Learn about the Gary Childs Endowment Fund

As with the most inspiring of tales, the story of Gary Childs’ professional career in aerial photography has humble beginnings. In the summer of 1976, a twenty year old Gary Childs was hitchhiking along Highway #6 outside of Hamilton, Ontario. A kind stranger stopped and offered him a ride so long as Gary didn’t mind stopping briefly at his office along the way. Gary happily agreed and stepped into the stranger’s car. This simple chance encounter set into motion a new future that would ultimately see Gary Childs become an icon in aerial photography.

As fate would have it, the stranger was Nox Leavitt - the inventor of gyro-stabilized camera systems and the founder of a tiny company called Istec. Gary had never heard of the company or the technology. But he accepted Nox’s invitation to check out Istec. His fate was sealed. The brief stop at the office turned into a full day affair. A curious Gary peppered Nox with questions about the technology and its potential applications while a proud Nox happily shared his technical secrets and business aspirations. By day’s end, they were the best of friends and Gary had accepted an offer to become Istec’s third employee.

Gary didn’t set the industry on fire the first day. The gyro-stabilization technology was still evolving so Gary spent most of his early days in the shop getting the technology working. In those days, film jobs were infrequent and sporadic. But when operator opportunities did arise, Gary would jump at taking the technology out of the shop and into the film world. His first film job was small but set the stage for many more. It was a natural fit. Gary’s intense and extroverted personality was perfectly suited for an environment that included artistic collaboration, temperamental state of the art technology and seat of the pants flying. So as the business grew, Gary naturally evolved into the lead operator roll.

The Wescam of the day was a 48-inch diameter ball that was built with as much grit and determinationas steel and composites. When it worked, it offered film makers a new and innovative form of artistic expression. And Gary could make it work. He quickly gained the reputation for getting the great shot and soon found himself in demand around the world. In the early 1980s, Istec introduced the next generation of equipment – the 36-inch diameter film system. Gary took on the challenge of launching the new product and was wildly successful. Soon Istec built more systems to meet the increased demand. More operators were also required so Gary shifted his focus once again. While still doing the premier specialty jobs and therefore garnering the nickname ‘Gravy Train Childs’, he migrated from the operator role to training and support as he developed operators that could meet the increasing demand. The operators he trained and groomed back then are today the who’s who of aerial photography across the globe.

Gary’s work was recognized when he won the 1990 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Technical Direction Camera for his work on the David Copperfield XII: Niagara Falls Challenge. And in 1992, he won a Golden Rings Award for his work on the Barcelona Summer Olympics. The early success of the technology and people translated into enormous and sustainable business success. Istec changed its name to Wescam. And soon, the same technology that was so successful in the entertainment industry found applications and opportunities in surveillance. Wescam grew into the world leader in stabilized image solutions. Gary continued to focus his attention on building and supporting activities within the entertainment industry which had increased in scope from film into sports, events and production.

In 2004, Wescam’s entertainment group was spun out to form a new company – Pictorvision. Once again, Gary Childs shifted his focus with the objective of turning Pictorvision into a global leader in specialty imaging solutions for the entertainment industry. It was an exciting time – a new beginning. Each day Gary brought in his passion and experience and shared it with a new and eager team. But in late July 2006, tragedy struck when Gary died suddenly of a heart attack while vacationing near Georgian Bay. It was a terrible day for his family at home and at the office. For Pictorvision, Gary Childs was a leader and an icon. In many ways he defined Pictorvision. He will be missed. But he will not be forgotten. His passion continues to live with us today and we remain committed to realizing his dream of continually bringing new and better imaging technologies and solutions to the entertainment industry.

Learn about the Gary Childs Endowment Fund