The Great Balearics Row

I traveled to Spain to document some friends who were rowing from mainland Spain to the Balearic Islands. It is approximately a 220km distance of rowing day and night which would be done in shifts between a three man crew. The crew consisted of Angus Collins, Jason Caldwell and Richard Mcenery. Angus and Jason have rowed the Atlantic Ocean together and are world records holders with Angus also designing and building the boat used for the crossing. Setting off with the possible change in winds and other weather issues, we weren't sure which island we'd end up.

It was difficult to shoot in such a small unstable space but the Lumix GH5 and GH5S worked perfectly together. With it being documentary type filming there were quite a few handheld shots in there. I partnered the GH5 up with the Atomos ninja inferno to shoot 60p 10bit and the GH5S for some more lower light and type gimbal shots. I couldn't take my drone with me as it would be too big to take out to sea so I borrowed Rich's little DJI Mavic for the additional aerial shots. I felt these shots would be important to show how alone at sea these guys actually are.

The short doc touches a little on Richards history with PTSD, as an ex marine it has been something he has learned to manage over time and being stuck on a boat for 3-4 days in such a combined space was something he had to come to terms with. After getting to know Jason and Angus it was clear they were the perfect row team to partner with. Two guys full of character, humour and genuineness certainly helped and was a pleasure to spend the week with the whole team.

Music Licensed: Musicbed