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PERSON FOCUS: LLOYD BUCK
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Lloyd Buck, half of Lloyd & Rose Buck Ltd, was keeping and training barn owls and budgies at the tender age of 10 and now specialises in bird training and handling for wildlife films and documentaries. Capable of staging all types of aerial manoeuvres and sequences, the company has been running for around 15 years and has a formidable reputation within the industry. Lloyd talks to us about life as bird expert.
What was your first broadcast/film industry related job?
My first industry-related job was training twelve magpies for a wildlife documentary in 1991 (BBC Wildlife on One: Magpie In The Dock). This has led to our company being involved in many BBC natural history unit series ever since, filming completely unique flying sequences.
What made you take that particular job?
I started keeping birds from the age of ten, the first bird I trained being a budgie! I was offered the chance to train the magpies by the producer, as I had given him some advice about training owls a year previously. I thought it would be a fantastic opportunity to use my passion and training to give people an insight into the world of birds.
What career-defining positions have you held since?
Since those early days, the business (Lloyd & Rose Buck Ltd) has really taken off. My wife, Rose, and I have worked very hard in the past fifteen years to build up our reputation. We went through some tough times in the early days, as any small company trying to establish themselves would know!
We've worked on groundbreaking programmes with well-known cameramen, such as Jonathan Watts, who built mini-cams for the birds to wear in order to get fantastic ‘onboard’ footage of our golden eagle Tilly in the Scottish Highlands, and goshawk Ellie flying in woodland.
Rose tends to specialise in waterfowl; imprinting swans and geese to follow cars, boats and microlights for in-flight filming This experience, and the fact we’ve worked on nearly one hundred film and television productions, really shows how far the business has come with time, effort and passion.
What has been your proudest moment to date?
This has to be when I saw the finished version of our film The Falcon That Flew With Man, shot by Leo Dickinson, a skydiving adventure cameraman. He took breathtaking footage of our trained peregrine falcons (the fastest animal in the world) whilst in freefall with them. Not an easy feat! The film was a fantastic adventure and a massive achievement for us, taking three years of sheer hard work and determination - something we achieved with no other financial backing.
What is the most important lesson you’ve learned in your working life?
I think that the most important lesson I have learned through my experience is never give up, and always try to remain positive, whatever situation you find yourself in, because having a confident, optimistic attitude invariably helps to bring success.
What would you most like to achieve in your career?
I would love to incorporate training with presenting. I have huge enthusiasm for birds and nature and would love an opportunity to demonstrate this to the viewers. Also, it would be good to think that by doing this, I could help get people interested wildlife and the countryside who may not have been before.
In your line of work, what is the most important personality trait to have, and how do you go about getting it?
In my job, you have to have incredible patience, because birds are unpredictable. You also need be very observant, as birds tend to express their feelings through their body language and micro expressions: being able to read this helps you work out the best way to go about training as birds are all individual and respond in different ways. To really understand birds takes years of experience and you have to have a natural affinity with them before you start.
Our birds are like family to us, not just a way of making a living. That is what makes them so special, I think: the fact that we establish such a close bond with means we get to know their characters and even what they like and don’t like to do. Our philosophy runs on the basis that if we think the birds won’t enjoy it, we don’t do it.
Where will you have your lunch today?
I’ll be staying at home with Rose, and having lunch by our small lake with our seven imprinted whooper swans. (If I want to actually eat anything, I’ll have to watch out, as the swans would eat the bread from our sarnies given half a chance!)
How do you occupy your time when you’re not working?
Training and caring for birds is a full time occupation, so one of us always needs to be around. Rose and I try to have one day off each every week (on different days) and when it's my turn I tend to go carp fishing, as this is the only thing I can do where I switch off from the birds and work.
Who do you consider to be the most inspirational figure in your life?
I have two. My wife Rose, for amazing patience, caring nature and positive outlook, and also Tilly, our Golden Eagle, for her regal, knowing character. I feel privileged to be part of her life.
Complete this sentence: “The best things in life are …”
“The best things in life are all around you, from the sunrise, to the changing seasons: having an affinity with nature will always bring happiness and contentment.
Main picture copyright Mark Payne-Gill
Article pictures copyright Leo Dickinson
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