Those of you who have visited our exhibition Beatrix Potter: Drawn to Nature will be familiar with Potterland – a stunning, immersive film of the Lake District that features in the show. Produced and directed by award-winning filmmaker and photographer Terry Abraham, this film celebrates the sights and sounds of the unique landscape in Cumbria, North West England that inspired Beatrix Potter – its native wildlife that she would have sketched and the places where she lived and worked.
You can watch an extended version of the film here
Some of you may already be familiar with Abraham’s BBC hit series Life of a Mountain, that features a year in the life of three iconic fells of the Lake District National Park: Scafell Pike, Blencathra and Helvellyn. Abraham recently won a prestigious Royal Television Society Award for his Helvellyn film.
Abraham kindly took some time out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions about his working practice.
The film is notable for its focus on two very contrasting features of the Lake District: on one hand its intimate footage of shy local wildlife, and on the other, its epic panoramic landscape shots. Can you talk a bit about the equipment you use to capture these two elements and some of the challenges involved in their filming.
Too many visitors to the Lake District often think the best views to be had are from the high, lofty peaks but often it is just as breathtaking down in the valleys. I often remark we should all care for and protect the special landscape qualities of Lakeland but equally for the local residents and communities; and I include the wildlife in that too! Cumbria has a rich and varied history and has a great deal culturally to shout about too, that’s often sadly ignored. Being a Cumbrian resident, I was keen to ensure the film reflects all facets of the area that inspired Beatrix Potter. I’ve spent nearly a decade filming the people, nature and fells so I had a considerable amount of library footage to go through but equally it was essential for the exhibition I captured other new locations on camera too.
Filming the fells comes easily to me; it’s where I feel most at home. I regularly joke I must’ve been a shepherd in a former life or even a hardy Herdwick, those iconic sheep acting as guardians of the fells supposedly brought in by the Vikings. Capturing the wild residents of the area on camera is not so easy however and requires a bit of nous and lots of patience. Fortunately, being a keen-eyed walker and cyclist I am familiar with lots of locations where I know wildlife are active, so all I have to do is set time aside, get my kit sorted and then do a stakeout and wait.
Over the last year or so I’ve been volunteering for my local red squirrel charity in the Eden Valley. Sadly, our beloved Squirrel Nutkin is on the verge of extinction within England and Wales thanks to the non-native grey squirrel brought in by the Victorians from North America. Little did they know that greys are immune carriers of a virus that wipes out red squirrel communities. Cumbria is the last major stronghold for Nutkin now and so along with many others I do my best to protect them and ensure their survival. Consequently, I’ve befriended many wild reds and can easily capture them on camera. Some even eat from my hand or sit by my side in the forest!
All said, more often than not I’m off out the door a few hours before sunrise ready to capture any magical weather phenomenon about the area no matter the seasons. Sometimes I’ll back pack on the high summits to film sunsets or other breathtaking views when the light is extra special upon the landscape.
From our nearest star rising above the fells or mist flowing about the valleys, to the gathering of sheep by hardworking farms or wildlife amongst the woods of the individual valleys, I was keen the film offered a nice portrait of ‘Potterland’. I hoped it would make visitors appreciate why Beatrix Potter cared so deeply for the area and offer a glimpse with regards to her legacy within Cumbria. If any visitors go to the exhibition or watch my film, I hope it inspires them. Enlighten them. Encourage them to carefully and respectfully explore and care for the area and perhaps go home thinking they could do the same about the natural world and culture of where they may reside too.
Can you share any advice for people wanting to get into filmmaking or photography.
There’s a saying in the photography world, “The best camera is the one you have with you”. That’s very true up to a point. Phone cameras are no substitute to DSLRs (digital single-lens reflex cameras). Phone cameras often oversharpen and saturate images in a way that’s unreal. I’m rather old-school in the respect I like to capture on camera the real deal with the absolute minimum processing via software. Filming is my main priority and so what you see is what I saw. In many cases, I’ll take a picture too of the scene I’m filming for prints, magazines or quite simply personal memories.
Any manual camera from low-budget upwards will suffice. After all, it’s not the tools but the craftsperson, so the saying goes.
Much of what I document in Cumbria is from just being out there. Observing the weather. Getting to know how certain weather conditions and systems dance with the fells. It’s often very localised the weather in Cumbria. One valley could be dark and gloomy with heavy rain whilst another can be basking in sunshine under clear blue skies! So, getting to know your subject matter and undertaking research is essential for both filming and photography. You also must be prepared to be out before sunrise or at sunset. Such times of day, depending on the season, affords more drama and beauty to the landscape. You won’t often find me out on the fells during the height of summer on a clear day. The area may look beautiful to the eye but on camera it can look rather flat and boring.
Avoid any honeypot areas too. Don’t be a sheep and follow the crowds. There’s lots of places to explore and seek out special views. It’s essential you therefore must be prepared for possible inclement weather conditions and rough terrain. So clothing and footwear is important, food and drink and knowing how to use a map and compass. Recent years have seen many unnecessary callouts for the local Mountain Rescue Teams due to visitors of all ages and backgrounds being totally ill-prepared for the high, wild fells and the weather.
Most of all, it’s good to just get outside and enjoy it all. Have your own adventure. Follow your heart; it’s hard not to in Cumbria in my humble opinion! Be passionate about your subject matter and that will ultimately shine through any photo or video. It must sing and shout love and respect irrespective of whether you captured scenes on your mobile phone or more professional equipment.
What exciting projects do you have in the pipeline?
I recently won an award for my BBC documentary Life of a Mountain: A Year on Helvellyn from the Royal Television Society and my debut book Life on the Mountain’s won a prize at the prestigious Lakeland Book of the Year Awards. Then of course I recently completed Potterland for the Beatrix Potter: Drawn to Nature exhibition, so I’ve not had much time to wind down and relax. That said, I’m not one to sit and relax within four walls. I much rather be outdoors with nature whatever the weather. Usually, of late I’m out most days spending time with my local red squirrels Rusty, Blondie, Shadow, Hazel and Honey! I do a lot of volunteering for my local reds charity and it may come as no surprise my passion for the cuties has led me to follow my heart once again. After independently producing my award-winning Life of a Mountain trilogy featuring three iconic mountains in the Lake District, I’m now turning my eye to our beloved native squirrels.
I strongly feel there’s a very important conservation and environmental story to share with the world about red squirrels. Our impact on the environment, dealing with climate change and much more besides. So, I’m about to begin full time producing Cumbrian Red which will be released in April 2023 and after that hopefully a mainstream channel will acquire the documentary from me. I intend on Cumbrian Red to be both educational and enlightening but most of all heartwarming and inspiring. Perhaps it will help raise a greater awareness of the threats our native reds face and the good work so many charities and volunteers undertake to ensure their survival in the most beautiful corner of England….in my opinion anyway!
Follow Terry Abraham
Twitter: @terrybnd | Facebook: Terry Abraham
