Often booked for his specialities, Milne regularly works for a shorter time but on a larger number of productions than other camera operators.

The days of $180,000 camera kits which all but guaranteed work for their owner-operators are pretty much gone. At $40-50,000 for a kit production companies invest in their own, and Milne certainly carries less camera gear than he used to – although he retains the accessories for his speciality work.

It’s important to stay abreast of new kit and technology, Milne believes. While it’s not always good to be an early adopter, to own the latest version of everything, understanding what’s available and its capabilities is key. “Falling a little way behind can quickly become a very long way behind.”

Milne was assistant camera on Barry Barclay’s 1995 doco The Neglected Miracle. Docos shot across five years, with a whole crew travelling the world for several months, are mostly a thing of the past in the days of 90 Seconds – but Milne still enjoys a fair amount of international travel for work, and keeps his passport and vaccinations up to date.

Murray Milne will present a NZCS event, Drones: leaving the Wild West behind, on 21 June in Auckland.