Shooting on a Fishing Boat

Nickoloz Kachibaia · February 11, 2017

Hi all,

I am prepping for a documentary to shoot under some potentially rough conditions. It will take place on a 24 x 7 foot boat of a fishing trip in open water, the weather as I'm sure everyone is aware can change pretty quickly. I will be shooting on an Alexa Mini and a Fujinon Cabrio and am wondering if anyone has experience with some really top notch housings or weatherproofing gear.

Would it be suggested that I take a underwater housing vs weather proof/sealed?

I have looked at the bts of several shows but can't exactly determine the gear that is being used.

Any suggestions, tips or experiences would be very helpful. The budget is quite low and I would definitely like to be mindful of that when recommending gear, however at the end of the day keeping everything safe is my top priority if no cheap alternatives are available.

Thank you for your help!

Regards,

Edited February 11, 2017 by Nickoloz Kachibaia

JD Hartman · February 11, 2017

I'd look for BTS or extra footage from Deadliest Catch (Discovery channel) to see what sort of protective housings they use.. You might get lucky, but their cameras are usually trash by the end of the season.

Nickoloz Kachibaia · February 11, 2017

I was checking out that show actually and read the same thing. Something along the lines of they could have went with underwater housing rigs however they thought it was too bulky.

Robin R Probyn · February 12, 2017

Forget under water housing.. way too heavy and you cant get to the controls easily .. Alexa mini with a cab zoom will be very front heavy for hand held.. which I would presume will be 90% or more on board.. maybe looking into the Zacuto Universal base plate.. its the only plate you can get the camera body way back as your balance point will most likely be below the lens mount.. you might want an easy rig too.. although on a boat that could give you more problems..

Ive shot on many boats with ENG cams ,and Sony F5/Cn7 .. Portabrace do a good storm cover.. that you can actually work with unlike alot of the others .. but at some stage you,ll get so much rain on the lens its time to give up.. and your on a tiny boat.. so as the saying goes.. Ive never worked on anything worth dying for yet.. you have think about your own safety .. or have something like a Sony A7/5D.. when its really gets hairy...

Mark Kenfield · February 12, 2017

How long will you be shooting for? On top of the unsteady surface, having (at most) one hand to stabilise yourself with, and the difficulties of physically moving around about carrying equipment, you have the added joys of salt and corrosion.

If you're shooting onboard for longer than a day, I'd probably recommend disposable clear plastic camera covers over a dedicated raincover - trying to clean the salt off the cover is difficult, and once it dries out, it'll get into everything. Better to have throwaway covers that you can bin at the end of the day - it's safer for the gear).

Satsuki Murashige · February 12, 2017

Wear your life jacket. Put all the gear into Pelican cases and check the o-rings. I find it much easier to operate handheld on a rocking boat while sitting down, so apple boxes are useful. For boat-to-boat or horizon shots, the lens height doesn't matter so much. I agree with Robin, actual underwater housings like the Hydroflex are very heavy and not really useful outside of the water.

Salt water spray on the optical flat is a huge problem. Once you start wiping, it will quickly become a hazy mess. You might look into getting a rain deflector like a Spintec: http://www.innovision-optics.com/prod/spintec.shtml

I think having a few spare DSLRs with relatively cheap weather-sealed lenses are a good idea. One DP that I know uses a GoPro on a long pole for some of the hairer shots near the water line.