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What is your most traumatic photography moment?

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Several years ago when I started photography, I was really tight on cash. I had an MZ-50 with the kit lens and an el-cheapo tripod from Wal-mart. Later on, I scraped up enough cash to buy my very first prime, an FA50/1.7. I was thrilled with that lens.

One evening, I wanted to shoot some night pics. Unfortunately, my camera was mounted on the el-cheapo tripod. A gust of wind picked up, and toppled the camera onto the rocks - lens first. A rock went right through the UV filter and shattered the front element.

I wouldn't say this was "traumatic", but I was certainly mad at myself for using such a low grade tripod. You live and learn, I guess.
 
Reid said:
I went to grab my Pentax film ZX 5n and as I did, I turned and the
camera strap caught on the side of the bag and the camera dropped
from my hands and landed on a cement driveway. The lens shattered
into pieces,(a cheap, but really good Sigma 28-135) but the camera
was fine so it was not a total disaster.
Click to expand...
Hi Reid,

I learned my lesson and
Reid133934 said:
NEVER grab my camera in haste any more...even if I'm going to miss
the shot.
Click to expand...
I am still learning my lessons ;)

Cheers,

Jack
Reid133934 said:
Reid
Click to expand...
--
MY BLOG.... http://www.nakedmanonawire.blogspot.com

It's amazing what one can do when one doesn't know what one is doing :)
 
The time my MX and 50mm lens were bashed over my head...causing an equal amount

of damage to to all three(3) items !!!!! and then having my M-300/4 drop out of my bag

as the b@$st@rds were running away. But I still got the shot :D but none of the papers
wanted it :( ....although one of the local weekies did run a story on me ;-o

Cheers,

Jack
--
MY BLOG.... http://www.nakedmanonawire.blogspot.com

It's amazing what one can do when one doesn't know what one is doing :)
 
...........
janneman02 said:
On a similar but not as dramatic (so no real trauma) a short story
posted before. I just had my Voigtländer 125/1.5 macro and at the
wedding I had that day was a pretty girl... Sneaky me I showed of
my new lens. "May I try some portraits?" "Sure" click click.
"what's your adress?"
She gave and I sent her the pics with a small message. "Thanks for
posiing would like to meet again"

Reply:
"your lens is no good, shows all the crags in my face and no I do
not wish to meet up with you..."
Click to expand...
Im sorry man but that is really funny! It made me laugh :)
janneman02 said:
--
janneman
http://www.pbase.com/jl2
Click to expand...
--
---Terry http://photostuff.org
 
Was about to climb Mt Kinabalu and slipped. In doing this I damaged the shutter button on my camera, so it wouldn't fire. Everything else worked fine.

Meant I had no pictures of my trip up and back. They didn't even have disposable cameras at the souvenier shop at the bottom.
 
Forgot my runner up.

After having my camera stolen, I bough a new one during a year long trip. All was fine until a bottle of water burst in my day pack and destroyed the electronics in my new camera.
 
I work for a company that supplies and supports IT equipment and we see a lot of disk failures.

This works most of the time for us: wrap the disk in a plastic bag, then leave it in the freezer overnight (the colder the better so maybe turn the thermostat down or hit the "superfreeze" button if there is one).

I have managed to get quite a few dying disks running for long enough to rescue data.
Good luck.

--
Mick
_
'Without deviation (from the norm), 'progress' is not possible'

(Frank Zappa)

http://pbase.com/hamoudix/
http://hamoudix.blogspot.com/

 
Great spot to go Peter. I miss 4WDing...

Ben
--

 
Back in 1969 I was stationed in Labrador, Canada while in the US Air Force. Went on temporary duty to a site in Northern Labrador - Saglack Air Station. Took my Yashika TLR along to take some pictures.

Went outside (in February). Temp was well below zero. Took a roll of 120 pics. Then made the BIG mistake. Went back in the building to change film. Did not notice the extreme condensation. When I went back out and tried first picture the shutter froze!

Amazing thing (and testimony to the indestructability of a good TLR) was that once it thawed out camera still worked (and still does now)!

--
Ed Hannon
http://www.pbase.com/edhannon
 
Many years ago I was shooting from the roof of a tall building in Copenhagen with my MZ-3. (film, fixed ISO and pay per click do you remember?)

I had placed a Sigma 70-300 APO zoom close to edge (asking for trouble I know) when I hit it with my foot and it fell down on a concrete pavement and smashed to pieces.

The traumatic part was not ruining the lens but the moment when it fell because the lens might accidently hit somebody. Fortunately it was early in the morning.

--
.......
Have a nice day (a picture says more than 1000 words)
Jim

Inspiration Challenge - in depth feedback guaranteed

'Don't overestimate technology - nothing is knowledgefree'

 
I was in a very isolated area of Donegal a couple of weeks ago, on a photo trip. I saw a nice sunset developing and was driving around trying to find a good vantage pointto catch it. Unfortunately, while driving down a narrow lane the car bottomed out in a pothole, and put a hole in the oil sump. Not pleasant watching all your engine oil dripping out. I did at least get the photo....

Also a few years ago, on another trip to Donegal a few years ago, this time on a motorcycle, my back slipped off the side of the seat and was resting on the exhaust pipe. Unfortunately my brand new Jupiter 9 was sitting on the exhaust, and all the oil evaporated and recondensed everywhere in the lens. Impossible to clean.

Or the time I came across some deer in a forest. I sneaked out to the back of the car pulled out the tripod and set it up, only to realise the base plate was on a lens I'd left 3 hours driving away.

I could go on, but the list is long. The username "Malfunction" really means something in my case!

Mal..
 
Dropping my Pentax FA 31 Limited Lens mounted on my *ist Ds from one and a halb metre height on gravel and paying more than the price of a DA 40 Limited for the repair.
 
Up on a stage getting shots of a dancing crowd from above.. took a step sideways... into nothing but air.

Came down, hitting my DS hard on a speaker box, sending my 360FGZ flying (busting it big time), and half-busting my Sigma 24-135mm.

I also put a little dent in the bottom of my DS, but it shows no real ill effects other than that.

I spent the rest of the night trying hard not to cry.
 
I was visiting the ruined city on Ani on the Eastern Turkish-Armenian border, when I started getting extremely fast readings on the lightmeter of the SFXn with the cap on the lens.

It was the beginning of the first trip to a destination of my own choice. I did not know my camera very well at the time. I had been looking really forward to the opportunity to photograph the remore parts of Turkey, and was sure I would end up with no pictures whatsoever.

It took untill the evening when I realised that I had been wearing a very bright T-shirt and that it was that that had given the strange readings.

I've had worse things happen to me since, but I have become much more capable of putting things in a bigger perspective so I hardly ever panick anymore...

Wim

--
Belgium, GMT+1

 
It's a story I've told here before, involving hot batteries...

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1036&thread=12470559

Thankfully the parts cost me only about £20, most of that postage, and I soon had my DS back to normal. The worst problem I've had since then was dust on the sensor. I did drop my DS last year, with the Sigma 70-200EX f2.8 attached, but it was wet sand and only a couple of feet. Phew.

--
brian thomson - dublin, ireland
stereoroid.com - picasaweb.google.com/stereoroid

 
Mine was traumatic only because of what I was shooting.

I carry an S1-IS when mountain biking. It's a little big for sure but I got it for the long stabilized lens and the improved video. I may replace it with something more compact now that so many smaller cameras have improved video.

Anyway....I've configured a pouch that attaches to my Camelback and hangs just under my chin. This setup allows me good maneuverability on the bike, and also alows me to get the camera out quickly, get the shot, and stow it away quickly so I don't get left behind.

Last year I was shooting video of my wife when she fell off her bike bruising her ribs and breaking her arm. I started scrambling across the rocks at some point with the camera still running and you can hear her moaning in the background as the cleats of my shoes bang their way across the rocks to get to her. I haven't watched it in a while, but it turned my stomach the few times I did.

T
GMT minus 7



Without gravity, what would we do with water?
http://www.gorgephotos.com/
 
Now I know the reason behind your nick...

I guess an "LOL" here would be rude...
malfunction said:
I was in a very isolated area of Donegal a couple of weeks ago, on
a photo trip. I saw a nice sunset developing and was driving around
trying to find a good vantage pointto catch it. Unfortunately,
while driving down a narrow lane the car bottomed out in a pothole,
and put a hole in the oil sump. Not pleasant watching all your
engine oil dripping out. I did at least get the photo....

Also a few years ago, on another trip to Donegal a few years ago,
this time on a motorcycle, my back slipped off the side of the seat
and was resting on the exhaust pipe. Unfortunately my brand new
Jupiter 9 was sitting on the exhaust, and all the oil evaporated
and recondensed everywhere in the lens. Impossible to clean.

Or the time I came across some deer in a forest. I sneaked out to
the back of the car pulled out the tripod and set it up, only to
realise the base plate was on a lens I'd left 3 hours driving away.

I could go on, but the list is long. The username "Malfunction"
really means something in my case!

Mal..
Click to expand...
--
http://pbase.com/waqas
 
Now that is COLD... You got lucky... What should have been the right thing to do? How to "de-ice" a camera?
edhannon said:
Back in 1969 I was stationed in Labrador, Canada while in the US
Air Force. Went on temporary duty to a site in Northern Labrador -
Saglack Air Station. Took my Yashika TLR along to take some
pictures.

Went outside (in February). Temp was well below zero. Took a roll
of 120 pics. Then made the BIG mistake. Went back in the building
to change film. Did not notice the extreme condensation. When I
went back out and tried first picture the shutter froze!

Amazing thing (and testimony to the indestructability of a good
TLR) was that once it thawed out camera still worked (and still
does now)!

--
Ed Hannon
http://www.pbase.com/edhannon
Click to expand...
--
http://pbase.com/waqas
 
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