November 14, 2011
| 
1
What sort of nature photographer lies down in front of an enraged bull elephant?
A charging elephant, Tanzania, by Burrard-Lucas Photography
How about the little remote-control kind? Meet BeetleCam:
BeetleCam
Wildlife photographers Will and Matt Burrard-Lucas modified an RC car by beefing up the motor to support a Canon 400D camera and flash units. An ingenious solution to the old safari nuisance of being eaten by lions and trampled by buffalo. It’s not without its problems, though:
…we were buoyed with optimism and decided to make our second subjects lions. In hindsight this was a foolish idea; BeetleCam was promptly mauled, and carried off into the bush. A long recovery mission ensued and we were extremely lucky to retrieve an intact memory card from the mangled Canon 400D body.
Still, better a mangled camera than a mangled photographer. Check out the BeetleCam gallery, and the video teaser below.
For updates on the BeetleCam project, you can follow the Burrard-Lucas brothers on twitter (http://twitter.com/willbl) and facebook (http://www.facebook.com/BLphotography).
About the Author: Alex Wild is an Illinois-based entomologist who studies the evolutionary history of ants. In 2003 he founded a photography business as an aesthetic complement to his scientific work, and his natural history photographs appear in numerous museums, books, and media outlets. Follow on Twitter @myrmecos.
1 CommentAdd a Comment
You must log in or register as a ScientificAmerican.com member to submit a comment.
Out of the Mouth of Babes
Searching for the Onset of Autism
TEDMED: Tougher topics to chew on
The Mathematician's Obesity Fallacy
Diversity in Science: Celebrating the people who do science
The Most Exciting Moment of My Scientific Career
YES! Send me a free issue of Scientific American with no obligation to continue the subscription. If I like it, I will be billed for the one-year subscription.
Share
Email
Print
Such remote cameras were used by BBC to make wonderful documentaries “Tiger- Spy in the Jungle” and “Trek – spy on the Wildebeest”.
Especially the close ups of tigers and other Indian wildlife make one of best wildlife documentaries ever (and I seen a lot and I am very picky, believe me).
Link to this