John Ford said that the elemental grandeur of Monument Valley gave him
an extra character for free in his movies and that was why it was his
preferred filming location. If he was right, and he surely was, then the
deserts of Namibia in Africa lend you at least a couple more. The
problem is that filming in the Namibian Desert is logistically a little
more challenging than Arizona. The population density is 10 people per
square mile - a tenth of America’s density - and in the desert, there is
a palpable sense of solitude. Outside of the capital Windhoek the
infrastructure is rather basic and to film ambitious projects demands
resolve and a passion for adventure. Namibia is, however, the cheetah
capital of the world. Since 1990, smart conservation efforts have
resulted in the population in the country growing from 1500 to 2500 -
that’s one third of the planet’s total. We have long worked with the
acclaimed cheetah conservationists Rudi and Marlice van Vuuren who
founded the Naankuse Wildlife Sanctuary nearly 20 years ago and they
partnered with us on this project in the Kanaan Desert. I had this
picture in my head since Covid days but I was only able to capture it in
September 2024 - good things take time. Sunrise is a dangerous time to
film; there are so many traps to fall into and the optimum light is
ephemeral. Shooting towards the sun, which would be my default position,
becomes challenging if the photograph like this is contextual as I
don’t like to have the sun itself in an image; it can be a little gaudy
in colour and look extremely odd in black and white. To avoid the
cliches and the tonal tension points, I prefer to film before the sun
appears and this desert offers a chance as there are mountains for it to
overcome. From my elevated position high in the sand dunes, the sun
only arrives on stage a good 30 minutes after daylight. There is a sense
of timeless eternity to this photograph. I look at it and smile - what a
wonderful planet we rent. Huge credit to Shanina Shaik, she was
brilliant to work with, and cared not one bit about the 3 am wake up
calls. I guess it’s not a bad place for a morning walk with a big cat.