Hire a DOP in Bristol. The lenses, the light and the look, settled before the day.
Directors of photography for brand films, interviews, documentaries and adverts across Bristol and Bath, from offices on the Harbourside to the stages at The Bottle Yard in Whitchurch. They choose the camera and lenses, light every set-up and shoot it, or run the camera team that does. From £850 a day, paid to the DOP in full.
- 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK
- 150+ of them in and around Bristol and Bath
- 54 five-star Google reviews
- 2 hrs for our team to read your brief, in working hours
Photos: Here Now Films, Sam McGhee, Cemrecan Yurtman and Matt Boyle
The role
What a DOP does on your shoot
A DOP (director of photography, or DP) is answerable for the picture. Before the shoot they agree the look with you or your director, pick the camera, lenses and lights, and check the location for light, power and noise. On the day they light each set-up, frame it, and run the camera, lighting and grip crew.
We’re a crew agency with 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK, 150+ of them in and around Bristol and Bath, so we can scale a crew from one person for a morning to a full unit for a week. We book a DOP who lives in or near the city first; when the brief needs a particular eye, one comes from across the South West, Cardiff or London, with the travel on the quote before anything is booked.
Many bring their own camera. When the film needs more, Bristol’s kit houses include Films at 59 Rental, in Clifton and at The Bottle Yard and VI Rental, which also works out of The Bottle Yard, and some specialist kit comes down from London.
- A look agreed before the day. Reference frames, a lens choice and a lighting plan, signed off with you in advance.
- Lit for the room you have. Window light off the water on the Harbourside, or a dark brick room in an old warehouse, with practicals and LEDs balanced so faces read well.
- The right camera for the brief. A Sony FX6 for an interview day; an ARRI Alexa, a RED or 35mm film when the picture is the point.
- A crew briefed early. The gaffer, focus puller and grip know the plan before call, so a set-up changes in minutes, not half an hour.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- An 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch
- Lighting and framing every set-up
- The camera, lens and lighting plan, agreed with you before the day
- Running the camera, lighting and grip crew, if you book one
- A camera test and white balance at call
- A rushes check at wrap, before the cards leave set
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, on the whole quote
- Camera, lens and lighting kit: the DOP’s own or a kit house’s
- Recce and prep days, if the shoot needs them
- Travel from outside Bristol, and mileage, parking and the Clean Air Zone charge where the day needs them, at cost
How our rates work, and the two ways to book: crew rates in Bristol.
Two ways to book
Crew hire or full production: who’s the producer of record?
One question sets the price: who’s the producer of record? Book a DOP for your own production, or have us take the whole film on.
Crew hire
You run the shoot.
10% + 2% booking fee and insurance, on everything we book for you: crew, kit and travel.
We do
- Find, book and brief the crew, and pay them
- Book kit, travel and hotels too, if you want them
- Send the full price before anything is booked
- One person to call all day
- Employers’ liability for the crew we book, and insurance on kit we hire in
You do
- Run the shoot, or your producer does
- The plan, the schedule and the call sheet
- The location, its permission and its public liability
- Responsibility for the production: you’re the producer of record
What the 2% insures: employers’ liability for every crew member we book, and the kit we hire in for you. Nothing else on the shoot. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote.
Full production
We’re the producer of record.
15% + 5% production fee, plus insurance and contingency, on the whole production budget. Quoted as a production.
We do
- Our producer plans it with you and runs the day
- Locations, permits, kit, studio, travel and hotels, booked and paid in our name
- Insurance for the whole shoot, public liability included, plus the risk assessment and the call sheet
- One contract and one invoice, so overseas teams need no UK company
You do
- The creative calls
- Signing off the plan and the budget
What the 5% pays for: our production insurance across the whole shoot, £10m public liability included, and the contingency.
Not sure which you need? If your own producer or director will run the day, it’s crew hire. If you want us to take the production on, it’s a full production quote.
On the day
A day with a DOP, call to wrap
A brand film for a firm with offices on the Harbourside: two interviews in the boardroom, then B-roll on the floor and along the water. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- 07:30 Park and unload Kit into the building, and the van into a bay suspended three working days ahead: £22 plus VAT for one day in a pay and display bay. Before the day the van was checked against Bristol’s Clean Air Zone, which charges cars and vans alike: £9 below Euro 6 diesel or Euro 4 petrol (checked October 2026).
- 08:00 Read the light A walk round the boardroom with the gaffer: where the low sun comes off the water, which windows to flag, where the power is.
- 09:00 First set-up lit Key, fill and a backlight on the chair, the harbour soft through the glass behind.
- 09:45 Interviews Two cameras, a wide and a tight. The DOP watches exposure, focus and the light shifting on the water outside.
- 13:00 Lunch An hour. The gaffer turns the room round for the afternoon.
- 14:00 Harbourside B-roll Out along the water as a small handheld unit. City Docks and the Harbourside are council land, so it’s a Bristol Film Office permit: £178 plus VAT for a crew of up to ten, applied for at least seven days ahead (checked October 2026).
- 18:30 Wrap Lights down, cards checked and copied, the van loaded from its bay.
Which DOP
Which DOP do you need?
Every DOP lights and shoots. What changes is the camera, the size of the crew and how much of the day is planned.
Interview and corporate DOP Lit interviews on two cameras From £850 a day
Two-camera interviews lit to look like the room on a good day, plus B-roll, often on the DOP’s own Sony FX6 or FX9 kit, on its own line of the quote.
Best for customer stories, leadership films and films for funders, like the one we made for Xanadoo at The Forge.
Documentary DOP Observational, handheld, available light From £850 a day
Reads a room, finds the shot and keeps rolling without stopping the action: a shoulder rig, a zoom or a few fast primes, and long days.
Best for branded documentaries and micro-docs. On Bristol’s streets a crew of up to ten works on an £84 Film Office permit, plus VAT: see filming permits in Bristol.
Commercial DOP Adverts and brand films Card £935–1,561
A designed look on an ARRI Alexa 35, Alexa Mini LF or RED V-Raptor with cine primes, a lighting plan, and a camera team of focus puller, loader and grip.
Best for adverts and brand campaigns, where the APA/Bectu card applies. VI Rental and Grip Services both work out of The Bottle Yard.
Film DOP 16mm and 35mm Quoted on the brief
Shoots on film: a 35mm package or Super 16, with a clapper loader, stock, processing and the scan on the quote.
Best when the texture of film is the point, as on Cohere’s AI for Empowerment, which one DOP shot on 35mm in four countries, the Lizard in Cornwall among them.
Studio DOP Coves, green screen and product Quoted on the brief
Products and people on a cove or in front of green: controlled light and every reflection accounted for.
The Bottle Yard Studios has a 5,000 sq ft green screen studio with an infinity cove, and Qu Studios in Bedminster a 6m by 4m white infinity cove (checked October 2026).
What it’s for
What people book a DOP for in Bristol
Brand and funder films
Founders and teams interviewed in offices on the Harbourside, round Temple Meads and in Bristol’s converted warehouses.
Drama and short films
Bristol Film Office issued 689 permits in 2024–25, and its list of recent productions runs from Industry to Rivals (checked October 2026).
Studio days at The Bottle Yard
Eleven stages across two sites in Whitchurch, and a 5,000 sq ft green screen studio.
University and research films
Labs and old buildings: the University of Bristol offers Royal Fort House, Goldney Hall and the Victoria Rooms for filming.
Heritage interiors
The ship interiors and dry dock at Bristol Dockyards, home of the SS Great Britain, and the caves under Redcliffe.
Recent work
DOPs on our jobs, from The Forge to Dorset
Our work · The Forge, Bristol
Xanadoo’s concept film
A concept film for Xanadoo, a museum planned for South-East Wales by two founders who came from the Eden Project. We found the location, turned The Forge into an interview set for the day and shot the interviews and cutaways ourselves, then cut, graded and mixed a what, why and how film for funders and partners.
Our work · Dorset
Plankbridge’s shepherd’s huts
A website film for Plankbridge, makers of shepherd’s huts, on a one-line brief: “Make us a film that gives us goosebumps.” Storyboards, location scouting, finding the models, the shoot, the edit and the grade, all by a two-person team of ours, on time and to budget.
“It was a real pleasure to work with Here Now for our latest website film.” Richard, founder, Plankbridge
Before you book
Things to know
The day
- 11 hours, including an hour for lunch.
- Overtime at card rates, agreed with you before it happens.
- Recce and prep days are quoted separately.
Kit
- The DOP’s own kit or a kit house’s, on the quote line by line.
- Kit houses in Bristol include Films at 59 Rental in Clifton and at The Bottle Yard, VI Rental and Grip Services at The Bottle Yard, and Floating Harbour Studios on Welsh Back.
- Kit we hire in goes on the quote at the same 10% booking fee and 2% insurance as the crew.
Filming in Bristol
- Bristol Film Office asks for at least £5m public liability and a full risk assessment with every application.
- Street filming on council land is £84 plus VAT for a crew of up to ten; the Harbourside and the parks are £178 (checked October 2026).
- A DOP from Bristol or Bath where we can; from across the South West, Cardiff or London where the brief needs one, with the travel on the quote.
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the DOP.
- 50% by card when you book, 50% on receipt of the final rushes.
- Every line on the quote: day rate, booking fee, kit, travel.
- Moving the date? Tell us as soon as you know.
- Cancellation terms are on every quote.
What our insurance covers
- Employers’ liability for the DOP we book: £10m.
- Kit we hire in for you is insured. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote.
- Nothing else on a crew hire. Public liability, the location and your own kit stay with you, and your venue will want your certificate. When we’re the producer of record, our policy covers the shoot.
From £850 a day
APA/Bectu card benchmark: £935–1,561 a day.
| Day rate, 11 hours | £850 |
| Booking fee, 10% | £85 |
| Insurance, 2% | £17 |
| One day, before kit and travel | £952 + VAT |
The 2% is employers’ liability for the DOP we book, and cover on kit we hire in. What it covers
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the DOP.
- 50% by card at booking, 50% on the final rushes
- Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours
- Every line on the quote before anything is booked
Or call us on 07412 543822.
Reviews
What clients say about our crews
Straight from our Google Business Profile.
Book a DOP in Bristol.
Tell us the date, the location, the look you’re after and any camera you have in mind. Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Or call us on 07412 543822.
Check availability
The whole crew
Every role in Bristol, booked the same way
One brief, one quote, every role on its own line. Our day rates in Bristol, paid to the crew member in full:
Production 06
- Director From £500
- Producer From £450
- Production manager £504–627
- 2nd AD £355–448
- Production assistant £400
- Runner £245
Camera 07
- DOP This page From £850
- Camera operator £529–656
- Focus puller £461–575
- Clapper loader £355–448
- Steadicam operator From £950
- Gimbal operator £529–656
- Drone operator From £750
Data and playback 02
- DIT £527
- Video playback £334–518
Sound 01
- Sound recordist £550
Hair, make-up and costume 02
- Hair and make-up £398
- Costume £519–694
Art department 02
- Art director £675–878
- Set builders £341–512
Post-production 01
- Editor From £350
How our rates work: crew rates in Bristol. Or start from a set-up: interview crews and units in Bristol.
Production support
Everything around the crew
A DOP rarely works alone: kit from Clifton or The Bottle Yard, a stage in Whitchurch and a Bristol Film Office permit each get their own line on the quote, or you can sort them yourself.
02
Locations and permits
Bristol Film Office, Bath Film Office, the harbour, the bridge and the drone rules.
03
Studios and set builds
The Bottle Yard’s stages, green screen and blackout studios, and set builds.
Questions
Hiring a DOP in Bristol: questions
How much does a DOP cost in Bristol?
Our DOPs start at £850 for an 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch, and the DOP is paid all of it. The APA/Bectu card for commercials puts a DOP at £935–1,561. On top go our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, so one day comes to £952 + VAT, before kit and any travel from outside Bristol. Camera and lighting kit goes on the same quote, line by line.
What does the insurance on a crew booking cover?
Two things. Employers’ liability for every crew member we book, up to £10m, and insurance on the kit we hire in for you. That’s what the 2% pays for. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote. The 2% doesn’t insure the rest of the shoot: public liability, the location, your own kit and anything you book yourself stay with you, because you’re the producer of record. If you’d rather we were, it’s quoted as a full production, and our insurance covers the whole shoot, public liability included.
Are your DOPs from Bristol?
We’re a crew agency with 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK, 150+ of them in and around Bristol and Bath, so we can scale a crew from one person for a morning to a full unit for a week. We book a DOP who lives in or near Bristol first; when the brief or the date needs someone else, they come from across the South West, Cardiff or London, and the travel goes on the quote before anything is booked. Temple Meads is 1 hour 19 minutes from London Paddington on the fastest trains, 11 minutes from Bath Spa, 48 minutes from Cardiff Central and about 1 hour 25 from Birmingham (checked October 2026). Our team works from our Bristol office at Raw Space, 111 Gloucester Road, and from London.
Do your DOPs bring their own camera?
Many do, at a day rate on the quote: often a Sony FX6 or FX9 kit for an interview day. An ARRI Alexa, a RED or a film package we hire in at the same 10% + 2%. Kit houses in Bristol include Films at 59 Rental in Clifton and at The Bottle Yard, VI Rental and Grip Services at The Bottle Yard, and Floating Harbour Studios on Welsh Back. Specialist kit can come down from London.
Can a DOP film on a Bristol street or the Harbourside?
Yes, with permission. Commercial filming on council land in Bristol goes through Bristol Film Office, part of Bristol City Council and based at The Bottle Yard Studios. It covers the city only; Bath has its own film office. Bristol’s 2026–27 street filming permit is £84 for a crew of up to ten and £163 for 11 to 40; parks, green spaces and the harbourside are £178 for up to ten, all plus VAT (checked October 2026). It asks for at least seven days’ notice, a letter to neighbours and businesses seven days before, £5m public liability and a risk assessment. On a crew hire the permit is yours. More in filming permits in Bristol.
Is there a studio in Bristol for a lit shoot?
The Bottle Yard Studios in Whitchurch, the largest film and TV studio in the West of England, has 11 stages across two sites, the biggest 21,700 sq ft, plus a 5,000 sq ft green screen studio (checked October 2026). Smaller spaces include Qu Studios in Bedminster, with a 6m by 4m white infinity cove, and the black box in the hold of Floating Harbour Studios’ Dutch barge on Welsh Back. If we book the studio, it goes on the quote as its own line.
How far ahead should I book a DOP in Bristol?
Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours, and comes back with a DOP and a price. The date usually depends on permission more than crew. Bristol Film Office asks for at least seven days’ notice and a letter to neighbours and businesses seven days before the shoot; a road closure of up to two days needs two weeks, and one of three days or more usually eight to ten weeks (checked October 2026).