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Author Topic: Fell on my Camera this Weekend  (Read 9846 times)

fike

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« on: August 21, 2007, 12:45:06 pm »

So I am standing at the top of a nice waterfall in scenic West Virginia.  I turn to walk away from the edge and lose my footing on some mossy, wet rock.  As I am falling on top of my 30D, the following thoughts flash through my head...

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My 17-40 L lens doesn't have a UV filter to protect it from this fall.  I don't really have any time to protect the camera with my hands, arms or face, so I guess this lens is toast.  I have always been in the camp of people that figures if you spend money to get a good lens, you shouldn't put a cheap piece of glass in front of it.  I always say that if you don't take your camera into risky places, then you will never get a great shot.  It is only a matter of time before any piece of well loved camera equipment gets damaged or broken.....OUCH...skin on my elbow is scrapping off....OUCH, the lens is shattered.   I guess I am gonna have to get that 24-105 that I have been considering.  Let's have a look...Damn!

The lens wasn't shattered, even though I came down hard on the bottom of the lens.  It still seems to take sharp photos.  No damage was done to the best of my knowledge.  

...and to add insult to injury, I fell directly in front of an observation deck with a bunch of horrified people looking on.  One man offered me a paper towl he was carrying.  I used it to dry off the camera.  I think he meant it for my bleeding elbow.
« Last Edit: August 21, 2007, 12:56:23 pm by fike »
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Geoff Wittig

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #1 on: August 23, 2007, 10:26:19 pm »

[attachment=3078:attachment][attachment=3079:attachment]
Quote
So I am standing at the top of a nice waterfall in scenic West Virginia.  I turn to walk away from the edge and lose my footing on some mossy, wet rock.  As I am falling on top of my 30D, the following thoughts flash through my head...
The lens wasn't shattered, even though I came down hard on the bottom of the lens.  It still seems to take sharp photos.  No damage was done to the best of my knowledge. 

...and to add insult to injury, I fell directly in front of an observation deck with a bunch of horrified people looking on.  One man offered me a paper towl he was carrying.  I used it to dry off the camera.  I think he meant it for my bleeding elbow.
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=134552\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]


Sounds familiar. Last year I slipped on wet rocks while hiking up a narrow gully & waterfalls on my own land in rural NY state. I managed to avoid landing on my Canon 1Ds II, but cracked one lower leg section of my carbon fiber tripod when I jammed it into rocks to avoid going over the next 10' drop-off. Oh, well. Hakuba sent me the lower leg section for a nominal fee, and I was back in business.

Very nice web site, by the way. I love the Spruce Knob area, and I try going back every year or two to hike. I discovered it when my daughter was attending JMU nearby. Attached are a couple of stitched panos of sunrise from the top of Spruce Knob.
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Jack Varney

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #2 on: August 23, 2007, 11:32:53 pm »

Another true confession. Last year I was shooting along a mountain stream in Northern South Carolina. It was my first serious outing with my new P45 mounted on a Mamiya AFD. There were some shots that just would not wait on the other side of that stream and it was only about ten inches deep. Sure enough I made it. Got some shots. Coming back across was different. Slipped and fell on my a$$, almost but turned on my right side while holding the camera high.

Everything stayed dry but me, thank goodness!
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DarkPenguin

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #3 on: August 23, 2007, 11:40:02 pm »

Some years ago I tripped on a tree root on a trail and tumbled down the hillside (long way to walk back with a sprained ankle) and tomahawked my DSLR into the ground on the way down.  Hit it with the dyson vacuum when I got home and all was well.

20 some odd years ago I bounced my Minolta x-570 off a curb with no issues.  Tried to get one more frame out of a roll and snapped the winder mechanism tho.

Tried to catch my Canon A2 with my foot and ended up punting it down a flight of stairs.  Couldn't even tell I'd dropped it.

Broke my 20D with amazingly little effort.  Bent the lens, too.  (Both were fixed.)
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Don Libby

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #4 on: August 24, 2007, 01:14:33 am »

Okay true confession time, last year while in Glacier National Park I slid/fell into Avalanche Creek near the Trail of Cedars.  I was carrying my Gitzo tripod, and 1Ds II.  Took a misstep and found myself going into the very cold water.  Training kicked in, kept the camera above my head, landed on my rear and bad knee.  The cold water helped keep the pain in my knee down to a dull roar.  Got out of the water, decided to heck with it and kept on the trail eventually taking what has become a great panorama of the creek further down from where I was “pushed”.  Ruined what was up till then a good pair of very old worn-in hiking boots but got a heck of a shot later on.  

Nothing broken but my pride   – besides I had to replace the boots anyway


don

fike

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #5 on: August 24, 2007, 11:52:57 am »

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[attachment=3078:attachment][attachment=3079:attachment]
Sounds familiar. Last year I slipped on wet rocks while hiking up a narrow gully & waterfalls on my own land in rural NY state. I managed to avoid landing on my Canon 1Ds II, but cracked one lower leg section of my carbon fiber tripod when I jammed it into rocks to avoid going over the next 10' drop-off....

Nice panos.  The Spruce Knob horizon can be tough to shoot because of all that east coast haze.  Glad you like the website.

This is becoming pretty amusing to read....sort of a comedy of errors, or keystone cops meet photography.  I am struck by the likelihood that there are probably lots of people out there who have seriously hurt themselves trying to save their camera.  It's roughly the equivalent of crashing your $25,000 car while trying to keep from spilling your $0.99 coffee.  

When I was at Zion earlier this year, I was hiking out Angel's Landing and I had the macabre thought that if I fell, the fall would be long enough that I would have to have remember to take some pictures on the way down.  I figured that the flash card would probably survive even if the camera (and the photographer) didn't survive.  That would be a pretty wild last photo. eek.  Gives me the willies to even think about.
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Lisa Nikodym

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #6 on: August 24, 2007, 12:45:55 pm »

Once when we were hiking in Yosemite (once upon a time when I used a film camera), my spouse slipped and landed on his back in a stream on top of my camera (which he was carrying; nice spouse!).  He didn't know how close to the cliff-edge he was, so he just lay there for a minute while trying to figure out the best way to get up safely, looking like a turtle on its back.  I was more worried about him than about the camera, and apparently he was too!  I guess our priorities are a little different than most people here...

The lens survived, but the camera never worked again.  Time for a new one anyway, I guess...  

Lisa
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Don Libby

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #7 on: August 24, 2007, 03:10:03 pm »

A good friend of mine just returned from Alaska where he had a bear charge/run up to him.  First thing I asked him was how'd the images turned out!

picnic

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #8 on: August 24, 2007, 05:07:41 pm »

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A good friend of mine just returned from Alaska where he had a bear charge/run up to him.  First thing I asked him was how'd the images turned out!
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=135307\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

I understood Lisa's comment but I think it is just reactive to lift your camera above your head going into water, or fall to the side trying not to fall on it.  I've not actually fallen badly, but I've tripped a number of times on trails and find myself just automatically falling toward the side away from the camera or lifting it above my head when it appears I may go down--even if I don't in the end.  

How did the images turn out? LOL (whew!!!).

Diane
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DarkPenguin

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #9 on: August 24, 2007, 07:27:37 pm »

You can heal a camera with a credit card.  I take longer.
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Digiteyesed

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #10 on: August 24, 2007, 08:31:41 pm »

I had an oopsie earlier this week as well. I was out attempting to photograph lightning in the area when a strike came closer to me than intended. It basically nailed the slough directly in front of me and the shockwave blew both the camera and I partway across the highway I was standing at the edge of.

As luck would have it, the camera used my face to cushion its landing and is still working perfectly. The swelling on my nose is going down, although the vivid bruising across my left side has yet to fade. The worst part was hurriedly trying to find all of the camera bits and bobs and my car in complete darkness after the flash had destroyed my night vision.

I don't think I'll be chasing any more storms for the remainder of this season.  
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Don Libby

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #11 on: August 24, 2007, 09:09:23 pm »

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You can heal a camera with a credit card.  I take longer.
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=135347\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

And in some cases more of the credit card!

Philmar

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #12 on: August 25, 2007, 01:15:11 pm »

In my film days I dropped a Digital Rebel on the pavement when it fell out of what I thought was a closed Lowepro hip pack that I had just slung over my shoulder.  Something inside broke - camera was toast. Sad thing was I was on my way to a hot air balloon festival where I had paid for a hot air balloon ride.
All was not lost - my L lens survived, I had dropped the camera in a shopping mall parking lot. So I just went back in to the mall an bought another Rebel - thanks Visa - and drove off for my spectacular sunset hot air balloon ride.

Eric Myrvaagnes

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« Reply #13 on: August 25, 2007, 03:08:27 pm »

Many years ago I bumped the tripod on my 8x10 view camera knocking it over. The camera survived, the lenshood was toast, the filter ring threads on the lens were clobbered, and the lens had a nasty internal crack for about a half inch near one side. Fortunately, the lens defect had no visible effect when stopped down.

Just a few years ago I thought I had attached my Pentax 67II to the tripod, but I hadn't inserted it into the quick-release correctly, and the camera landed on its head on the parking lot pavement. The expensive meter-pentaprism was damaged beyond repair, but the camera and lens survived intact.

I tripped and went down on top of my Mamiya 6, destroying the lens hood, which apparently absorbed the shock so the lans and camera were just fine.

I haven't had my first major accident with my 5D yet, but I'm trying to be careful.

Two of my view-camera shooting friends went out on a shoot once, and when they were about to go home, the driver backed his SUV over the other guy's camera (he thought it was already stowed.)

There are all sorts of ways we can keep the camera manufacturers in business.  
« Last Edit: August 25, 2007, 06:16:47 pm by EricM »
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picnic

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #14 on: August 25, 2007, 05:19:24 pm »

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Two of my view-camera shooting friends went out on a shoot once, and when they were about to go home, the driver backed his SUV over the other guy's camera (he thought it was already stowed.)

There are all sorts of ways we can keep the camera manufacturers in business.   
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=135477\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

Ooooooh.   Are they still friends?? (tongue in cheek--I would not lose a friend over something like that, but it surely would hurt LOL).

Diane
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Eric Myrvaagnes

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #15 on: August 25, 2007, 06:18:47 pm »

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Ooooooh.   Are they still friends?? (tongue in cheek--I would not lose a friend over something like that, but it surely would hurt LOL).

Diane
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=135498\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]
Amazingly, they remained friends. I'm glad I wasn't there. I think the driver felt worse about it than the camera owner, who took it as an excuse to put in his order for a (gasp) 11x14" view camera (Deardorff).
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fike

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #16 on: August 26, 2007, 10:15:43 am »

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Amazingly, they remained friends. I'm glad I wasn't there. I think the driver felt worse about it than the camera owner, who took it as an excuse to put in his order for a (gasp) 11x14" view camera (Deardorff).
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=135503\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

This makes me wonder if photographers pretend to be clumsy so that they have an excuse to buy a new, upgraded camera.  When  I was about to break my 17-40 lens, I was thinking of the 24-105 lens that I wanted....that is really pathetic.

maybe we subconsciously try to break our equipment?  
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Eric Myrvaagnes

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #17 on: August 26, 2007, 02:54:26 pm »

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This makes me wonder if photographers pretend to be clumsy so that they have an excuse to buy a new, upgraded camera.  When  I was about to break my 17-40 lens, I was thinking of the 24-105 lens that I wanted....that is really pathetic.

maybe we subconsciously try to break our equipment? 
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=135599\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]
Ouch! I think you got me! I have this lovely 70-200/4L lens that isn't IS, and I'd so like to have an excuse to upgrade to the IS version. Maybe if I'm careless enough . . .  
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larsrc

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #18 on: August 27, 2007, 09:11:11 am »

Can't add amusing stories of my own, but I can point to a related picture:

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s210/LucyFerr2/616.jpg

Don't follow the link if you can't stand the sight of electronics.  According to a poster, the photographer was attacked by a herd of buffaloes.

-Lars
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Wayne Fox

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Fell on my Camera this Weekend
« Reply #19 on: August 28, 2007, 01:52:24 am »

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One man offered me a paper towl he was carrying.  I used it to dry off the camera.  I think he meant it for my bleeding elbow.
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=134552\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

Not to make light of your situation, (my full sympathies ... been there, done that), but I just loved that finish to your story.  I can just imagine the fellow staring at you wondering what you were doing.  
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