Filming The Queendoms | National Geographic

My name is Aaron Rainey. I'm a wildlife camera woman, and for the past two and a half years, I've been filming wildlife around the globe for the series "Queens." Every individual connects with nature in their own way, and using a camera can be a way to express your connection with the world around you. "Queens" has been this amazing chance for me to grow as a camera woman and to get my hands on tools I probably never would have otherwise gotten my hands on.

To get yourself into a position where you can even film these animals in the wild, picking the right kit is essential for capturing them in the most natural way possible. The camera and lens that I use the most throughout this production is the CN20 and the Reds because it gives me the opportunity to film behaviors without influencing the animals. So, it's useful for bears and elephants, which were two of the main ones that I filmed. We're just kind of feeling it out, seeing how the bears are. It's really challenging because you're trying to find these subtle movements, these subtle touches with their young. There's a part of you that's like, "That's how my mother would interact with me." It is a really lovely experience to be able to have a closer look at those relationships.

Having the helium gave me this eye into their world without actually disrupting their [Music] world. I think that we were able to capture some pretty amazing behaviors because of that access from these tools.

My name is Justine Evans, and I'm a wildlife cinematographer. I've been working in the industry for about 28 years. I can't believe that when I say that number; it's unbelievable! What's been great about this series is the array of nature of the things that have been happening in front of the camera. Going from filming lions and hyenas in the Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania up to the Simien Mountains in Ethiopia filming gelada baboons, to the tropics full of life and greenery.

So I'm hoping that this could be an opportunity to get leaf cutters climbing up a tree with us rising on our vertical dolly. I don't think I've ever seen that shot before, so it would be great to get it. It's called a cable dolly system, and you can go vertically up and horizontally across. We were using the Red Gemini on it so we could strip the camera down to quite a small package. It’s very light-sensitive but also has enough resolution for us. It was magical; you have these really amazing experiences.

My name is Erica Bandana. I'm a wildlife filmmaker based in Tanzania. Mentorship is very important. I had a great opportunity to learn from Justine. I looked a lot at how she's setting the frame, how she forms the animals, so this has been a great experience and a lesson for me. I started using the Red Gemini when I was working with the "Queens" series. This opportunity is so great for me; it's not easy in Tanzania to get access to such a powerful camera, so I was very eager to learn and to know how the camera works.

I am actually now making my own film on human-wildlife conflict in Seronera, and I'm using the Red Gemini. I'm very excited; I believe that the best stories from Tanzania can be told by the people themselves.

My name is T. Escovar. I'm a camera woman, and I'm from Mexico. I have been fortunate to film in the series "Queens," especially filming [Music] bonobos. Filming bonobos is really hard; you're talking about walking between 20 to 30 kilometers daily. But you get in shape, and then you just worry about getting this shot. So, how do we film them? You basically just put the backpack on your shoulders and get mentally ready for whatever they're going to take you because they're going to take you for a ride.

And because you are carrying a long lens and a tripod, you just have to be very fast at packing it, taking it out, putting it in the bag, and running. Because as soon as they're gone, you have to start following them. Definitely, when you get the shot, it makes it more special because you really have to work to get something. Filming at low light, having cameras like the Epic helps a lot; you can raise the ISO a little because the jungle is dark and bright at the same time.

In the end, that's the ultimate goal—to get a nice sequence. Personally, what really drives me for that trip is that I really want to see bonobos in the wild. Getting to know them is very special, and it's such a unique opportunity that you don't have in any other place in the world.

My name is Sophie Darlington, and I'm a Director of Photography and mentor on "Queens." We've got some absolute queen new behavior and beautiful sequences. The objective was not only to make a series about female leadership in nature, but it was also to lead ourselves and to inspire women to get into the business. You grow up here, so you connect to nature so evidently from being here. Mentoring actually makes me really emotional because it was such a wonderful opportunity for me.

Genuinely, I have got such joy out of the sharing of information. The advantage of "Queens" has been that we can train people up on the best tech in the world. Throughout the production, we've let the stories dictate what the cameras have to be, and we have thrown the kitchen sink at it. More of our kit has been Red because they give us that flexibility throughout, that we can work in all kinds of locations.

We work in deep forests, and we can also work at dawn and dusk when most animals are really, really active. Having a Gemini, it's got that dynamic range that allows us to use it in very low light and get amazing behavior. You've got to have something that looks stunning on a big screen because you want to show the beauty of these places.

"Baby, look at that one!" It's the thing that makes us feel a piece of behavior that really touches us. Then we engage, and these tools allow us to do it.