Remote-controlled camera goes on safari for you
Posted 04.20.2010 at 1:18 pm
6 Comments
BeetleCam
The handmade buggy flipped over completely only twice during its run.
Burrard-Lucas.com
Photographing animals in the wild traditionally requires a meticulously engineered infrared camera trap and good timing. Brothers Will and Matthew Burrard-Lucas, however, ingeniously attached a DSLR camera to a four-wheel-drive remote-control buggy, thus creating the BeetleCam. The roving all-terrain camera allows the brothers to safely take photos like this one:
Elephant is Ready for its Close-up: An elephant sniffs the BeetleCam. Burrard-Lucas.com
Using oversized motors and wheels, and a bit of trial and error, the brothers were able to stabilize the BeetleCam's movements and integrate a Canon EOS 400D camera with the controller used to maneuver the buggy.
The brothers headed to Ruaha and Katavi National Parks in Tanzania, where they took the BeetleCam for a spin. They found that with some species, like the elephants, it was best to let the animal gingerly approach the camera by itself. Others, like the notably dangerous African buffalo, were totally unfazed by the robot buggy's presence.
That's not to say the trip was completely devoid of hijinks. The brothers almost lost the BeetleCam when a lioness hauled it off into the bushes. Fortunately, they were able to salvage the memory card from the otherwise ruined camera body. As the following photograph demonstrates, the BeetleCam's damage was not endured in vain.
BeetleCam Captures Photo of Curious Lioness: Thanks to their remote-controlled BeetleCam, the Burrard-Lucas brothers were able to capture this close-up without fearing for their lives. Burrard-Lucas.com
The BeetleCam now has a new camera and plans further adventures.
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Wow, if that's the all-aluminum body EOS (?), then that lioness has got Hulk-strength!
How about a flying version?
Great pictures!
A flying version would be neat, but it wouldn't allow you to get the close-ups that I think they were after. A helicopter-type setup would likely be too noisy and alarming to any wild animals you were trying to photograph. An airplane would just get you quick fly-over shots.
I agree a flying type would be cool but if you think about it, trying to fly and adjust the camera just right to take the pictures and i bet it would stink to crash it.
They already have flying ones...been around for years.
Just hearing how they stabilized the BeetleCam's movements and integrated a Canon EOS 400D camera sound pretty complicated for me, yet I admit that I would love to participate as well. So far the site looks awesome, so I hope http://www.popsci.com keep up with the good work.