Sir David Attenborough in the orchid room in Kew's Princess of Wales Conservatory. Photograph: Will Benson ©Atlantic Productions
I’m extremely excited about the announcement that Sir David Attenborough has written and presented a brand new series: ‘Kingdom of Plants 3D’ that is soon to air. Anything Attenborough puts his name to is synonymous with amazing photography, perfect narration and a wealth of fascination rarely threatened by any other source, and what’s more, this time it’s in 3D!I’ve grown up watching Sir David and to say I’m a fan is a huge understatement. ‘The Private Life of Plants’ was lost on me the first time around, as I was always much more interested in documentaries focused on the animal kingdom when young, but later on I came to love it just as much as I did the others and once again I find myself incredibly excited by what’s just around the corner.
‘Kingdom of Plants 3D’ is a mini-series divided in to three parts that is due to air on Sky 3D in May. Filmed over the course of a year at one of my favorite places - the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, the series sets out to reveal a fascinating new look at plant life through the use of 3D time-lapse filming techniques.
Each of the three 50 minute episodes will cover a different area of plant life. Life in the Wet Zone looks at the adaptation of plants to wet and humid environments, with episode two, Solving the Secrets, exploring the behind-the-scenes lives of plant movement, scent and communication. Survival, the concluding episode, focuses on the continual adaptation of plants as well as a look at Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank, which houses almost two billion seeds of more than 30,000 species of wild plants to ensure their future for generations to come.
Sir David commented:
“One of the most wonderful things about filming plants is that you can reveal hidden aspects of their lives. You can capture the moment as one plant strangles another, and as they burst into flower. But whilst time-lapse photography allows you to see things that no human being has ever seen before, the added element of 3D takes the audience even further still. Stamens extend and burst to reveal their pollen grains in exquisite detail, and we can see close-up the incredible insects that partner up with these plants. The whole experience in 3D is just entrancing, and hypnotically beautiful.”
All that I need now is a 3D TV!
Kingdom of Plants 3D airs in May 2012 on Sky 3D and will be simulcast in 2D on Sky Atlantic HD.
