Richard Matthews – Wildlife Cameraman: An Appreciation
March 7th, 2013
Angie and I were deeply shocked and saddened to hear of the death of Cape Town wildlife filmmaker Richard Matthews. Richard - who co-owned Table Mountain Films - and pilot Mark Berry died earlier this week in a plane crash in Namibia while filming aerials for an international documentary. Richard and his wife Sammantha were old friends of ours dating back to the 1980s here in Kenya. We join their many friends in sending our love and condolences to Sammantha and her children and all the family – and to Mark’s family too.
Richard was unique. I first met him in the early 1980s while working on the story of The Leopard’s Tale (1985). He enjoyed roaming Fig Tree Ridge and Leopard Gorge (above) as much as Angie and I love to – home to Chui, Half-Tail, and Zawadi in times past. He was a talented stills photographer with a great love of East Africa and its people and wildlife. Richard had already established himself as an Assistant Producer with the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol. But his heart was always in Africa where he was born. He was very much his own man and we all knew that Richard would never settle for second best. He had a great eye for the shot and a wonderful understanding of light. He was an artist with his camera and soon decided he wanted to set up on his own as a wildlife cameraman. When Richard heard that a leopard mother had given birth to three cubs along Rhino Ridge in 1985 he decided to step up. That meant taking moving out of his comfort zone – mortgaging his home and heading back to Africa – literally putting his money where his mouth was. We spoke on the phone when I was in the UK – he was concerned about the risk he was taking but I knew this was what he needed to do – this was his golden opportunity – one of those moments when you have to decide if you are going to live the life of your dreams – or step back.
Richard was feisty, competitive and totally dedicated to his craft. He made his film on the leopard mother – it was a classic – some of the shots were achingly beautiful in their artistry – he really did have that magic ingredient. There was a ‘look’ to his work that was all his own. By getting stuck in like this he put his reputation on the line – he was filming the same leopard that the BBC decided they wanted to film for the Natural World! Typically that just made Richard all the more determined and he got some unique footage along the way – including a ‘killer’ sequence to top it off when the mother leopard leapt out of a tree to snatch a zebra foal!
Richard then worked with the legendary wildlife cameraman Alan Root in the Serengeti around the time I was collecting material for books on the wildebeest migration and the wild dogs. By now Richard had met Samantha Purdy – a gem of a lady from Kenya who shared his love of photography and wildlife. Samantha gave Richard her dedication, loyalty and love – and the wonderful children that were and are so special to them both. Later Richard worked with us on Big Cat Diary and we always knew Richard’s ‘rushes’ – they were so beautifully shot – with his unerring eye for sidelight and backlight, mood and emotion. Samantha and Richard agonised over the economics of whether to buy a home in Kenya or head south to where Richard had grown up. There was the question of what would be best for the children: schooling, finances and security, the same decisions that we had to consider in our own lives some years earlier. Samantha’s parents had lived at the Kenya coast – she had grown up there – se we all knew how hard that decision must be for her. But Samantha was always – and is – a team player: supportive, generous and loving. So they headed south with Richard now intent on combining his love of flying with his craft as a cameraman.
Richard was a man of many talents. He was a leader and a pioneer in his field. He had what it takes to step up. With Samantha he founded his own Picture Library in the 1980s, as well as his own Production Company in the UK – Zebra Films. He was a mover and shaker – he made things happen. And even though we lost contact with Richard and Samantha these past few years we were always delighted to hear news of their achievements. Richard had a soft and sensitive side that sometimes got hidden by his drive and determination to complete his ideas. But anyone who knew Richard well understood his vision, saw his kindness and loving side, admired his boundless energy. He will be sorely missed by his friends and family.
With our love and affection to the Matthews and Purdy families – and to Mark Berry’s family. Our thoughts and condolences are with you all.
14 comments on “Richard Matthews – Wildlife Cameraman: An Appreciation”
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I, to would like add my condolences to all involved.
Rest in Peace
Dom
That early leopard film by Richard from the 1980s was an inspiration, I had never seen such intimate footage of wild leopards before that. What a terrible loss.
My thoughts and condolences to both families.
Sue
Oh my goodness, so sorry to hear this. I concur with all the statements above……my thoughts and prayers to all the family and friends at this most difficult time.
Kris
Makes you realise how precious life is – not to leave your dreams unattended for a minute more than you have to (or to adapt those dreams to suit your new reality!) – and the wonder of modern technology that allows us to spread our thoughts so much more widely and to reconnect with old friends – and to make new ones – and respond in a much more immediate way to life’s turbulent, tortuous and ultimately miraculous essence!
How true are your words Jonathan. My thoughts and prayers to his wife and all his Family.
Pepe Puy
Just looking at the picture of the magnificent fig tree at the mouth of Leopards Gorge – the Gorge had a rock fall many years ago that blocked the access from the west where we used to enter at times – and know there must have been a leopard up in that tree – Zawadi no doubt – could be like a ‘spot the ball’ picture you used to see in Newspapers of football matches – except I don’t remember where she was when the picture was taken!!
Hahahaha…..there is a leopard up in that tree. Not that I can see Zawadi, my eyes aren’t THAT good, but I look at the individuals in the jeep with the tires on the back, and I notice they are looking up to the left, and I believe one of them has a camera. NOW….as Jonathan stated above, “spot the ball”, or in this case, “spot the leopard”. Nope, can’t do it! (smile)
Great weekend everyone!
Kris
Hi Kris
If you happen to have a copy of the original 1982 version of Th Marsh Lions and you go to Page 195 you will see a shot that I took in January 1981 – 32 years ago – of Chui’s two (3 month old) cubs – Chui of The Leopard’s Tale (1985), the book we have just updated to include Half-Tail and Zawadi/Shadow’s story – out in July this year from Bradt Field Guides as a paperback.
So if you look at the beautifully rock fortress that you mention – the one that the people in the vehicle appear to be looking at – and you look at how the rock is split prominently in the horizontal axis – well the lower of the two fissures is the same place that I took the photo of Chui’s two cubs all those years ago. And since then Angie and I have seen our other leopard ‘friends’ use the same caves to hide in – or to hide their cubs in – and then hang out in that magnificent fig tree to chill out and unwind while there cubs stay nice and safe in the rocky fortress. Trivia – but interesting nonetheless!
Eureka!……I have the book, and I’ve found the shot you mentioned. Golly moses!! Super great trivia, thanks! What great memories that spot must have for you and Angie.
Take care,
Kris
Leopard Gorge is my favourite place in the Mara. So many memories, so much longing, so many amazing meetings with the great cats. It has an aura all its own. We did a radio interview there one time for BBC as part of a Dawn to Dusk feature. We stayed up at the Gorge until it was totally dark – just the stars and a sliver of moon. The Gorge takes on a totally different persona at night – spooky and a bit scary – and the sounds are amazing as they echo back and forth between the steep walls of the Gorge: nightjars, eagle owls, hyrax, hyenas – and if you are lucky that spine tingling sound of a leopard calling just like a saw biting deep in to wood.
Thank you Jonathan and Angie for a touching tribute to Richard. I first met him in 1979 (!) when he first joined the NHU and a gang of us would hang out together in a (rather smaller, then!) Bristol. Mandy’s just gone out to be with Sam and Nathan and Bella for a little while… I’m joining them for the memorial on Sunday in Cape Town. I have only the greatest respect for Richard as a filmmaker – and affection as a friend. Best wishes to you both, Brian
Jonathan and Angela……..I also would like to thank you both so much for your acknowledgment of Richard’s wonderful achievements apropos the extraordinary world of Wildlife, and especially your loving support for Samantha and the children.
Hi Jonathan & Angie, Kris and Pepe,
I am so pleased to be back, as I have not been able to log in since this lovely new website started and I had a new p.c.
There seemed to be a problem with my password out of the blue, hopefully all is well now. as I have so missed you all.
It is early a.m. here now, but tomorrow I must try to catch up with some of the news I have missed – sorry to hear of the death of your friends Jonathan, what a waste of lives and what pain for their families. Makes you wish for a Mara in the Great Beyond, doesn’t it? There would be so many of us who would find it a little easier to let go if that was so.
Hope Bob, Matthew, Dom and all of those I was so familiar over the past years, are still blogging, as I have not had chance to check back yet.
All the best,
Barbara.