This episode follows wildlife photographer and expedition filmmaker Alexander Forrest, whose drone footage of a humpback whale birth drew major attention and turned into a broader conversation about conservation, ethics, and the power of aerial perspective. He and host Mark Masterton trace Alex’s path from photographing cars as a teenager to filming whales around Australia, with a focus on consistency, preparation, and reading animal behavior.We discuss how the viral whale birth was captured, what happened in the moments before and after, and why drones are becoming such a valuable tool for wildlife documentation without disturbing the animals.

Key topics

Chapters

00:00 - Luck, preparation, and the birth footage everyone is talking about
00:57 - Intro to Alex Forrest and the Drone as a Future conversation
02:03 - Getting into drones through a birthday gift and a trip through Western Australia
03:07 - Growing up in Denmark, Western Australia, and starting photography with a phone
04:13 - Learning manual settings and building skills at car events
05:52 - Why Alex learned to shoot differently and look for light, angles, and detail
06:46 - The first drone flights, early crashes, and learning by doing
08:31 - Why wildlife became the main focus and why video works so well for whales
10:22 - Farm life, Anvil Beach, and the first aerial images that got local attention
12:08 - Starting a photography business at 15 and getting formal bookings
13:04 - The day the humpback whale birth happened while filming the Humpback Highway
14:01 - Why consistency matters and the quote about preparation meeting opportunity
14:53 - What makes the footage historic and why drones captured a rare perspective
16:21 - Misreading the whale’s behavior before realizing she was in labor
18:12 - Seeing the calf emerge and reporting the event to researchers
20:16 - How the story spread through social media, TV, radio, and news outlets
21:41 - Managing a viral drone video with domestic and international rollout
24:52 - Wildlife ethics, research, and why distance matters
26:53 - How the footage may help scientists study maternal behavior in humpbacks
28:03 - Looking for other unique whale individuals and patterns
29:18 - What excites Alex about drone technology: quieter aircraft, better batteries, and better zoom
31:52 - Bucket-list wildlife goals, including Antarctica and big cetaceans
34:32 - Advice for young photographers: be consistent, follow passion, and keep practicing
36:29 - Studying film on the Gold Coast and aiming for expedition storytelling
38:45 - The documentaries and nature storytellers that shaped his path
40:05 - Closing thoughts on conservation and what comes next

Drone As The Future

Episodes 11

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