Voice of an African Nation

BY CARLOS "SHAKE SHAKE" ESPINOSA, LUSAKA, ZAMBIA, AFRICA - These last couple days have been … rather amazing, kind of hard to describe them. This past weekend we traveled down to Livingstone; the ride was a little long but we once we arrived, it was well worth it. The next day we went to Victoria Falls. I am glad that I got the opportunity to see one of the natural wonders of the world. I got to capture footage from the falls but it was a litte difficult and frustrating to shoot since the mist of the falling water spray the path. I was trying to avoid getting the camera wet and I used my sweater to protect the gear. At that point, I finally realized what I had in front of me, and stopped to enjoy the beauty and power of the falls. I was not able to take any still photos but Shawn came through and took some great ones for me.

Later that day, we got a bigger surprise when we found out that we where going to be capturing some aerial footage by helicopter. Once we got to the charter site, things moved quickly and the next thing I knew I was asking the person who assists on the heli-pad to double check my seat belt. Shooting out of a helicopter with the door open was unreal; the view was amazing. At times, I felt like yelling but I don’t think everybody would have enjoyed that since we all had headsets on for communication. I don’t think I have ever held a camera like that before. I remember thinking, “Don’t drop the camera. Don't drop the camera.”

One thing I have learned about shooting a film is that you have to be on your toes and ready for everything - we did everything from push-starting a bus to shooting out of a helicopter. The feeling I have about the experience will last a lifetime and I know when I look back at this I will always have a smile on my face. The people from Zambia and the crew have had a great impact on me and I will hope to use this experience down the road.