Steve Downer - Specialist Wildlife Cameraman & Director of Photography
I'm a film and video Lighting Cameraman and Director of Photography with credits on over 100 international television programmes, and the winner of numerous awards for cinematography including two News & Documentary EMMY’s for Outstanding Individual Achievement in a Craft -Cinematographers for the National Geographic film The Last Frog, and for ABC’s Living Edens - Denali, Alaska’s Last Wilderness. My National Geographic film King Cobra, filmed in southern India over a period of five months, won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Program Achievement in 1998 and was nominated for Outstanding Cinematography. In November 2006, Broadcast magazine listed me as one of the HOT 100 television talents of the year.
Wildlife, Nature, Environment, Science, Macro, Micro, Timelapse
I began freelancing in 1982, after spending three years as assistant cameraman to Ron Eastman on various BBC wildlife programmes and the classic children’s feature film Tarka the Otter, and a year as a staff cameraman at London Scientific films working mostly on the groundbreaking macro special effects series Bellamy’s Backyard Safari.
Since then I've worked as a freelance Director/Cameraman & DOP in locations across the world including North, South & Central America, Alaska, India, China, Japan, Africa, Arabia, Australia, Indonesia, Burma, and the Canadian High Arctic.
Television, Cinema and Web Broadcasting
The prestigious tv series I have contributed to include the BBC 's :
Planet Earth
Blue Planet
Coast
Spring Watch
Wildlife on One
The Natural World
The Trials of Life
The Life of Plants
Land of the Eagle
Predators
Nightmares of Nature
Dragons Alive
The Living Isles
Living Britain
and six programmes for National Geographic Explorer, filming a diverse range of animals - from big cats and deadly snakes, to the microscopic mites that live in the ear of a moth.
Film and High Definition Video
I have experience of shooting on many film and video formats, including Super 35mm, Super 16, Digital Betacam, HDCAM, DVC PROHD (tape & P2), BetaSX, MiniDV, DVCAM and HDV. I've had training (at TopTeks & ARRI UK) in the use of the SONY 750/900, PANASONIC VARICAM F27, and ARRI D20 / D21 High Definition cameras. I own comprehensive JVC HD110E and PANASONIC GH3 video kits, with optics ranging from telephoto lenses for long range filming, to macro lenses for filming the tiniest details of insects. Through my association with ANIMALS ON BLUE, since 2010 I've been developing green screen macro filming techniques using the company's RED ONE MYSTERIUM-X & RED EPIC 4 & 5K cameras.
Steve Downer Wildlife Cinematographer
Birmingham, UK
Telephone: +44 (0)7706 014301
+44 (0)7967 759716
e-mail: stevedownerfilms@aol.com
SKYPE: stevedownerfilms
Site last updated 28th April 2013
