Two weeks in Tasmania [VID]

[Editor's note: Scott Sporleder was the first of many travel journalists to participate in the (closed beta) MatadorAccess program. When launched, this program will enable Matador to connect journalists with Destination Marketing Orgs (DMOs) and global PR firms, sending talented writers, photographers, and filmmakers on amazing trips all over the world. Scott was hosted by Discover Tasmania. Check out more of his Tasmania content on his Matador community page.]

Photographs by Scott Sporleder

WHEN TALKING ABOUT SHOOTING in places abroad, people always say that it was ‘amazing’ or ‘incredible’, but in all honesty, Tasmania was an amazing place to film.

I had a car for two weeks to hit the road and get into it, which was awesome. I had no idea what type of a video I wanted to come out of this, so I just decided to shoot whatever struck me.

From Cradle Mountain Nat. Park to Liffey falls, from the Bay of Fires to the rolling fields of pink, orange, and white tulips in bloom, I soaked up Tasmania’s natural beauty.

I wish that when you watch this video, you could also get the scent of the mist from the waves that pounded the Tasman Peninsula, because the smell of the place was what really struck me when I got there.

You can see clips of the Southern Coastline and the Tasman Peninsula in this video right when the music hits and water crashes against the towering 900-foot dolerite cliffs. The sheer beauty of that coastline is breathtaking but it was extremely difficult to get a steady shot as I got thrown about in the huge open ocean swells that form between Tasmania and Antarctica.

Whenever I met anyone and had the chance to do a little interview, I would ask them what they thought is special about Tasmania. People like Mark, the tours and education manager at Lark Distillery, gave me the cheerful, jolly, and unscripted sound bites my camera wanted.

When at Lark take a moment to sample their popular Bush Liquor, pepperberry vodka, or the single malt whiskey that owners Bill and Lyn took a decade to develop.

Everyone I encountered was very welcoming and genuinely interested in my visit to their home. That made it great filming people, because I knew that just about everyone would be willing to cooperate every time I stuck a camera in their face!

I did have to deal with some crummy weather at times. I got rained on around 10 of the 14 days that I was there, which can be a big bummer when you only have a few hours in a particularly beautiful place. I had to remind myself on days like that, that despite my postcard-perfect expectations, this was the reality of how I was seeing it.

The moment that I stood in front of that scenery, that was my special moment. It was my time to capture that particular instance. That’s how it goes when you film on the road — you gotta take the good with the bad and just keep trying to see something new, see it in a new light and from a new angle.