The GTC’s 2018 Awards

“Large sensor shallow DOF successfully executed, with sensitive, moody, atmospheric and arty photography… this stood out as a very high-quality production shot under what must have been less than ideal circumstances with limited opportunities to reshoot.”

Unfortunately the winners were not able to attend but sent a message, which concluded:

“We wish to thank the victim’s families who allowed us to capture such intimate and private moments. Thanks again to the GTC for this award, we are truly honoured to receive it.”

“Music videos for Nigel Stanford, including brilliant use of slow motion photography and intricate close-ups. The quality of the production and camera moves is fantastic, and the lighting superb.”

Unfortunately Timur Civan wasn’t able to attend but sent a message:

“I would like to thank the Guild of Television Camera Professionals, for this award. It’s an exhilarating feeling to gain the recognition from my peers for all the hard work my crew and I put into the ‘Automatica’ and ‘Cymatics’ projects.”

“Together with the work of ‘B’ camera operator Chris Bain, Mark Patten’s work on Taboo was a masterclass in lighting, framing and camerawork throughout the series. Fabulous to watch and a lesson in candle-lit scenes and moonlight!”

The award was collected by Jon Daly BSC on Mark’s behalf.

“Tim was the Camera Supervisor for the host coverage broadcast to the world – a major operation, comparable with any Olympic coverage. Over 100 cameras of all types and sizes had to be co-ordinated. The leadership, resourcefulness and planning Tim showed during this challenging and rewarding outside broadcast are
a testament to his ability.”

We were delighted that Tim was able to receive the Award and he paid tribute to his incredible crew.

“Stunning camerawork, superb shots and fantastic framing above and below the water using a variety of techniques and new equipment to make this series one of the most watchable so far. It was a joy to watch from the first programme to the last and from the first minute until the credits.”

Roger Nunns from the camera team sent a message on their behalf, including the following:

“As an aspiring underwater cameraman back in 2001 The Blue Planet was a massive inspiration to me, so having the opportunity to work on the sequel with the incredible Blue Planet II team was an absolute honour.” 

“Beautiful lighting – every shot looked like a Vermeer painting.”

Gavin was presented with his award by GTC Chairman, Graham Maunder.

“The cinematography on this show seemed to have achieved a great sense of continuity, depicting family lives over a great length of time. It is beautifully shot and the illusion of the change of seasons and passage of time are seamless.”

Piers was away shooting in Ireland but sent the following message:

“Thank you so much to the Guild….It’s a real honour to receive an award from fellow crew…I am very grateful to our director, Vanessa Caswill. She had a really strong vision for Little Women, she assembled an extremely talented cast – and she made the whole process a very pleasant and memorable experience.”

“The entire programme consists of beautiful photography. The programme achieved amazing access to the most intimate moments of animals’ lives with various angles and methods. The animals looked as if they were acting in a narrative film. The drone shots were alsovery effective in showing the scale and beauty of the scenery.”

Snow Bears was an extremely challenging shoot followeing polar bears and captured both moving and at times humorous images as illustrated by the clip shown. The Award for the whole camera team was collected by Steve Downer of the camera team and producer Phillip Dalton.

“Not only was this an extremely arduous location to film, Will and his team managed to craft some beautifully shot footage. Working with a short depth of field isn’t an easy choice when operating, and put together with working in an active volcano just ups the ante! The craft of documentary making and quality camerawork is thankfully still alive in this series”.

Ryan Atkinson collected the award on William’s behalf, as well as his own, from GTC Chair, Graham Maunder.

“The lighting on this episode was particularly stunning, giving attention to details in such a controlled manner. It really added depth and mood to thestory and the world they had created.”

As David was unable to attend, John Daly BSC collected the award on his behalf.

“The imagery throughout this fascinating and lovingly made programme was consistently beautiful and interesting, with tracking and drone shots providing variety and creating movement through and over the trees.”

Mike and Dominic were away filming but Mike sent the following message:

“It is always a pleasure when your work is appreciated particularly by a discerning eye. And with such a daunting choice of ambitious and engaging television on our screens, being singled out is all the more remarkable…..I thank the Guild for their appreciation, their commitment to quality and, frankly, for noticing – thank you, it does make all the difference to know someone is watching.”

“Amazing collaboration between Ben Wheeler and Tom Wilkinson on this (normally) two-camera drama series. There are many scenes where the excellence in camera operation adds so much to the script, scenes, atmosphere and tension.”

Nick Murray has worked for ACS (Aerial Camera Systems) for almost 10 years. Most of that time, he has been responsible for the tracking vehicle employed on ITV racing, a task which not only requires him to track over rough conditions, but to maintain the shot for the camera operator and make sure he or she is in the right place at the right time, not an easy task when travelling over rough terrain at 40 mph.

He is doing the job of a grip but with more variables. He not only drives the vehicle but rebuilt and designed the interior to take the Gyro stabilising equipment, which he also maintains. His ability during the racing to check his position via the wing mirror, take note of the shot on the dashboard monitor and assess the track conditions is a credit to his professionalism and dedication, a job which is not always appreciated.

A camera operator has to rely 100% on his positioning to maintain the constantly moving shot.

Nick was not able to attend but the Award was picked up on his behalf by GTC member Biff Baldwin, who has worked with Nick as the camera operator for many years.

The DLED7 is the LED version of the classic Dedolight and shares the same optical properties of the classic Dedolight, evenness of the beam and excellent colour rendition, which doesn’t change during dimming. The DLED7 has brought the classic ‘industry standard’ Dedolight up-to-date with its super bright, bi-colour output.

It is simply an amazing light and is becoming as iconic as the classic Dedolight, which we all love and have been using for many years.

The Seal of Approval was collected by Raffael Pollak, Dedo Weigert Film GmbH.

Martin was due to be presented with a Fellowship of the GTC tonight but, as most will know, he tragically died in a car accident in February this year.

GTC Fellowships are awarded for an outstanding contribution to the GTC and surely no one has ever deserved this more wholly than Martin Hammond for – he is sorely missed by the GTC on a daily basis.