[Author: Chris Guggiari-Peel]
In the long build up to our expedition I enjoyed expanding my filming kit and thinking carefully through what I might need. But, having never been to South America or done light trapping before, I was still unsure of what random items would be missed if not in my camera bag. You can’t take everything but there were a few things that I realised when there that I couldn’t do without. These are the five things that proved to be most useful on a tricky filming trip – aside from a camera and the obvious necessities.
Duct tape - this could be all five items for the list as its uses were endless. The strangest use was for sealing the mosquito netting in our lodge’s kitchen for when we decided we wanted to use it as an experimental arena for titan beetles. Beyond that though, it kept my red filter (see below) on my light, helped in transporting an unwieldy radio-tracking aerial and many other things.
Red filter - I was trying to film bugs and bugs are attracted to light – so having a big LED light on my camera wasn’t particularly helpful at times! Red light can’t be seen by most bugs though, so having some red filter to put over my light really helped when filming the catching and tagging of the titans out in the field in the middle of the night. Also, we put it over the bulbs in the kitchen (once again for when it was no longer our kitchen but the titans’). It only cost a couple of pounds of eBay but my teammates and I were glad we had it.
Tripod - This is an obvious one, but I don’t mention it for its usual purpose. The ability to hang something below it was just as useful as having a camera on top sometimes. As we were there in the wet season, I had taken waterproofs and my camera backpack had a waterproof cover, but leaving the bag on the ground was not the best idea. The bag got quite damp on day one but luckily my kit was fine, but from then on I left it hanging on the hook at the bottom of the tripod under the makeshift shelter.
Bee hat - My normal job is a beekeeper so I thought I would take an old veiled hat with me on the trip. Maybe I looked a bit daft to the weathered entomologist that we shared the light trap with, but I was happy to have protection from the mosquitoes and flying bullet ants and everything else bitey. Spending from 8pm to 4am out in rainforest you’d expect lots of bugs around (and to be bitten accordingly), add to that we were sat purposefully next to a dazzling light trap which is designed to attract everything in the vicinity, I can’t deny I felt quite smug by end of our six nights light trapping.
GoPro/waterproof action cam - My main bridge camera is definitely not waterproof, so in such unpredictable conditions I found that I was constantly taking my camera in and out of its bag – or not taking it out on hikes at all. Having a GoPro always in my pocket saved me a few times, especially when a downpour and a huge gust blew our shelter down and collapsed the light trap. By good fortune I was filming with the GoPro at the time, so I filmed the calamity. I also used it for timelapses, not having to worry about the inevitable rain.
If you have found equally useful gadgets on your travels, leave a comment below.
And next time you venture to the Amazon or other places out of reach of Amazon delivery remember these items.