Anyone who follows TUBAF’s social media channels will already have come across the video: a group of researchers and students are currently in Croatia, more specifically in Sveta Marina, amidst a breathtaking natural setting of rugged cliffs and crystal-clear Mediterranean waters. As part of a diving training course run by our university’s Scientific Diving Centres (SDC), they are deepening their knowledge of scientific diving. Andreas Hiekel from TUBAF’s Media Centre is also there. He is filming not only for the spectacular images, but because he wants to make science visible and understandable.
What exactly do the people behind the camera and video camera do?
At first glance, one might say: I document what is happening. But in fact, the work begins one step before that. I first need to understand what is happening scientifically and why it is happening. It’s not enough simply to photograph a person underwater with a measuring device. If I don’t know what’s being measured there, why it’s being measured at that exact spot, and what scientific question lies behind it, I may well be able to produce an aesthetically pleasing image – but I won’t yet have a good story about the specific research!
That’s why, on assignments like these, I don’t see myself solely as a cameraman or photographer. I’m also working in an editorial capacity. I observe, ask questions, listen in on briefings, try to understand the context and then consider: what images do we need so that someone who wasn’t there can later understand what was actually being investigated here? Ultimately, the camera is just one of the tools for this.
So what makes a good science image or video?
It doesn’t necessarily have to be the most spectacular image. Of course, a diver in the deep blue of the Mediterranean makes an immediate visual impact. But if I only produce images like that, I end up telling a story more about diving than about science. That’s why the small moments are often just as important. A hand preparing a measuring device. A labelled sample. A glance at a map. Checking equipment together. A discussion after a dive. Someone trying to make sense of an unexpected result. Images like these illustrate the scientific process.
For me, a good science photograph should, if possible, achieve two things at once: it should spark curiosity and explain something. You see something and ask yourself: What on earth are they doing there? And that question opens the door to the story.
Some of the material is published whilst the field trip is still underway. Why?
Nowadays, communication also relies on timeliness. If we spend two weeks documenting exciting research and only reveal weeks later that we were in Croatia, we are squandering some of the potential.
That’s why I try to select suitable material whilst the field trip is still underway and prepare it in such a way that my colleagues in the University Communications department in Freiberg can work with it. This means that photos, short video clips or stories can be published promptly – as was the case, for example, with the video from Croatia on the university’s social media channels. People can, in a sense, follow the field trip as it happens. I find that much more exciting than simply reporting on it afterwards.
How important is collaboration with researchers?
It’s absolutely vital. For me, good media coverage doesn’t work on the principle that the scientists get on with their work and then, at some point, someone from the communications team pops round to take a photo. The sooner I know what’s planned, the better I can do my job. Researchers can be a huge help to me if they say: ‘Something’s happening tomorrow that you can only see once.’ ‘On this dive, we’re testing a special method.’ ‘This piece of equipment is important for our project.’ ‘We might find something interesting at this spot.’ I can then ask in turn: ‘Can you explain to me why that’s relevant?’ That’s how collaboration begins.
Are you working at TUBAF and want to publicise your research? The Department 5, comprising the Higher Education Marketing, Media Centre and Press Office divisions, will be happy to advise you!
