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Doug Allan

Award-Winning Natural History Photographer & Documentary Filmmaker

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Doug Allan Biography

Doug Allan is a freelance wildlife and documentary cameraman who films both topside and underwater. His equipment includes RED Weapon 4K , Sony PMW 200 camera and Canon stills cameras with housings and various lenses for all of them.

Born in 1951 in Scotland, he graduated with an honours degree in marine biology from Stirling University in 1973. On completion of his degree, he decided that science at the sharp end wasn’t quite where he sought to be. Underwater anywhere became the drive and for the next three years he worked on a wide range of diving jobs. He searched for (and found) freshwater pearls in the rivers of Scotland. Commercial diving in Germany involved underwater video work and rebuilding canals. Twice he assisted with research on marine biological expeditions with Cambridge University in the Red Sea. And in the summer 1975 he ran the Bouley Bay Underwater Centre in Jersey in the Channel Islands.

But the big break was in 1976 when he first went to the Antarctic to work as a research diver on the British Antarctic Survey station at Signy Island in the South Orkneys. The job entailed helping the scientists to carry out their underwater studies, from boats in the summer, beneath the ice in the winter. It was the start of an affair with ice that lasts to this day.

Over the next ten years until 1985, Allan and B.A.S. had a great relationship – he spent four winters and nine summers “down south” in that time, and was awarded the Fuchs Medal, then the Polar Medal, for his work. He did three winters at Signy as diver, and one at Halley Station down at 75° S as Base Commander. Halley was no place for a biologist – but it offered a chance to winter with Emperor Penguins, and a first opportunity for Allan to turn over with a movie camera rather than just stills.

The BBC took first option on buying that Emperor footage for their forthcoming series Birds for All Seasons, and Allan’s career took a new direction. Using his experience of ice diving, and intimate knowledge of Signy through its winters, he proposed two films to Survival Anglia then in 1987 spent ten months in the Antarctic making them.

Since then, he has returned frequently to both the poles, with a string of high profile award winning films and series for the major TV networks worldwide. In contributing to The Blue Planet, Planet Earth, Life, Human Planet, Frozen Planet, Expedition Iceberg, Forces of Nature and many other programs he has made over 100 filming trips, including orcas attacking gray whales off California, polar bears trying to capture belugas in a frozen hole in Arctic Canada, and killer whales washing seals off ice floes in Antarctica – all on screen firsts.

But he likes the challenge of filming people as well as animals, and has done documentary synch shooting for many programs, including assignments with Discovery along the length of the Andes, to the deserts of Africa and to the upper reaches of Mount Everest.

In 2011 he filmed and was a presenter for the BBC series Ocean Giants about whales worldwide. In 2012 he was one of the presenters on Operation Iceberg, as well as filming many of the sequences in this award winning series. In Wildlife Cameramen at Work from BBC Scotland in 2012, Allan was one of the featured cameramen.

Allan has also contributed to numerous radio shows. His audio diary recordings while he made his “Wildlife Special – Polar Bear” became an acclaimed radio program in their own right. He has contributed to Radio 4's Fragile Planet, Penguin Post Office. and Natural Histories. Over the years, he’s also written numerous articles about wildlife and his experiences, and two commissioned children’s books. In February 2012 he published his own book Freeze Frame, a collection of polar pictures and experiences. It's available through this website.

Allan lives in Bristol and through his company Tartan Dragon Ltd, he films for broadcast and for his stock library.

Speaking Topics
  • AN EYE BELOW ZERO

    Doug takes his audience to the two frozen polar worlds • the Arctic and the Antarctic. Glorious pictures of the wildlife, polar bears, penguins and all the seals, the scenery and the people, with insights into how Doug prepares and copes with the short term of a six week film shoot at minus 30°C in search of polar bears. And quite different thoughts on survival of another kind during his two and a half year stint as a biologist on a British Antarctic Survey's scientific research station. What’s happening with climate change and how is that affecting the polar regions?

  • UNDERWATER CAMERA

    Experience life on a coral reef in the Red Sea and Indonesia, under the ice with seals in Canada, and looking or belugas and narwhal with the Inuit at the ice edge. Nose to nose with mating Right Whales in Patagonia gives you a chance to rewarm before heading to Antarctica to discover the remarkable rich undersea life there. The show features behind the scenes stories and sequences from many of the best know BBC wildlife series.

  • WILD IMAGES

    Adventures, encounters and insights from the cameraman whose TV credits include Blue Planet, Planet Earth, Life, Human Planet, Ocean Giants and Frozen Planet. In this show Doug takes you up close and personal with the animals that live in the wildest places on earth. Stories and pictures that will appeal to all ages.

  • IN THE COMPANY OF GIANTS

    Doug has filmed whales from Antarctica, through the tropics, to under the Arctic pack ice in the far north. The keys to successfully filming them are thorough research, skilled boat handlers, a special patience, and even a healthy dose of luck. Doug describes his most memorable moments in the company of giants.

Videos
FAQs
  • HOW TO BOOK Doug Allan?

    Our booking agents have successfully helped clients around the world secure talent like Doug Allan for both live and virtual events for over 15 years. The team at All American Entertainment represents and listens to the needs of organizations and corporations seeking to hire keynote speakers, celebrities or entertainers for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment. Fill out a booking request form for Doug Allan, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to discuss your upcoming event. One of our experienced agents will be happy to help you get pricing information and check availability for Doug Allan or any other celebrity of your choice.
  • HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO BOOK Doug Allan?

    Speaking fees for Doug Allan, or any other keynote speakers and celebrities, are determined based on a number of factors and may change without notice. The amount that Doug Allan charges to speak often varies according to the circumstances, including their schedule, market conditions, length of presentation, and the location of the event. The speaker fees listed on this website are intended to serve as a guideline only. In some cases, the actual quote may be above or below the stated range. For the most current fee to hire Doug Allan, please fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to speak with an experienced booking agent.
  • WHO IS THE AGENT FOR Doug Allan?

    All American Entertainment has successfully secured celebrity talent like Doug Allan for clients worldwide for more than 15 years. As a full-service talent booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. Our agents are happy and able to submit an offer to the speaker or celebrity of your choice, letting you benefit from our reputation and long-standing relationships in the industry. Fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book Doug Allan for your next private or corporate function.
  • WHAT IS A FULL-SERVICE TALENT BOOKING AGENCY?

    All American Speakers is a "buyers agent" and exclusively represents talent buyers, meeting planners and event professionals, who are looking to secure celebrities and speakers for personal appearances, speaking engagements, corporate entertainment, public relations campaigns, commercials, or endorsements. We do not exclusively represent Doug Allan or claim ourselves as the exclusive booking agency, business manager, publicist, speakers bureau or management for Doug Allan or any other speaker or celebrity on this website. For more information on how we work and what makes us unique, please read the AAE Advantage.
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During normal business hours, we respond to most inquiries within 4 hours.

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This website is a resource for event professionals and strives to provide the most comprehensive catalog of thought leaders and industry experts to consider for speaking engagements. A listing or profile on this website does not imply an agency affiliation or endorsement by the talent.

All American Entertainment (AAE) exclusively represents the interests of talent buyers, and does not claim to be the agency or management for any speaker or artist on this site. AAE is a talent booking agency for paid events only. We do not handle requests for donation of time or media requests for interviews, and cannot provide celebrity contact information.

If you are the talent and wish to request a profile update or removal from our online directory, please submit a profile request form.

Award-Winning Natural History Photographer & Documentary Filmmaker

Travels From:
UK
Speaking Fee:

Doug Allan Biography

Doug Allan is a freelance wildlife and documentary cameraman who films both topside and underwater. His equipment includes RED Weapon 4K , Sony PMW 200 camera and Canon stills cameras with housings and various lenses for all of them.

Born in 1951 in Scotland, he graduated with an honours degree in marine biology from Stirling University in 1973. On completion of his degree, he decided that science at the sharp end wasn’t quite where he sought to be. Underwater anywhere became the drive and for the next three years he worked on a wide range of diving jobs. He searched for (and found) freshwater pearls in the rivers of Scotland. Commercial diving in Germany involved underwater video work and rebuilding canals. Twice he assisted with research on marine biological expeditions with Cambridge University in the Red Sea. And in the summer 1975 he ran the Bouley Bay Underwater Centre in Jersey in the Channel Islands.

But the big break was in 1976 when he first went to the Antarctic to work as a research diver on the British Antarctic Survey station at Signy Island in the South Orkneys. The job entailed helping the scientists to carry out their underwater studies, from boats in the summer, beneath the ice in the winter. It was the start of an affair with ice that lasts to this day.

Over the next ten years until 1985, Allan and B.A.S. had a great relationship – he spent four winters and nine summers “down south” in that time, and was awarded the Fuchs Medal, then the Polar Medal, for his work. He did three winters at Signy as diver, and one at Halley Station down at 75° S as Base Commander. Halley was no place for a biologist – but it offered a chance to winter with Emperor Penguins, and a first opportunity for Allan to turn over with a movie camera rather than just stills.

The BBC took first option on buying that Emperor footage for their forthcoming series Birds for All Seasons, and Allan’s career took a new direction. Using his experience of ice diving, and intimate knowledge of Signy through its winters, he proposed two films to Survival Anglia then in 1987 spent ten months in the Antarctic making them.

Since then, he has returned frequently to both the poles, with a string of high profile award winning films and series for the major TV networks worldwide. In contributing to The Blue Planet, Planet Earth, Life, Human Planet, Frozen Planet, Expedition Iceberg, Forces of Nature and many other programs he has made over 100 filming trips, including orcas attacking gray whales off California, polar bears trying to capture belugas in a frozen hole in Arctic Canada, and killer whales washing seals off ice floes in Antarctica – all on screen firsts.

But he likes the challenge of filming people as well as animals, and has done documentary synch shooting for many programs, including assignments with Discovery along the length of the Andes, to the deserts of Africa and to the upper reaches of Mount Everest.

In 2011 he filmed and was a presenter for the BBC series Ocean Giants about whales worldwide. In 2012 he was one of the presenters on Operation Iceberg, as well as filming many of the sequences in this award winning series. In Wildlife Cameramen at Work from BBC Scotland in 2012, Allan was one of the featured cameramen.

Allan has also contributed to numerous radio shows. His audio diary recordings while he made his “Wildlife Special – Polar Bear” became an acclaimed radio program in their own right. He has contributed to Radio 4's Fragile Planet, Penguin Post Office. and Natural Histories. Over the years, he’s also written numerous articles about wildlife and his experiences, and two commissioned children’s books. In February 2012 he published his own book Freeze Frame, a collection of polar pictures and experiences. It's available through this website.

Allan lives in Bristol and through his company Tartan Dragon Ltd, he films for broadcast and for his stock library.

Doug Allan Speaking Topics

  • AN EYE BELOW ZERO

    Doug takes his audience to the two frozen polar worlds • the Arctic and the Antarctic. Glorious pictures of the wildlife, polar bears, penguins and all the seals, the scenery and the people, with insights into how Doug prepares and copes with the short term of a six week film shoot at minus 30°C in search of polar bears. And quite different thoughts on survival of another kind during his two and a half year stint as a biologist on a British Antarctic Survey's scientific research station. What’s happening with climate change and how is that affecting the polar regions?

  • UNDERWATER CAMERA

    Experience life on a coral reef in the Red Sea and Indonesia, under the ice with seals in Canada, and looking or belugas and narwhal with the Inuit at the ice edge. Nose to nose with mating Right Whales in Patagonia gives you a chance to rewarm before heading to Antarctica to discover the remarkable rich undersea life there. The show features behind the scenes stories and sequences from many of the best know BBC wildlife series.

  • WILD IMAGES

    Adventures, encounters and insights from the cameraman whose TV credits include Blue Planet, Planet Earth, Life, Human Planet, Ocean Giants and Frozen Planet. In this show Doug takes you up close and personal with the animals that live in the wildest places on earth. Stories and pictures that will appeal to all ages.

  • IN THE COMPANY OF GIANTS

    Doug has filmed whales from Antarctica, through the tropics, to under the Arctic pack ice in the far north. The keys to successfully filming them are thorough research, skilled boat handlers, a special patience, and even a healthy dose of luck. Doug describes his most memorable moments in the company of giants.

Doug Allan Videos

  • An Evening with Doug Allan - It's A Wrap Tour Trailer 2022
    Wildlife cameramen don’t come much more special than Doug Allan’ - Sir David Attenborough After a sell-out Scottish run in Autumn 2021, Doug...
  • Inspiring Interview: Doug Allan (E-Core Week 2020)
    Meet Doug. We're incredibly excited to bring you this inspiring Q&A with Emmy & BAFTA award winning cinematographer and wildlife cameraman, Doug...

Speaker Lists Featuring Doug Allan

FAQs on booking Doug Allan

  • How to book Doug Allan?

    Our booking agents have successfully helped clients around the world secure talent like Doug Allan for both live and virtual events for over 20 years. The team at All American Entertainment represents and listens to the needs of organizations and corporations seeking to hire keynote speakers, celebrities or entertainers for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment. Fill out a booking request form for Doug Allan, or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to discuss your upcoming event. One of our experienced agents will be happy to help you get pricing information and check availability for Doug Allan or any other celebrity of your choice.
  • How much does it cost to book Doug Allan?

    Speaking fees for Doug Allan, or any other keynote speakers and celebrities, are determined based on a number of factors and may change without notice. The amount that Doug Allan charges to speak often varies according to the circumstances, including their schedule, market conditions, length of presentation, and the location of the event. The speaker fees listed on this website are intended to serve as a guideline only. In some cases, the actual quote may be above or below the stated range. For the most current fee to hire Doug Allan, please fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536 to speak with an experienced booking agent.
  • Who is the agent for Doug Allan?

    All American Entertainment has successfully secured celebrity talent like Doug Allan for clients worldwide for more than 20 years. As a full-service talent booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. Our agents are happy and able to submit an offer to the speaker or celebrity of your choice, letting you benefit from our reputation and long-standing relationships in the industry. Fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book Doug Allan for your next private or corporate function.
  • What is a full-service talent booking agency?

    All American Speakers is a "buyers agent" and exclusively represents talent buyers, meeting planners and event professionals, who are looking to secure celebrities and speakers for personal appearances, speaking engagements, corporate entertainment, public relations campaigns, commercials, or endorsements. We do not exclusively represent Doug Allan or claim ourselves as the exclusive booking agency, business manager, publicist, speakers bureau or management for Doug Allan or any other speaker or celebrity on this website. For more information on how we work and what makes us unique, please read the AAE Advantage.

Doug Allan is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics such as AN EYE BELOW ZERO, UNDERWATER CAMERA, WILD IMAGES and IN THE COMPANY OF GIANTS. The estimated speaking fee range to book Doug Allan for your event is $5,000 - $10,000. Doug Allan generally travels from UK and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Pete McBride, Jeff Orlowski-Yang, Louie Psihoyos, Gary Bencheghib and Jimmy Chin. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Doug Allan for an upcoming live or virtual event.

Doug Allan Speaking Topics

  • AN EYE BELOW ZERO

    Doug takes his audience to the two frozen polar worlds • the Arctic and the Antarctic. Glorious pictures of the wildlife, polar bears, penguins and all the seals, the scenery and the people, with insights into how Doug prepares and copes with the short term of a six week film shoot at minus 30°C in search of polar bears. And quite different thoughts on survival of another kind during his two and a half year stint as a biologist on a British Antarctic Survey's scientific research station. What’s happening with climate change and how is that affecting the polar regions?

  • UNDERWATER CAMERA

    Experience life on a coral reef in the Red Sea and Indonesia, under the ice with seals in Canada, and looking or belugas and narwhal with the Inuit at the ice edge. Nose to nose with mating Right Whales in Patagonia gives you a chance to rewarm before heading to Antarctica to discover the remarkable rich undersea life there. The show features behind the scenes stories and sequences from many of the best know BBC wildlife series.

  • WILD IMAGES

    Adventures, encounters and insights from the cameraman whose TV credits include Blue Planet, Planet Earth, Life, Human Planet, Ocean Giants and Frozen Planet. In this show Doug takes you up close and personal with the animals that live in the wildest places on earth. Stories and pictures that will appeal to all ages.

  • IN THE COMPANY OF GIANTS

    Doug has filmed whales from Antarctica, through the tropics, to under the Arctic pack ice in the far north. The keys to successfully filming them are thorough research, skilled boat handlers, a special patience, and even a healthy dose of luck. Doug describes his most memorable moments in the company of giants.

Doug Allan Speaker Videos

  • An Evening with Doug Allan - It's A Wrap Tour Trailer 2022
    Wildlife cameramen don’t come much more special than Doug Allan’ - Sir David Attenborough After a sell-out Scottish run in Autumn 2021, Doug Allan brings his critically acclaimed brand new...
    Inspiring Interview: Doug Allan (E-Core Week 2020)
    Meet Doug. We're incredibly excited to bring you this inspiring Q&A with Emmy & BAFTA award winning cinematographer and wildlife cameraman, Doug Allan. Thank you for all of your questions for Doug -...

Tell us about your event!

During normal business hours, we respond to most inquiries within 4 hours.

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Speakers Similar to Doug Allan

This website is a resource for event professionals and strives to provide the most comprehensive catalog of thought leaders and industry experts to consider for speaking engagements. A listing or profile on this website does not imply an agency affiliation or endorsement by the talent.

All American Entertainment (AAE) exclusively represents the interests of talent buyers, and does not claim to be the agency or management for any speaker or artist on this site. AAE is a talent booking agency for paid events only. We do not handle requests for donation of time or media requests for interviews, and cannot provide celebrity contact information.

If you are the talent and wish to request a profile update or removal from our online directory, please submit a profile request form.

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