If you’ve ever wanted to visit the Wild West you can find it in France, although it should better be called the Wild South. Cowboys, wild white horses and pink flamingos. Hard to imagine any place on earth where you'll find all of them together but the vast Camargue delta in the South of France is home to all of these colorful creatures.
Since the 1500’s the Cowboys of the Provence, Les Gardians de Camargue - how they call themselves, have been tending to herds of horses in the unfenced coastal region of the Camargue.
It takes a very rustic horse to survive in this territory. The Camargue horse, also known as the "horse of the sea", is very harsh and one of the oldest horse breeds in the world. For more than 500 years the Guardians have been caring for them. They have gained a deep, old knowledge about these wonderful beings who look more like the mounts of fairies, than just animals. They share a language with the horses, a language full of gestures. It’s a communication based upon respect. Philippe, one of the Guardians told me: "You could argue that humans are more intelligent but humans lie to each other. You can not lie to a horse, they are too sensitive for that."
The Guardians have been playing a vital role in Camargue culture for generations but their way of life is becoming harder and harder to sustain. There are just a few professional Guardians left. It’s a very tough profession. It’s hard work and physical. Seven days a week, every day of the year. I hope that the tradition will continue, it’s a job for those who truly love it.
I hope you like my latest work, I'm very curious to hear your feedback - let me know your thoughts in the comments. Producing this video was a long dream of mine and I'm super happy to finally share it with you. Thanks to everybody who helped me on this amazing project.
Filmed at the end of June / beginning of July 2019 (the hottest week in France since weather record with up to 45 degrees Celsius).
Team:
Camera, Edit & Color Grading: Dennis Schmelz (www.dennisschmelz.de)
Graded with my Transsiberian Dream LUT Package (dennisschmelz.de/downloads.html)
Music: Christian Heschl (www.heschl-music.com)
Sound Design: Friedhelm Mund (www.friedhelmmund.de)
B-Roll: Benoit Malaussena
Thanks also to Daniel Kordan and Iurie Belegurchi from Iceland Photo Tours (www.iceland-photo-tours.com) and Canon Germany (www.canon.de) for supporting me on this video project.
Blog: dennisschmelz.de/?option=com_...
Gear (Affiliate Links):
Canon 1DX Mark II (amzn.to/2ICXrkE)
Canon 16-35 f/2.8 (amzn.to/3241oqi)
Canon 24-70 f/2.8 (amzn.to/2VsFRow)
Canon 70-200 f/2.8 (amzn.to/33kf28R)
Canon 100-400 f/4.5-5.6 (amzn.to/322DThn)
DJI Ronin S Gimbal (amzn.to/2nxHswS)
DJI Phantom 4 Pro Drone (amzn.to/35n1TO7)
📼 LUTs
"Prejudice" S-Log3 LUT: bit.ly/3w97bZC
"Transsiberian Dream" LUT Package: bit.ly/2SCvd1A
Edited in Premiere Pro CC 2019.
For licensing inquiries please contact info(at)dennisschmelz.de.
It's not allowed to use any of this footage without licensing - also for non-commercial use.
© Dennis Schmelz | 2019
Find me also here:
dennisschmelz.de
/ dennisschmelz
/ dennisschmelzfilm
vimeo.com/dschmelz
#camargue #horses #pferde
9 окт 2019
