Underground in Namibia
We’ve just completed a major shoot in Namibia and South Africa for mining giant Vedanta.
Heathrow to Johannesburg was uneventful, then onto a tiny plane to a tiny airport called Upington, where the crew arrived at the Black Mountain Mine. Surrounded by mountains and deserts the barren landscape was reminiscent of the recent footage from Mars.
In the intense heat, keeping hydrated was a concern to the UK crew but something they were used to having worked in similar climates for many years.
Shooting in the mine itself, 1500m below the surface, presented its own challenges. Here the heat and humidity intensified as the crew headed towards mine face. Working at this depth was a unique experience that gave everyone enormous respect for the people who work down here on a daily basis.
Travelling by road for six hours to the next location in Namibia took the crew alongside the famous Orange River, an amazing location worthy of any Attenborough documentary. Skorpion is an open pit mine – so quite a different environment, which the crew were able to capture at ground level and from a helicopter.
The last night was devoted to capturing GVs of the desert, the amazing scenery and sunset. The only thing missing was the wildlife – other than a few lazy ostriches – but in any case it was a very welcome change from the British December climate…
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