Getting Skunked | JONATHAN BIRD'S BLUE WORLD Extra

In this EXTRA, Jonathan talks about what it's like to deal with the unpredictable nature of the wild when trying to film underwater. Getting "skunked" is what happens when you fail to get the shots you set out to find.

Jonathan Bird's Blue World is an Emmy Award-winning underwater science/adventure program that airs on public television in the United States.

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Transcript:
When you watch Jonathan Bird’s Blue World and enjoy our underwater adventures, you probably get the impression that everything goes smoothly and we always get our shots. It seems that way because we only make episodes out of the expeditions that result in good footage. Trust me when I tell you that it doesn’t always work out as planned. Sometimes we go on a shoot…and we get skunked. Which means we don’t get the shots.

Because we work mostly underwater, there are 3 things that can be a challenge. Bad weather, bad visibility, and uncooperative wildlife.

Weather is a huge factor in making the show. Sure, we are going to get wet anyway, so rain isn’t a terrible problem, other than making our above water shots a bit dreary. Wind is the major issue. When it gets windy, the ocean gets rough. We have spent many days in the field waiting for the weather to cooperate, or worse, getting thrown around on a boat in rough seas trying to get the shots in spite of the weather.

Underwater visibility is always an issue. Sure, if we are working in cold, nutrient rich water with lots of plankton, we expect limited visibility and we are usually filming something small where you don’t need much visibility.

But there are times when we show up at a tropical location, known for clear water, but the water isn’t clear. Usually wind is to blame, creating storm surge that stirs up the sand. Shooting big animals requires clear water. So we keep our fingers crossed for good viz whenever we need to shoot something big. But we don’t always get our wish.

One of the nice things about cave diving is that the water in caves is generally much more consistent than the ocean.

When we are working on segments about animals, we don’t just have to worry about the weather and the visibility, but we also need the animals to cooperate. Sometimes they just don’t. At Guadalupe Island, we once chummed for days and only got a few passes by a totally uncooperative white shark. We did a Tiger shark expedition one year and no Tigers showed up—just a few Lemon sharks. The first time we went to Mexico to film Bull sharks, they had mysteriously vanished the week before, and we saw nothing. We had to wait a year to go back and do it again. On our first coral spawn shoot, the coral didn’t spawn. Night after night we waited on the reef for a spawning that didn’t happen.

This kind of thing is really frustrating, but that’s how nature works. There are no guarantees. It’s hard to go home from an expensive expedition to some far flung corner of the globe with nothing to show for it, but it does happen.

I try to remind myself that if it were easy, everyone would do it. Not everything in life is easy and sometimes you get skunked. But you can’t get discouraged. Sometimes you need to persevere to succeed!

[marksaid]

Patience is a fundamental necessity in these kind of jobs, apart from luck and cooperation from Mother Nature. All of you, the Blue World team are admirable for having a lot of it. Thanks for the video, mates. Keep it up.

[theguardian]

Jonathan and the rest of the BlueworldTV crew, you put out such great content here on YouTube. So much goes into each episode and I just want you to know that I really appreciate every second of it!

[terrismith]

It's worth it because so many people, including me, love your shows Jonathan Bird !!!

[iprobablyforgotsomething]

1.34 Awww! Thanks, Blue World Team, for all you hard work - and patience! I'm sure you do far more waiting than we'll ever know to bring us these episodes. But we love them, so please continue to be patient for us and keep up the good work! I hope mother nature will be more cooperative in the future.

[sagarg]

Wow Jon!
This really is encouraging! I love your show and this made me love it even more. I think its great to show the work that you put in to this and may I say, your results are magnificent!

[julissaraquel.]

I might work at a afterschool program and your videos are perfect for students who want to learn about marine life. I enjoy watching them at home as well! 😊

[adampilot]

Thank you for the outstanding footage Jonathan and keep up the fine work. As a fellow diver and Blue world lover I can fully appreciate your grief when 1 2 and 3 are against you.

[narutonix]

this is amazing :D you guys clearly love what you are doing and it shows!

[richardcurrin]

This video serves to make us appreciate the awesome work you do even more! Thanks!

[nicolasng]

I really want you guys' effort to be seen by more people, I will try my best to spread the word.

[lucassweeten]

Thank you for your amazing videos, they are inspiring and I can't stop watching your videos.

[cgrymnl]

no matter how hard you try, I still envy you so much Jonathan! :D

[letstrythis]

Jonathan, thank you very much for such a wonderful, informative video.
Today I learned something new from your channel.
I wish you best of luck from deep inside my heart!

[gokhanharkan]

Hi, Jonathan! I've been watching your videos for the past 2 years and I absolutely love them! You inspired me to major in biology at Harvard...
Great work! Please keep it up

[sirklumpatsch]

I have a friend that's been working as a journalist for a long time, travelling all across the world. People always were jealous at him, but in fact, 99% of his work was sitting behind a desk under time pressure. He didn't actually SEE anything, it wasn't a chilly vacation or anything. After almost 15 years he grew tired of it and quit. So I understand that even YOU don't have the "perfect dream job". I guess such a thing simply doesn't exist.

[BenteBente]

Nice little speech in the end of the video :))

[jamesbach]

You do great work Jonathan! One can control nature about as well as I can control my better half.... In other words, it ain't happening! Lol. I was privileged to sort of work with you once. I lent you some tanks at Silver Springs. I hope I get the chance again someday. It was fun watching you guys work!

[jonathansantos]

I like this video because it help us explain how future diving expeditions might be guided by tracking services and seasonal peaks of explorative recommendation.
Thank you for touching base on diving challenges and maybe some adaptive services to co-orientate diving expeditions and services around the world eventually and safely.💚💙❤️

[harvwehlage]

I know what you mean Jonathan. When I go to the zoo, I have trouble trying to get good footage of the animals and I basically have the same 3 issues as you do. When the weather is too hot, the animals all take shelter and I get really tired and sweaty. When I'm trying to get my camera ready to take pictures, I have a hard time getting it to focus and the picture comes out all blurry. And when the animals are not cooperating, I can't get any shots of them. It's brutal! Thankfully though, this doesn't always happen. I sometimes get good shots.

[Paarthurnax_]

thanks for the amazing contents guys! terima kasih!