A Photographer and Filmmaker and Conservationist for the protection of the night-sky.
Josh Dury is a Photographer, Filmmaker and Conservationist with predominant interests for natural world subjects - from Astrophotography, Landscapes to Wildlife.
He aspires to create visual content that inspires and captivates his audience to feel connected and compelled to protect the night-sky for future generations.
His passion for Astronomy began at the age of seven-years old, where he was inspired by science-fiction films and programs including: BBC’s The Sky at Night and Stargazing Live. He developed his interest through Photography and during his education this evolved into Filmmaking.
This later inspired him to travel the world to witness celestial events, including: Solar and Lunar Eclipses (2015 &2017), The Northern Lights (2017) and the darkest skies in the world from The Atacama Desert in Chile (2019).
For his final project at Bristol UWE, he became more aware of the impacts of light pollution on the natural world. This is when he produced and directed the short film, “Back to the Light” (click here) - to raise public awareness of its impact to astronomers, wildlife conservation and human health. This allowed him to work with local dark-sky organisations, including, Campaign for Dark Skies (CfDS), The Starlit Skies Alliance and Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE). In July 2019, he graduated with First-Class Honours.
In December (2019), he became aware of a new threat to the night-sky in the form of satellite constellations. It was his concern for the launch and vast number of satellites, which would eventually outnumber the amount of visible stars in the night-sky within the next five-years. This is when he produced his short film, “Starlink - A Battle for the Skies" (click here).This formed a collaboration with the international astronomy community with collaborators, including: BBC Sky at Night Presenter, Pete Lawrence, Astrophotographer, Alyn Wallace and international astronomers.
Josh is now an official Delegate of the International Dark Skies Association for Bristol and South-West England.
He recently setup his own astronomy organisation, called Space4All - to encourage practical astronomy and engage members from all backgrounds. He believes if more people are able to engage and connect with the night-sky, the more we feel compelled to protect it.
Josh’s work has been featured by: BBC1, BBC2, BBC4, ITV, English Heritage, and is a registered member of Wildlife.film.com. He has previous experience within the Film and Television Industry in Science and Natural History Productions. Previous experience at major production houses and festivals include Films @59 and The Wildscreen Festival.
He previously worked as a Production Runner on BBC’s The Sky at Night at Television Centre in London. He worked on series 798 for X4 episodes with x4 Production Runner broadcast credits.
In February (2020), Josh collaborated with Wildlife Conservationist, Mya-Rose Craig (Birdgirl) to produce a short promotional film to highlight her work in wildlife conservation. The film as later showcased at her Honorary Doctorate Celebrations in Bristol. The film can be watched here.
Josh's interests have allowed him to negotiate and access to UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including English Heritage, Stonehenge.
Josh had also been shortlisted for Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year at The Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London (2017).
Links to recent work can be found in both the 'Showreel' and 'Portfolios' links above.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND PUBLICATIONS Please click on links to view: