Episode 234 of The Adventure Podcast features award-winning wildlife photographer, filmmaker, and presenter, Gordon Buchanan MBE. Gordon grew up between a grey Dumbarton and the colour of Tobermory on the Isle of Mull. He lived in a caravan, ran largely unsupervised, and spent his time outdoors. A "chronic daydreamer". In this episode, Gordon tells Matt about getting his break at 17 and his fairly direct journey to becoming a wildlife cameraman. They discuss what the job taught him about discomfort, homesickness and self-reliance, and what it cost him in carefree years. They talk about how the route into wildlife filmmaking has changed, why Gordon tells young people to shoot and share their own work rather than wait to be commissioned, and why the right people matter more than the right location on a shoot. Gordon also reflects on regularly being the oldest in the crew, and how he’s finally starting to become carefree.
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Chapter Breakdown
00:00-07:00: Moving from Dumbarton to Tobermory, a largely unsupervised childhood, struggling at school, and a difficult home life that pushed him outdoors.
07:00-15:43: Preferring his own company, and how a restaurant job led to an assistant role on a wildlife shoot in Sierra Leone.
15:43-23:09: What a year and a half of discomfort and isolation taught him, the carefree youth he missed, and why kids need time around other adults.
23:09-35:25: The disappearing assistant route, why young filmmakers should create and share their own work, and the importance of good people on shoots.
35:25-41:27: Ambition driven by inadequacy, being the oldest on a young team, and choosing to enjoy the summit.
41:27-48:49: Not hiding what you don’t know, finding contentment in who you are, and why most people are willing to help.
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