A bit about me and camerawork …

I picked up a camera when I was 16 to make a youth series called Salad for a regional TV station in New Zealand - and I’ve never looked back. I learned the literacy of composition way back then, and this deepened when I went to NZ Broadcasting School in 1994, where I learned the mechanics of cameras and lighting.

Back then, I never thought I’d be able to be a camera person - the cameras were massive and far too heavy for little me! But things (and cameras) have changed massively. Over the years I’ve had to navigate constant technological change, which is something you really have to get your head around as a self-shooting PD.

I have a real passion for camera work, and people often say it’s my calling card. So how did I make the jump from shooting ‘wee’ bits for TV to shooting full one-hour films? I went and made my own.

I travelled to Mexico and shot a short film about people living and working on garbage dumps, which I managed to get broadcast on BBC World. From there, I moved straight on to shooting three one-hour films about Green Travel. More recently, I’ve shot MND and 22 Year Old Me (an observational documentary), and Inside the Bat Cave - for which I had to get my head around infrared filming for all the location shoots due to a very low budget. My SP commented that I was probably now the most experienced bat photographer in Scotland (true… maybe… I don’t actually know!).

I also wrote a camera bible for the Canon 5D Mk IV when it was released, and ran a one-day course for APs who would be shooting behind the scenes with it on BBC’s Earth’s Sacred Wonders. I’ve trained complete novices to use cameras for campaign films too, (in the Arctic!) during my time running the film unit at WWF.

I’m often getting phone calls from colleagues asking shooting questions, and I love helping people understand things they’ve never been taught - or were never told - inside the industry. I have all these successes and experiences, but of course I’ve also made plenty of small mistakes along the way… things it would have been really good to know before they happened!

I certainly don’t know everything - but I do know what to do when you don’t know something. What you’ll get from me is an honest, authentic expression of how I shoot well, to help you navigate the pitfalls of self-shooting and get the very best out of your shoot days. This will hopefully be fun - and very much a peer to peer kind of training.

Cameras include the Canon C300, Canon 5D, Canon R5, Sony A7S (I own all of these) and the Sony series.

 Here’s some wee endorsements:

I’ve worked with Janine in broadcast television (and when she was running the film unit at the World Wildlife Fund) for over twenty years. She is one of the most talented self-shooting directors I know –her knowledge of cameras is extensive.  As an editor I am always spoilt for choice in terms of shots and her ability to shoot actuality on the fly means I look forward to her edits. I’ve learned so much from her – self shooting is not to be underestimated as an extremely difficult skillset – I shot something for her once on her expert advice - and I always refer clients and colleagues to her if they need to know anything about how to shoot well.

Michael Green Television Ltd.

 “I did some self-shooting as an AP when Janine was PD/ing a project. She made me feel confident to pick up the camera, with clear direction on the shots you need to build a piece. I’ve also read manuals she’s put together for crew on other projects that really helped focus the look. I’ve asked advice from Janine when directing myself on lenses and actuality, and as always felt informed and more relaxed and confident before the shoot. Whether it’s specialist factual or ob doc, Janine’s advice is invaluable.”

Christine Johnston, Shooting PD

“A big recommendation from me!!! I interviewed Janine for my Creative Industries Study and she gave me amazing advice that I hadn't heard before. Years of experience and one of the most patient, imaginative and practical people I know.”

Carrie Day, Visionary Artist and Filmmaker

"Janine was a wonderful teacher and shared exactly the right skills I needed for the Arctic trip I was about to go on!"

Casper ter Kuile, WWF Ambassador