How David Attenborough Captured Memorable Swan Moment
Clip: Season 43 Episode 5 | 2m 35sVideo has Closed Captions
Go behind the scenes of David Attenborough's infamous sequence with flying swans.
David Attenborough's team plans an ambitious sequence with swans, but filming with animals is never straightforward. Go behind the scenes of David Attenborough's infamous sequence with flying swans as they navigate the complexities of capturing this spectacular moment.
Major support for NATURE is provided by The Arnhold Family in memory of Henry and Clarisse Arnhold, The Fairweather Foundation, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, Kathy...
How David Attenborough Captured Memorable Swan Moment
Clip: Season 43 Episode 5 | 2m 35sVideo has Closed Captions
David Attenborough's team plans an ambitious sequence with swans, but filming with animals is never straightforward. Go behind the scenes of David Attenborough's infamous sequence with flying swans as they navigate the complexities of capturing this spectacular moment.
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Bring the beauty and wonders of wildlife and natural history into your home with classic NATURE episodes.Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipOn Loch Lomond in Scotland.
David's team is planning an ambitious sequence with swans, but filming animals is never straightforward.
- We want to film David with a group of swans flying alongside him as he goes along the loch in a in a boat, and it should be amazing - To do that, the team would need the help of some very accommodating swans and their handler Rose Buck.
- She has this extraordinary empathy with animals, and you can see a love and understanding of them -- and there of hers.
- For the sequence to work, the birds have to fly within 10 feet of the camera.
With Rose positioned just out of the shot and calling from the front of the boat, the flock begins to follow.
But the big challenge is to get David to deliver his lines together with the flying swans.
- They're doing their best and they're following you, but they don't necessarily understand exactly where they ought to be for the camera.
They behaved marvelously, but sometimes they don't realize that they should have been on the starboard side and they're on the port side.
I mean, it takes a long time.
- After several failed attempts, the weather turns for the worse.
The team has one last chance.
- Eventually the magic happened.
The swans absolutely hit it.
- When close up to a flying bird like this, you can see how the wonderful piece of complex engineering their wings are.
Able to change their shape and their beat to respond to every little change in the currents of the air around them, and so propel them forward and lift them upwards.
- David had brought another spectacular sequence to life.
How Sir David Attenborough Got His Start
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Witness Sir David’s love of fossils as a young boy transform into a passion for the natural world. (2m 51s)
Preview of Attenborough’s Life Journey
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An intimate portrait of Sir David Attenborough’s life and career in natural history. (30s)
Attenborough’s Last Encounter with Lonesome George
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Experience the unforgettable moment when Sir David encounters Lonesome George, the last of his kind. (2m 25s)
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipMajor support for NATURE is provided by The Arnhold Family in memory of Henry and Clarisse Arnhold, The Fairweather Foundation, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, Kate W. Cassidy Foundation, Kathy...