the job where I had sole use of the train for my filming:) I used the DJI Inspire 1. Then we head to the Western Isles for seven shots with the opening shot of the CalMac ferry coming into Stornaway. This is within the ATZ of the local airport so I had to co-ordinate this flying with Air Traffic control to do this. They were super friendly like everyone out on the Western isles:) Some great beaches and seascapes out here. A wave sport kayak clip from the Moray Coast was thrown in here to from an advert I made. Into a bit of Rock Climbing next while filming for Glenmore Lodge and their youtube channel. First two shots are at Reiff climbing then onto Stac Pollaidh for a mountain day. The long shot of panning round into Dave and Jon climbing is one of my favourite. The shot was too long to play in full for a showreel. It does make for a very atmospheric shot though. These were all filmed with the DJI Mavic Pro. (easiest drone to climb a hill with:) The 32nd shot with the old tree, is a sunset shot of Cairngorm with the 50mm lens on the X7 Camera. 3 shots of an Army truck for a TV program. With the Mavic and Inspire 1. The third shot was in an amazing corridor of trees that were super tall. This was filmed on an estate in Aberdeenshire where the crew stayed and filmed for part of the show. Two tree shots to swap from summer to winter. Summer shot from the X7 camera and the winter one from the Mavic. I do love the trees covered in snow in the winter. Few winter shots of Glenmore lodge filming of Mountaineering skills and Ski mountaineering. We then finish on several shots from the summit of Sgor Gaoith in the Cairngorms. These shot were with the Mavic Pro for a Casio GPS watch advert. The tops of the hills were clear for only 30 minutes that day (I know this from friends running ski mountaineering courses up on the tops that day) and we happened to be there on the summit just as it cleared. Great shots and would be very hard to re-create again but hopefully I will:) If you ever need a drone pilot for your shoot give me a shout and check out my website www.perfectviewproductions.co.uk