This is a guest post from BBC Cameraman and Editor Luke Winsbury. He details his 2009 embed with French Troops in kapisa Province, Afghanistan. It’s an interesting and entertaining look at operating as an embedded journalist with a Foreign Army. To watch the film he made click on this link.

It’s 4am when I’m woken up in a large hangar-come-tent. I’ve barely slept because it’s freezing and there was heavy machine gun fire all night. That makes it 3 nights in a row with barely any sleep. We’re in Tagab, a French forward operating base (FOB) in Kapisa Province, North of Kabul. I have no idea what it looks like because we arrived in darkness and, because the base gets rocketed regularly, it is entirely unlit. You’re not even allowed head torches, except dim red light ones which I’m smugly pleased I have.

Nijrab Base, Northern Afghanistan.

We’re bundled into a VAB (armored vehicle). It’s so totally disorientating when you’re this tired and you have no idea where you are or really what you’re about to face. Not even the red light head torches are allowed at this point. I had taken the decision, much against the advice of the French, to take my full size DSR500 camera on patrol. They wanted to take something smaller but I explained that, like them with their guns, I use a DSR reflexively and quickly.

We travel for about an hour in the dark – and it really is pitch black in the back of the VAB. I use my small A1 camera to get some night vision shots of the soldiers in the back. Their eyes glow green and stare blankly into nowhere. They have no idea I’m pointing a camera at them. Ironically I am the only the one in the back of that thing that gets glimpses of anything.

We’re in a Pashtun area where the French had a three hour contact (Army terminology for a Gun-Fight) the previous week, on a joint patrol with the ANA (Afghan National Army) delivering clothes and medical supplies to the main village of Tagab.

French Troops on patrol near Tagab villiage, Northern Afghanistan.

Emma Jane Kirby, the BBC’s Paris Correspondent, and myself are here to see what the French are up to now in Afghanistan. They’ve had a lot of stick in the past for not doing their fair share in Afghanistan but in the recent years they’ve increased their troop numbers and taken control of the strategically important Kapisa Province, the Northern Gateway to Kabul. We’re with the Chasseurs Alpins (Mountain Hunters), the elite mountain infantry troops of the French Army.

The VAB stops, the back door swings open revealing the half-light of dawn. In my haste to get out and actually see something I make the mistake of not grabbing my spares bag. We know we’re going off on foot but don’t know for how long – could be hours. I start filming but immediately get told to start moving through the village. It has suddenly become very tense – something had changed – I don’t understand what or why. I don’t even have time to grab my spares bag from our VAB. I only have the battery on the camera and the tape inside it then. Idiot. Luckily Emma Jane is already wearing her Radio Microphone.

We’re at the back of the patrol, which is the worst place to be, both for filming and for our safety. The Taliban favour ambush tactics where they divide a patrol into smaller groups and pick them off. Moving through the village you can see how easy this is – all the houses with there walls and ditches could hide anyone.

I start running forward to get shots looking back at the soldiers. We stop a lot behind walls, in ditches, while the route forward is checked. We have to cross open ground quickly and with a low profile. We see few villagers – it’s too early. Dogs are barking.

We end up in a deep ditch running through some fields on the edge of the village, facing the mountains on the edge of the valley. This is where the Taliban hide and this is exactly where the French had a 3 hour gun battle with them last week. There’s a white house about 300m away where the Taliban were hiding so French and ANA troops move cautiously up to it. I suddenly notice the guy in front of me is a US Marine – where did he come from?

Gradually the tension eases. Maybe it’s too early for the Taliban. With this perimeter secured, we make our way back into the village to film the ANA handing out blankets and medical supplies. It’s a chaotic scene, but friendly and full of humour. I roam around freely and feel no threat at all, albeit knowing there are many French keeping an eye on things. I have tea with some of the ANA soldiers, one of those moments of serenity you have to take and it gives me a chance to catch my breath.

Later that evening we return to our main home for the week, the French base at Nijrab, home to about 700 troops. Nijrab is a Tajik area and as such is relatively peaceful. The base is set up on a plateau surrounded by huge snow capped mountains – it is incredibly beautiful. When this country finds peace it will be a haven for climbing, walking and skiing.

French JTAC – Forward Air Controller – in Afghanistan

Our accommodation in Nijrab was a large overflow tent – very basic and very cold – and we had to share it with soldiers passing through. At night the temperatures dropped well below freezing. My Icebreaker thermals were magic – I wore them day and night for days and they still didn’t smell (or perhaps I got used to the smell?)

Over the next few days we go on more patrols with the Chasseurs Alpins but mostly in the safer Tajik areas. One day we go with the JTAC (Joint Terminal Attack Controller – in other words the man who calls in Air-Strikes), climbing high up the side of the valley the French are operating in to secure the high ground and provide cover. Their guns face both ways, into the valley below and high up into the rocky peaks. The French have been discovering increasing numbers of large arms caches recently. The Taliban are relatively inactive during the winter (it is said they go for winter training across the border in Pakistan) – but everyone is predicting a counter-surge from them following the large increase in US troops numbers. The arms caches being found by the French seem to indicate a spring offensive.

Although the French do not see as much ‘action’ as the Americans and British in Afghanistan, it is worth keeping in mind the enormous public opposition in France (about 80% of the population) to their presence there – which must constrain their activities there. It is a democracy after all.

Luke has just returned from another trip to Afghanistan, this time with BBC Newsnight’s Mark Urban, click here to watch the film from kandahar.

I’m always on the look out for important videos that will help to inform and educate myself and other Cameramen. I felt it was time that I gathered some of the most relevant and interesting in one place for readers of my blog to check out. If you have any others you think should be here then let me know and I’ll post a follow up.

Firstly I wanted to draw attention to the history of our craft. I always imagine that being a frontline Cameraman in World War two must have been even more intense than it is for us today. The battles that much bigger, the chances of being killed that much more. Below is the first clip from a Documentary about the the cameramen of WW2, there exploits and what they saw.

But as we all know, today although the fighting might not be on such a grand scale it can still be intense, nerve wracking and incredibly dangerous. Here is an excellent film by my colleague Robbie Wright that he shot while embedded with the US Marines in Falluja:

The growing problem for all Journalists in todays environment is that we often become a target ourselves, either accidentally or because we are seen as “the enemy”. Below are a number of films that show how quickly we can become targets and how serious this can be. Some of the films are graphic and quite disturbing:

Not all predicaments a cameraman finds him or her self in are life or death. Even in our own countries the Police can turn nasty and arrest you for no reason. The Cameraman below was detained though later the charges were dropped and I understand that the Police Officer was later fired:

And then there are the self inflicted, pointless problems that we sometimes have to face. I still do not understand why the Cameraman in the film below kept following these guys once he had gotten his shots. He was later fired when the footage from a rival network was aired.

And finally the trailer for a film about stills photographer James Nachtwey. An excellent insight into the life and thought process of one of the worlds best known Photojournalists. Enjoy.

I hope these films have given you something to think about. If you have any films that you think I should include in a follow up piece then please comment below.

Here is an excellent Doco made for American channel PBS. It was shot entirely on a Canon 5D mark II DSLR camera. For more info on this shoot then check my earlier blog post.

This trailer for the Documentary “Battle for the Hearts and Minds” was shot on a stills camera. Photojournalist Danfung Dennis took his Canon 5D Mark II into the badlands of Helmand and came back with HD video pictures that are truly stunning.

Battle for Hearts and Minds Trailer from Danfung Dennis on Vimeo.

If you want to read more about his rig and the problems he encountered then check out the following article from the website dslrnewsshooter.com

http://www.dslrnewsshooter.com/2009/10/14/photojournalist-danfung-dennis-how-i-cover-the-afghanistan-war-with-the-5dmkii/

Specialist Zachary Boyd, fighting the Taliban in his pink boxers

I’ve spent about eight weeks over the last few years embedded with the British military in Iraq and Afghanistan. Although I’ve had some interesting experiences and been able to capture some good images I haven’t been lucky enough to witness a moment like the one in the photo above.

It shows US Army Specialist Zachary Boyd and two of his colleagues returning fire from Firebase Restrepo in Afghanistan’s Kunar Province. Boyd had just been sleeping when the base came under fire.

The picture was taken by David Guttenfelder of the Associated Press and made it onto the front page of the New York Times spurring US Defence Secretary Robert M. Gates to make this statement:

‘Sometimes the public recognition isn’t always expected — or necessarily welcomed. Specialist Zachary Boyd recently was enjoying a well-deserved sleep when his post in eastern Afghanistan came under enemy attack. He immediately grabbed his rifle and rushed into a defensive position clad in his helmet, body armor, and pink boxer shorts that said “I Love New York.”

Unfortunately — or fortunately, depending on your perspective — an A.P. photographer was there for a candid shot, a photo which ran shortly thereafter on the front page of The New York Times. Boyd later told his parents that “I may not have a job anymore after the president has seen me out of uniform.”

Well, let me tell you, the next time I visit Afghanistan I want to meet Specialist Boyd and shake his hand. Any soldier who goes into battle against the Taliban in pink boxers and flip-flops has a special kind of courage. And I can only wonder about the impact on the Taliban. Just imagine seeing that — a guy in pink boxers and flip-flops has you in his crosshairs — what an incredible innovation in psychological warfare. I can assure you that Specialist Boyd’s job is very safe indeed.‘

A light hearted moment while embedded with 40 Commando, Royal Marines, Christmas 2007. This is with the lads from Delta Company in Forward Operating Base Gibraltar.

Taking a rest during a tough foot patrol

I’d always wandered how it felt to be shot at, to hear the crack of bullets breaking the sound barrier above my head and to feel the adrenaline flood through my body.

When it happened it was strangely surreal, like it was happening to somebody else. My heart rate barely seemed to rise above its normal level. It was Christmas day 2007 and I was in Helmand Province, Southern Afghanistan with the Royal Marines. I was embedded with Delta Company 40 Commando based at Forward Operating Base Gibraltar.

When the Taliban began their ambush we were crossing an open field between two large mud walled compounds. One of the Marines spotted something unusual and we went to ground. I thumbed the record button on my DSR 500 Sony Video Camera and began to frame up on the Marines who were poised and ready for anything. Immediately there was a distinctive bang and whistle from the trees to our front, “RPG” screamed one of the guys next to me. I buried my nose in the dirt at the bottom of the shallow ditch I was hiding in. The explosion was close, maybe ten meters behind us. It was followed by a number of single shots from an AK-47 that I could clearly hear whipping through the air above my head. The Marines began to return fire under the direction of Lieutenant Atherton, a baby faced young officer, incredibly calm for a man experiencing his first taste of battle. Jonesy, a black guy from Wales was next to me and he quickly opened up with his weapon. The sound of his Minimi machine gun was vicious as it went into action spraying controlled bursts of fire into the Taliban positions. “Incoming” screamed someone close as another RPG round exploded nearby. For a minute I’d forgotten why I was there and was too busy tasting the Afghanistan dirt to film. Eventually the Bootneck next to me asked if I planned on filming any of this, I laughed and began looking for shots. I felt detached, like I was watching the entire scene play out through somebody else’s eyes. The battle soon steadied and the frantic back and forth of small arms fire slowly died away, the Marines picking their shots looking to minimize damage to the surrounding village. After some time it appeared the Taliban had withdrawn, no more fire came our way and slowly we began to move back across the open ground and into the cover of an empty compound nearby.

50. Cal machine Gun FOB Gibraltar

I’ve thought about that day many times since. Every sight and sound is seared into my memory. It was the closest I’ve ever come to death, one of the few times I’ve ever had to consider my own mortality. But it is also one of my best memories, one of the highlights of my life. Looking back I felt more alive on that day than at any other time before or since. I guess that’s the addiction of combat, it’s that feeling that Soldiers and War Cameramen live for, the buzz that keeps them going back into hot spots again and again.