Martin Edström is on a mission to reinvent the way animals are filmed in the wild. While conventional film makers merely aim to get in close, his pioneering technique puts viewers at the heart of the action. The results are thrilling. His latest video – Lions 360 – presents a cat’s-eye view of life in a Zambian pride. It attracted a remarkable 3 million hits within three weeks of going live on Facebook for National Geographic.
Thuraya technology helps photographer capture the inside story of a pride of lions in Zambia
As a freelance journalist working with National Geographic for the video shoot in Zambia in November 2016, Martin needed a broadband data device that would enable him to send photos and post to social media every day while deep in the bush. He chose a Thuraya IP+ as the best-in-class satellite data terminal. “In the type of work I do, it is essential to have top-quality equipment, whether it be cameras, vehicles or communications”, he says. “I knew we could rely on Thuraya to guarantee internet connectivity from any location at any time.”
Most days, Martin and his team set out before dawn to look for lions in Zambia’s South Luangwa National Park. They stopped to rest in the shade during the hottest hours from 11am to 3pm, and set up the Thuraya IP+ on the roof of the vehicle, using it to upload images and video captured in the morning to the team back at basecamp. “It was incredibly quick and easy to get the IP+ up and running,” says Martin. “It was our mobile office in the bush and made it possible to work even in this very remote place.”
