Hire a DOP in Cornwall. The look of the film, and the light that makes it.
Directors of photography for brand films, adverts, documentaries and interviews across Cornwall, from the clifftops of the Lizard to the harbours of St Ives and Newquay. 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
- 30+ of them in and around Cornwall
- 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 Simon Godfrey
The role
What a DOP does on your shoot
A DOP (director of photography, or DP) turns the brief into pictures. Before the shoot they agree the look with you or your director, choose the camera, lenses and lights, and check each location for light, power and access. On the day they light every set-up, frame the shots and run the camera, lighting and grip crew.
In Cornwall the weather and the land decide as much as the brief. On the Lizard for Cohere, a fortnight of good forecasts turned to fog the night before, and the clifftops were a Site of Special Scientific Interest: no generators, so the unit ran on portable power stations, and the kit went in on beach carts. Our DOPs plan the light, the power and the weather together.
We’re a crew agency with 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK, 30+ of them in Cornwall, so we can scale a crew from one camera operator on a beach to a full unit on a clifftop. We crew a Cornish DOP where we can. When the brief needs a particular eye, or a camera team the county can’t staff that week, they come down from Bristol, Devon or London, with the travel and hotels on the quote before anything is booked. Many bring their own camera; anything more comes from West Cornwall, Falmouth or further up the A30.
- A look agreed before the day. Reference frames, a lens choice and a lighting plan, signed off in advance, with a weather plan beside them.
- Lit for where you are. A harbourside kitchen, a gallery, a holiday house: daylight, practicals and LEDs balanced so faces read well.
- The right camera for the brief. A Sony FX6 for an interview day; an ARRI, a RED or 35mm film when the picture is the point.
- Ready for the weather. Rain covers, the tide times and a second set-up in the plan, so a squall costs an hour, not the day.
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: theirs or a kit house’s
- Recce and prep days, if the shoot needs them
- Portable power, where a location allows no generator
- Travel from outside Cornwall, hotels where the day needs them, mileage and parking, at cost
How our rates work, and the two ways to book: crew rates in Cornwall.
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 business on the north coast: interviews inside in the morning, then the harbour and the coast path in the afternoon light. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- D–10 Permission The beach below the coast path is Cornwall Council’s, so the FilmApp application went in ten working days ahead, with £5m public liability and a risk assessment (checked October 2026).
- 07:30 Call Kit in, camera test and white balance. The afternoon’s tide times, from ADMIRALTY EasyTide, are on the call sheet.
- 08:00 Read the light A walk round the building with the gaffer: where the sun comes in, where the power is, which windows to flag.
- 08:45 First set-up lit Key, fill and a backlight on the chair, the window behind holding its view of the sea.
- 09:30 Interviews Two cameras, a wide and a tight. The DOP watches exposure, focus and the cloud moving across the window.
- 13:00 Lunch An hour, and a look at the forecast: the wind decides whether the coast path goes before or after the harbour.
- 14:00 The harbour B-roll on the quay, cleared with the harbour master in advance: Cornwall’s working harbours have byelaws, and they’re enforced.
- 16:45 Coast path The last good light on the headland, the kit carried in, then cards checked and copied before anyone drives home at 18:30.
In summer, book beds early: Screen Cornwall warns that traffic is harder and accommodation is limited in the season.
Which DOP
Which DOP do you need?
Every DOP lights and shoots. The camera, the crew and the kind of film change.
Interview and documentary DOP for customer stories and charity films From £850
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 hotels, food businesses, charities and conservation groups, from a harbourside kitchen to a farm on Bodmin Moor.
Observational DOP for branded documentaries
Reads a room, finds the shot and keeps rolling without stopping the action. Shoulder rig, a zoom or a few fast primes, and long days outside.
Best for micro-docs on boats, farms and moors. On Cornwall Council land a crew under five with a handheld camera needs five working days’ notice, not ten: see filming permits in Cornwall.
Commercial DOP for adverts and brand campaigns
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. Cornwall Council’s 2026–27 location fee for a commercial is £1,500 a full day (checked October 2026).
Film DOP for 35mm and 16mm
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, shot on 35mm on the Lizard and in three other countries.
Studio DOP for products and green screen
Products on a cove or a tabletop: macro lenses, controlled light and every reflection accounted for.
Screen Cornwall says Cornwall has no film studios; the nearest stages are The Bottle Yard in Bristol. Falmouth University hires out its film school studios: Studio 1 is 154 square metres, at £750 a day (checked October 2026).
What it’s for
What people book a DOP for in Cornwall
Brand films on the coast
Headlands, coves and the coast path, from the Lizard to Bude, with the landowner asked first: the National Trust signs a contract for every commercial shoot.
Hospitality and food
Hotels, restaurants and harbourside kitchens in St Ives, Padstow and Falmouth, filmed between services.
Adverts for Cornish brands
Regional TV and Sky AdSmart spots in a house and on the coast, with Clearcast in mind from the start.
Charities and conservation
Peatland, woodland and marine projects on Bodmin Moor, in West Penwith and on the water, often across a year.
Drama and short films
Screen Cornwall estimates £15.2m of production spend in Cornwall in 2024–25 and £6.9m in 2025–26 (checked October 2026).
Recent work
DOPs on our jobs, from the Lizard to Talland Bay
Our work · The Lizard, Cornwall · June 2026
Cohere: AI for Empowerment
One DOP shot all four legs of Cohere’s campaign on 35mm, through an Arricam LT with an Angénieux Optimo zoom. On the Lizard the unit call moved up to 07:00 to work in the fog, with the camera team in at 06:30, and the day wrapped at 21:00. It took three landowners’ permissions for one sequence, a tracking vehicle and its three-person team, and a lens from The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall.
Our work · Talland Bay, Hessenford and Lostwithiel · August 2025
Whistlefish’s first TV ad
A 30-second ad for Whistlefish, the Cornish card company, shot by Ollie, our co-founder, as cinematographer: two days in one house and on the coast, two professional leads beside real families, a naturalistic grade in-house, then Clearcast and delivery to ITV in the West and Sky AdSmart.
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
- Their own kit or a kit house’s, on the quote line by line.
- For kit in Cornwall there’s The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall, and Falmouth University’s film school stores, which hire to outside productions on 24 hours’ notice: a Sony FX6 kit is £200 a day (checked October 2026). Bigger kit comes down from Bristol or London.
- Kit we hire in goes on the quote at the same 10% booking fee and 2% insurance as the crew.
Filming in Cornwall
- Cornwall Council asks for £5m public liability and a location-specific risk assessment with every application.
- Cornwall Council asks for ten working days’ notice, or five for a crew under five with a handheld camera, and 12 weeks for any traffic management or road closure (checked October 2026).
- The National Trust signs a contract for any commercial shoot on its land (checked October 2026). On a Site of Special Scientific Interest the landowner needs Natural England’s written consent first, which can take up to four months (checked October 2026).
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 Cornwall.
Tell us the date, the place, the look and the 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 Cornwall, booked the same way
One brief, one quote, every role on its own line. Our day rates in Cornwall, 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 Cornwall. Or start from a set-up: interview crews and units in Cornwall.
Production support
Everything around the crew
A DOP rarely works alone: kit from West Cornwall or Falmouth, a studio at Penryn and Cornwall Council’s permission each get their own line on the quote, or you can sort them yourself.
01
Kit rental
Kit in West Cornwall and Falmouth, the crew’s own kit, and what comes down from Bristol and London.
02
Locations and permits
Cornwall Council, the National Trust, Natural England, the harbours and the drone rules.
Questions
Hiring a DOP in Cornwall: questions
How much does a DOP cost in Cornwall?
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 Cornwall. 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 Cornwall?
We’re a crew agency with 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK, 30+ of them in Cornwall, so we can scale a crew from one camera operator on a beach to a full unit on a clifftop. Cornish crew first. When a shoot needs more hands, or a role that’s scarce down here, they come from Bristol, Devon or London, and the travel and hotels are on the quote before anything is booked. London Paddington to Truro takes 4 hours 21 minutes on the fastest trains, and to Penzance 5 hours 4; the Night Riviera sleeper runs six nights a week, Paddington to Penzance (checked October 2026). We started in Cornwall, and our founders work from our Newquay office.
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, a RED or a film package we hire in at the same 10% + 2%. For kit in Cornwall there’s The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall, and Falmouth University’s film school stores, which hire to outside productions on 24 hours’ notice: a Sony FX6 kit is £200 a day (checked October 2026). Bigger kit comes down from Bristol or London.
Do we need permission to film on a Cornish beach or clifftop?
Usually, and often from more than one owner. Filming on Cornwall Council land, its beaches, woods, parks, gardens and old mining sites among them, needs a permit through FilmApp. Screen Cornwall’s Film Office gives advice, locations and introductions to landowners, but doesn’t issue the permits. Cornwall Council’s 2026–27 location fee for a commercial is £1,500 a full day, £660 for documentary and daytime TV and £180 for online content, with drone permission £216 a full day on top and a £10 admin fee on every application, all paid upfront (checked October 2026). Much of the coast has other owners: the National Trust signs a contract for any commercial shoot and doesn’t allow unauthorised drones; the Duchy of Cornwall holds over 160 miles of Cornish foreshore; and on a Site of Special Scientific Interest the landowner needs Natural England’s written consent, which can take up to four months (checked October 2026). On a crew hire the permission is yours. More in filming permits in Cornwall.
What happens if the weather turns?
We plan for it. Camborne averages about 155 days a year with a millimetre of rain or more; May is the sunniest month and November the wettest (Met Office 1991–2020 averages). On the Lizard for Cohere, a fortnight of good forecasts turned to fog the night before; the options and their costs went to the client in writing, and the call moved up to 07:00 to work in the mist. A weather day, and how it’s charged, is agreed on the quote before anything is booked.
Is there a studio in Cornwall for a lit shoot?
Screen Cornwall says Cornwall has no film studios; the nearest stages are The Bottle Yard in Bristol. Falmouth University hires out its film school studios: Studio 1 is 154 square metres, at £750 a day (checked October 2026). If we book the studio, it goes on the quote as its own line.
How far ahead should I book a DOP in Cornwall?
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. Cornwall Council asks for ten working days’ notice, or five for a crew under five with a handheld camera, and 12 weeks for any traffic management or road closure (checked October 2026). On a Site of Special Scientific Interest the landowner needs Natural England’s written consent first, which can take up to four months (checked October 2026). In summer, book beds early: Screen Cornwall warns that traffic is harder and accommodation is limited in the season.