MIRICLE Camera used in the making of groundbreaking Big Cat Film

Ammonite Films is an independent film production company specialising in using innovative and high tech camera equipment to make high definition films about science and natural history. Ammonite Films first approached Thermoteknix with a view to making a film of big cats hunting at night back in 2008.

Renowned Ammonite wildlife photographer and film producer Martin Dohrn had been commissioned by National Geographic Wild (HD) and was looking for a high resolution thermal imaging camera to capture lions hunting at their most effective time, in complete darkness, in order to make the film ‘Night of the Lion’. Discussions with Martin led to the selection of a Thermoteknix MIRICLE 307K camera with 640x480 pixel resolution.

Click to play Night of the Lion Trailer (opens in new window)

Martin wanted to use both 32mm and 150mm focal length lenses on the same camera in order to change the camera field of view very quickly – a feature essential for filming fast-moving wildlife. Thermoteknix provided the technical support solution for Ammonite to be able to adapt the camera and lenses in order to fit onto the same MIRICLE 307K thermal imaging camera.

Click here to view stunning still images from Night of the Lion

The subsequent stunning filming took place in the Masai Mara in Kenya in order to produce the never before seen stunning footage of lions hunting in total darkness and was first aired on Nat Geo Wild TV in September 2009.

Martin Dohrn is an award-winning cameraman and film producer and with a quarter of a century’s experience behind him he has been nominated both for an Emmy and a BAFTA.

British company Thermoteknix Systems Ltd is regularly involved high profile projects including Formula 1 and Indycar racing, Aegis Ballistic Defense Tests and recently was selected to supply the thermal imaging camera to accompany NASA’s successful LCROSS mission to search for the presence of water on the moon…where the Thermoteknix camera in question now resides permanently...

Click here to download high resolution images related to this story

Click here to download the press release (pdf format)

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17th January 2012