When Tyson Mayr hit us up to shoot with the South African Tourism Board, I knew we were in for a wild one. This wasn�t your normal content trip. We were here to tell real stories about conservation, tourism and the people on the ground doing the work.

For this job I made the call to leave the REDs at home. Normally we shoot a lot of our bigger projects on RED, but I knew the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema 6K Pro was better for this. Faster boot times, easier to run solo, smaller files, better for wildlife where you don�t get second chances. Animals don�t wait for you to roll again. If you miss it, you miss it.

First stop: Kruger National Park

We landed and went straight into Kruger to get the kit dialled and shake off the jetlag. Kruger�s probably South Africa�s most famous park. It�s huge, wild, packed with animals, but also pretty accessible. You can self-drive which makes it cheaper and a lot easier for tourists to get into.

But because it�s easy to access, you definitely don�t have it to yourself. You�ll pull up on a leopard sighting and suddenly there�s twenty cars behind you trying to do the same thing. That�s just part of Kruger. Still, it was perfect to ease into the shoot and start stacking some footage before the proper remote stuff kicked off.

Kalahari and losing my gear

Next up was the Kalahari. This is where the trip really started.

On the flight from Johannesburg to Upington, the airline lost my bag. Not just clothes. My camera gear. Actual essential kit for the job.

Anyone who�s shot in the field knows how stressful that is. Luckily after a heap of calls and a bit of running around, we managed to track the bag down and get the airline to deliver it to us at Tswalu in a couple days.

In the meantime we drove three hours out into the desert to the Kalahari Research Centre where we stayed with the meerkat researchers. We got there right on sunset and literally rolled up to a family of meerkats popping up out of the ground. Unreal moment.

The next morning we were up at 5am to track. The researchers use GPS and radio telemetry to locate the groups. Once you find them you basically sit quietly and watch them live their lives.

Family dynamics, watching for predators, taking care of the pups. The scientists out here have been following these meerkats for years. You get a whole new level of respect for how much work goes into this kind of research.

As much as we wanted to stay longer, the trip was packed and we had to keep moving.

Into Tswalu

Once the bag finally caught up to me, we rolled into Tswalu and got straight into it. This place is insane. Private reserve, massive conservation projects, basically running tourism that directly funds the work. This is where the tourism dollars actually go to boots on the ground stuff. Scientists, anti-poaching, research, habitat restoration. All of it.

First game drive out we were straight into rhinos in perfect golden hour light.

During our few days here we also linked up with the jackal research crew here. Didn�t have much luck actually finding jackals, but while we were tracking them Tyson nearly stepped on a Cape cobra. One of those “oh shit” moments you don�t forget.

We also caught one of the more unique things of the trip. We filmed lions mating. That was wild to watch up close. They mate every 15 minutes for a few days straight. Nature�s got its own way of doing things.

One of the coolest moments at Tswalu was tracking cheetah on foot. We followed a coalition of males across the reserve while the rangers monitored their movements. Cheetahs are just built different. Fastest land animal on earth. They can hit 120 km/h but can only hold it for 20 or 30 seconds before they overheat. Even just watching them walk is unreal. Pure muscle and power.

Onto Phinda

From there we headed to Phinda on the east coast. The lodge here was next level and the biodiversity around this place is crazy. Big sand forests, wetlands, all kinds of different ecosystems packed into one spot.

The big one here though was the rhino dehorning operation. Easily one of the most intense and emotional things I�ve filmed. The process is full on. The vets dart the rhino from a chopper, and once it�s sedated the team rushes in.

You�re right there as they chainsaw off the horn. Looks brutal but it�s all about survival. Without a horn they�re way less of a target for poachers. The horn grows back over time, but losing it now means they don�t get killed for it. The team out here cares deeply about every single animal. It�s heavy, but you see how necessary it is.

Final stop: Care For Wild

The last leg of the trip was a road trip back across South Africa to visit Care For Wild. This place is doing some of the most important work anywhere. It�s the world�s largest orphan rhino sanctuary.

They take in rhinos who�ve lost their mothers to poaching and raise them until they can survive on their own. Some stay for life, some get rewilded. They�ve got full time vets, anti-poaching units, nutrition teams, the works.

We toured the facility, got to feed the baby rhinos their bottles, and learned all about their fertility programs and rewilding success stories. It�s heavy work but they�re making a real difference.

Unfortunately we didn�t have long here because we had to get back to Johannesburg to catch our flight back to Australia. So we jumped back in the car, smashed the final leg, and flew home.

Wrapping it up

This trip was one of the most intense, rewarding, and straight up special jobs I�ve ever worked on.
Massive thanks to Tyson, South African Tourism, and all the people in the field who let us tell their stories.

And for anyone wondering, the Blackmagic 6K Pro absolutely delivered. Fast, reliable, easy to run solo, and didn�t miss a beat. For wildlife stuff where you only get one chance, it was the perfect call.

Plenty more to come. Africa, we�ll be back.