SubSeaTVArctic Char: relics of the ice age
Posted on November 18, 2013
Two years ago, Andy was commissioned to film the Arctic Char breeding programme in the Lake District. As the Environment Agency team worked to save Ennerdale Arctic Char from extinction, he was captivated by their story. This year, we’re back, making a short film.
Relics of the ice age, Arctic Char are one of the rarest freshwater fish in Britain. A small population was stranded thousands of years ago in deep, glacial UK lakes while their cousins migrated north to escape rising temperatures. Most UK-bound Arctic Char adapted to spawn in lakes. Ennerdale Char still follow their primal instincts upriver to spawn, for just a few hours each day, just a few days each year.
Filming Arctic Char is an exercise in patience. Ennerdale Water glistens, guarded by the Cumbrian mountains, framed by glorious woodlands. Weather rolls in from the Irish sea. The valley’s natural beauty fills you with peace and tranquillity then grabs her treasures away from the lens with a wild, moody spirit. Every image is hard-won. Flighty fish swim, vibrant with breeding red bellies, white-edged fins kissed by the ice that left them behind. And then, with a flick of the tail, they are gone.
We’ve been chasing the Arctic Char story in a crystal-clear river, with the help of a team from the Environment Agency. Jackie’s written the film script and Andy’s completed two weeks of filming, with one more to go. Stay tuned for our short film. Here’s a brief clip of Arctic Char until then.
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Images by Andy, words by Jackie.
Ruby Studios in Penzance: Lamorna Cove
Posted on October 20, 2013
West Cornwall’s magic continued when we joined Jon and Kate for their dive club BBQ. Lamorna Cove, between Mousehole and Lands End, is famous for its white sand and critters that come to life at night. We chatted to Peninsula BSAC’s friendly divers, dive instructors, and trainees, scoffed a cheeseburger or two, and went diving as darkness fell. Dover sole, cuttlefish, little cuttles, and an injured grey mullet joined us. We loved the little cuttles – a tiny, feisty species of cuttlefish, less than 5cm long. They look so cute when they wallop each other, squirt puff clouds of angry ink, and jet off backwards by a few centimetres.
We surfaced under a starlit sky to find Jon, Kate, and Bruce, our spaniel, on the dark slipway with a torch, a still-warm barbeque, half a dozen sausages, and two cold beers.
Jon and Kate’s magic didn’t stop there. They helped us discover the Minack theatre, carved out of the cliff by Rowena Cade’s vision and determination. They arranged a tour of the AP Valves factory, where our Buddy dive gear was made. We were inspired to learn how AP Valves’ products are imagined, developed, and produced by divers who love diving. It was fascinating to learn how the team developed the breathing apparatus that got James Cameron safely to the Marianas trench (and back).
Thanks for the magic: Jon and Kate Dean, Peninsula BSAC, Mike Etheridge, Terry Fisher, and AP Valves.
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Images by Andy, words by Jackie.
Ruby Studios in Penzance: Prussia Cove
Posted on October 17, 2013
Our week in West Cornwall was spontaneous and magical. It asked a bit more of us and gave more in return: steep cliff paths led to remote shore diving entry points, random conversations led to new friends with dive boats, and old friends invited us to join their dive club’s BBQ on the beach.
Our first dive – Prussia Cove, one of the best shore dives in the UK – was hard won. After lugging our gear down a steep cliff, we collapsed onto the gravel beach and ate most of our lunch to recover. Heading straight out to sea, we found corkwing wrasse nesting on an underwater island. Turning left, swimming through archways, under overhanging rocks, and into gullies, we found walls encrusted with sparkling jewel anemones and light bulb squirts. Cuttlefish danced in the bootlace weed. A juvenile Thornback Ray moved gracefully across the sand. When we got back to shore, our boisterous spaniel, high on an eight-hour beach day, played swim-fetch for the camera. He was, however, no use at all when it came to carrying all our gear back up the steep cliff. We recommend taking a donkey to dive Prussia Cove, not a spaniel.
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Images by Andy, words by Jackie.
Ruby Studios at Porthkerris
Posted on October 7, 2013
Porthkerris divers have it sorted. A short hop from the Manacles, where jewel anemones blanket granite pinnacles and wrecks litter the seabed, the Cat and Kitten make boat diving effortless. The shore dive round Drawna rock is a short scramble from the car park. Post-dive slabs of home baking await, fresh from the oven of a converted Police incident van on the beach, washed down with decent coffee. Dogs roam happy and free on the private beach, the dive shop is stocked with tempting goodies, and even the back of the loo door will spark your imagination with taped-on excerpts from Charlie Hood’s 100 Best Dives in Cornwall.
We towed Ruby Studios from Babbacombe to St Keverne, telling stories of dive club trips to Porthkerris, and sharing happy holiday memories. We’d had great reports on recent diving conditions. The weather forecast was good. We were looking forward to meeting the team from Cornwall Wildlife Trust at their Porthkerris beach event. Our fingers were crossed for some great footage.
We knew big spring tides weren’t the easiest time to dive the Manacles, but we do like a bit of tide to create movement in our shots. These five metre tides pushed water through at pace, giving barely 15 minutes of slack water, compared to the relaxed hour of slack you get on neap tides. A plankton bloom reduced visibility and pushed us into macro filming – we did get some lovely jewel anemone shots. The shore dive was kind to us; a group of three cuttlefish let us get to know them slowly. The “fish bowl”, a sandy-bottomed area just a few metres out to sea, teemed with friendly wrasse. We didn’t get all the footage we had hoped for, but that’s wildlife filmmaking for you. We bid a fond farewell to Porthkerris and headed west, to Penzance, Mousehole, and Lands’ End.
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Images by Andy, words by Jackie.
Ruby Studios in Babbacombe Bay
Posted on September 22, 2013
It was early August and our short film, The Cuttlefish Story, was coming along nicely. But we needed more footage. Spring mating behaviour was in the can. The time had come to film newly-hatched babies.
We had a few other filming jobs and events on the south coast so decided to have a five-week expedition. We bought Ruby Studios, a two-berth caravan, and took off for Devon, Cornwall, London, and Dorset. This is the first blog in Ruby Studios’ summer series.
The first few days were filled with challenges: a leaking camera housing; a whole afternoon polishing scratches off the dome port; a leaking drysuit and cold, soggy dives; and learning how to share Ruby Studios with a boisterous spaniel.
We persevered, repaired our kit, and the sea gave up her treasures. Eagle-eyed Jackie, chief spotter and screenwriter for SubSeaTV, found our first cuttlefish baby in open water: 12mm long, a born master of camouflage, no bigger than your thumbnail.
A freediver silhouetted against the sun, fighting crabs, photogenic Tompot blennies, and half-grown cuttlefish posing for the camera; they all take second billing behind the young star born just before this short clip was filmed.
Thank you, Babbacombe. Next stop, Cornwall.
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Images by Andy, words by Jackie.