It was the fish in the adjacent crater! Obviously, my fin was in the wrong spot and this other trigger fish just gently moved it to where she wanted to be. But whilst filming her, I could feel one of my legs getting lifted up, moved to the left and gently put down again. I had the lens right up to her eggs while she was blowing water on them and fanning them, and she just didn't care at all. I once spent two days with a female trigger fish who was tending her eggs, her learning that I wasn't a threat. They're about the size of your arm and they're renowned for being really aggressive when it's mating time, and they build huge nests like moon craters that are about 3m across. What is the most surprising marine encounter you've had? Sometimes, I'll spend days establishing a relationship with a particular animal so I can then film its natural behaviour, like reproduction or feeding. And to do that, you have to establish a relationship with the animal that you're filming in order to get close to it. But underwater, we want to be within inches. If you were shooting in the savannah and filming a lion, you can have a 1,000mm lens on it from half a mile away. The thing with filming underwater is you have to be close to the animals. Why is ocean cinematography so hazardous? I've had many incidents: I've been hospitalised bitten by sharks stung by jellyfish bitten by sea snakes three compression sicknesses numerous concussions from sharks broken bones broken ribs punctured lung cracked skull from a pressure injury, where I was brought out of the water and had to get resuscitated. Lots! I've spent more than 20,000 hours underwater and my job is to go looking for trouble. Have you had any hairy moments while you've been filming? In Argentina, the orcas were beaching themselves to predate on seals that were in the in the shallows. I've filmed great whites, tiger sharks, whales and everything. What's the most impressive thing you've ever filmed in the ocean? And when you first see the documentary with his voice over the top, it gives you a very good buzz. It was great to have spent hundreds upon hundreds of hours underwater. On World Ocean Day, he talks to the BBC about some of the hairiest moments he's had underwater, where to find the world's best "hidden" dive spots, and how we urgently need to get people passionate about protecting our oceans.īut that's how I like to spend my time, just me and my animals. Since then the self-confessed "fish nerd" has filmed everything from whale sharks to baby jellyfish, using his work to support marine research, education and conservation via the Biopixel Oceans Foundation that he co-founded in 2016. "As soon as I saw the corals and the colourful seashells I was hooked for life," he said. Not only is he a marine biologist (specialising in shark research), but he's also an Emmy Award-winning ocean cinematographer who has worked on more than 140 natural history documentaries with the likes of David Attenborough, Netflix, Disney and National Geographic.īased in Queensland, Australia, Fitzpatrick's love for the ocean started when he was seven and went snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef for the first time. Richard Fitzpatrick might have the one of the best jobs in the world.
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