More Case Studies

Drives in Action

Andy
Mcleod

Andy is a freelance Director of Photography and Underwater Cameraman with over 20 years experience in the film and television industry. He shoots almost exclusively with tapeless formats, including the RED ONE™ 4K camera.

"I approach the safety of my data in the same way I ensure the safety of my team. You can’t underestimate its importance."

Dare devil

Whether diving with sharks, navigating sub zero temperatures in the Antarctic or scouring volcanoes - Andy takes adventurous creativity to a new level.

The lengths he will go to in order to capture awe-inspiring footage appear to be unlimited. When filming in the Antarctic, Andy and his team lived on a sailing boat for three months; traveling the furthest South ever navigated by boat in the history of polar exploration, even beyond the guidance of GPS. They then dived into the freezing waters to capture stunning footage beneath the ice.

These demanding conditions combined with some of the most high-tech camera equipment and shooting HD at 4K, all demands more from his storage systems.

Risk-free tapeless storage & editing

Andy shoots with the RED ONE™ 4K camera on land and underwater. On location he transfers his solid-state media to his G-DRIVE mini.

"The remote environments I shoot in require a robust external drive that will run without mains power. The mini drive is perfect as it can run off my laptop battery via the USB," said Andy.

In the edit suite, Andy cuts his own footage using a G-SPEED eS system.

Shooting underwater in Turkey for a Europa Bank TV commercial

"The speed is astounding – the drive is much faster than my previous system and working to a RAID means I know all the hours of edit time are completely safe. That's critical as much of what I shoot is unrepeatable, a unique moment. For all the performance and advanced features, like the hot-swappable drives, it was also surprisingly affordable."

Filming a music video for the singer Toby Nambur, shot on RED, with some sequences in an underwater studio

"What's great about the G-SPEED is it automatically backs-up two copies of my work; providing amazing security. I approach the safety of my data the same way as ensuring the safety of my team – you can't overestimate its importance."

The drive for creativity goes on

Andy has more extreme projects lined up including a dangerous wildlife series and an underwater shoot in South America. "I definitely have a creative desire that needs to be fulfilled, I still feel like my best work is yet to come. And I know I never have to worry about losing any of my hard-earned digital footage." said Andy.

For further information about Andy's work see www.filmcanaryislands.com and www.andymcleod.com