Tragedy

[ben_cops]

<p>Have to share this with someone who cares...<br>

My camera fell over on its tripod on sunday on top of a frozen hill. It smashed my brand new Lee polariser (literally its first outing) and tore my lens off the camera. Can't bear to say what the lens was but lets just say it was kind of wide and wasn't cheap! You can now see its innards.<br>

I literally turned my back for a second to pick up my bag and turned back to find what - £400 worth+ of damage. I'm absolutely gutted!</p>

<p>Thanks for listening....</p>

[j_smith6]

<p>Ouch! I feel sorry for you and hope you had your equipment insured.</p>

[hjoseph7]

<p>Don't know if the wind had anything to do with it, but many outdoor photographers recommend using sand bags as weights to keep the tripod steady. Another technique is to pull the third leg out and back so that the tripod and legs have a "V"/diamond shape which gives it support in sloping surfaces. Sorry to hear about that, hope you had insurance. </p>

[tdigi]

<p>I feel your pain and I know just how you feel. I needed something off a shelf and did not bother to move my guitar which was sitting below. Needless to say I dropped a picture frame and it gashed my guitar right down the center. When I heard the sound I peeked down to see and quickly looked away.<br>

I must say I was cringing while reading your story. Good luck with the repair.</p>

<p> </p>

[mohammed_abidally]

<p>Ben, I am so sorry to hear your story and damage hope it works out for you repair/replacement/insurance whatever.....</p>

[bjscharp]

Maybe you should post the brand of the tripod, so we know what NOT to buy...

[ellis_vener_photography]

<p>I'm glad to hear that no one was injured.</p>

[jpo3136b]

<p>Something similar happened to me many years ago. Mine was pretty much all my fault. Tripod fell over. Butterfingers.</p>

<p>My equipment is not as expensive as yours; but, still, it really was a grieving for me. I know that may sound like a joke to everyone else, but it really hurt my feelings, and I won't forget it. I've had other stuff bust and it not bothered me. Crashed cars and mostly my memory of that is that we were all lucky to get out alive and unscathed. The camera busting, though, I'm going to remember that for a long time. I still feel bad about it whenever it crosses my mind. And, it was my fault, too.</p>

<p>Eventually, I got the camera fixed and was able to get almost 20 more years out of it. Whether or not the camera will survive the fall, though, depends a lot on how it fell and what broke when it landed. In my case, I got off with just a cracked circuit board inside. With the lens damage you describe, I wouldn't be surprised if there was so much damage to the chassis that you might be facing some serious permanent damage. As in, this sounds like the type of thing that could be a total loss of either the lens assembly, the camera, or both. It's just going to depend on how the crash came out. Sorry. You're going to need a repairman for this one.</p>

<p>Sorry to hear about the damage.</p>

[joergen geerds photography]

<p>sorry about the tradgedy... since sandbags are probablt the most inconvenient thing to carry around for landscape photography, I always use my (still heavy) camera bag hanging from the center column, that way you can't tip over the tripod nor trip over the bag.</p>

[rossb]

<p>I always keep the strap over my head or loop it on my arm. If I were going to step away from the tripod I would just take the camera with me. I seem to always be on uneven ground or in a windy place. I like the idea of extending one leg out further. That would make a nice larger solid base. Hanging the camera bag on the tripod seems like a good idea also to give it a nice low center of gravity..I am sorry for your lose. It's a tough pill to swallow. Camera gear can be difficult to replace financially.</p>

[www.philwinterphotography.]

<p>I'm very sorry to hear of your loss. Recently, I was photographing on the tripod with a quick release mount on the bottom of the camera that was for a monopod - in other words the QR fitting didn't quite match the tripod QR - because I was lazy. But I thought "it would work." Everything was fine until I zoomed the Canon 100-400 out to 400mm and the camera started falling off the tripod. The camera and lens almost tumbled down a steep ravine. The only thing that saved it was the fact that I had the camera strap around my neck. After I regained my composure, I made two notes to self: ALWAYS have the right QR mounted. ALWAYS have the camera strap around my neck.</p>

[patrick_stack]

<p>Ben, and other 'Netter's -</p>

<p>I belong to a photo club in Oregon, just over 100 members, many have fairly extensive and expensive gear. In the 3 years of my membership, one Leica and three Nikons have fallen, due to tipping tripods. Please, no Canon users are smarter cracks. Not one was due to carelessness, but nevertheless ended in at best repairable condition, sadly some were not salvageable. The overwhelming recollections were, (1. I snagged my coat on it, or (2. No clue, maybe wind, or the ground gave way, (3. Dog tipped it over, (true, but quickly forgiven.) </p>

<p>I've always been very leery of not being "hands on" the camera, when on the tripod while extended, so I just DON'T turn away from it, or leave it for any length of time. To accomplish this, my wife made me a front sling bag that goes over the neck like an apron, similar to what mom's use when packing baby in front, I've even seen people packing small pets in them. Anything I need to remove or install on the camera can be carried in it, then my hands are free to remove the camera from the quick release, if I need to move away for any reason.</p>

<p>At the very least, if I needed to move away I would lower the tripod to it's lowest extension level, again, with my hands free of accessory gear it's fast and easy to accomplish it. Having that sling bag in front has made all the difference, very convenient and orderly. I use mostly medium and large format gear, so it's really top heavy when tripod is at max extension level, thus I need to be extra careful. But even with lighter gear, tripod upsets seem altogether too frequent. No camera on tripod when it falls = no loss.</p>

<p>One argument I've heard against removing and re-installing if you must move away, "but then I have to refocus and all that." The argument FOR removing and re-installing is, "at least then you still have a camera to refocus." This post was not meant to be insulting or demeaning, just relaying what has worked well for me, for many years. I hope at least one will find it a useful suggestion. </p>

<p>With my wife knowing the reason I needed the sling she made for me, I'm assured that if I do damage my gear in a tripod fall, she will have something nearby and handy to strangle me with. (And I'd deserve it.) Y'all stay upright, hear?</p>

<p>Patrick </p>

<p> </p>

[fullmetalphotograper]

<p>Sorry for the casualty. Just one more reason, why I do not like tripods.</p>

[david_barts2]

<p>Ouch!</p>

<p>My camera tragedy was long ago in my college years, when I wasn't cautious about sorting laundry before washing it: I'd just dump the contents of the hamper into the washing machine, close the lid, drop my quarters in, and push the start button.</p>

<p>Figuring out the conclusion of this story is left as an exercise for the reader.</p>

[bjscharp]

Phil, ever considered switching to AS plates?

[rycelow]

<p>Ouch!<br>

A small tent peg and short length of para cord are cheap and handy piece of kit to keep in your camera bag.</p>

<p>Hope you're insured.</p>

 

[mbkissel]

<p>Ben, don't beat yourself up...we all have done things we wish had turned out differently.</p>

<p>I have a few simple rules that have served me well regarding my camera equipment:<br>

- Never let the camera strap overhang the edge of a table, desk, counter, etc.<br>

- Whenever I'm holding the camera, I always make sure the strap is around my neck (yes, even for a few moments).<br>

- I always check the footing of the tripod and tip resistance before mounting the camera, and then again with the camera in place. If it feels the least bit unsteady, I reposition until I'm satisfied.<br>

- When mounting or removing, I go slow and deliberate, never letting go of the camera until I'm sure it's secure on the head or free of all obstructions when removing.</p>

<p>They say we learn from our mistakes. If that's really true, I should be pretty smart by now.</p>

[matthew_newton]

<p>Sorry to hear about it. I nearly had a tripod accident as well in the snow a week or so ago. Except in this case I had not bothered to remove my camera from the tripod and slipped on a stream bank and landed on my butt. I nearly slammed the camera end of the tripod in to a tree trunk. Fortunately I just hit it with my shoulder instead. I heal easier then my camera. Same outing I tore my finger with a thorn that bleed heavily for about 10 minutes. Not a comfortable outing, but I got a lot of great pictures and no cameras were harmed in the making (but only just barely)</p>

[Ian Shalapata]

<p>Ben, Sorry to hear about your loss. In all sincerity, hopefully the camera + lens were new and bought on credit? Some of the major cards provide loss/damage insurance for your purchases. Hopefully that avenue is open to you?</p>

[walter_strong5]

<p>"Maybe you should post the brand of the tripod, so we know what NOT to buy..." My guess is it had more with the way he set it up. I've come<br>

close to doing the same thing. Careful, always careful.</p>

[tallnbig68]

<p>Not so much a tripod (did that years ago, camera became a paperweight),<br>

rather tripped while walking on uneven terrain with my new to me (and first digital camera)<br>

Nikon D100. Camera on the strap punched me in the chest, which in turn mashed the<br>

new lense into the camera. Neither were repairable. My chest hurt, I went to my doctor who<br>

had me rushed to the hospital. Nikons are durable, ribs are not.<br>

I tend to destroy cameras though; so over time have done similar to another D100<br>

as well as a D200 and two different D80's. Either the strap failed, or I dropped the camera<br>

usually with a lense or did something equally stupid. These days only have a cheap<br>

Canon digital point and shoot, it lives in my pocket. Too much money broken.<br>

Ironically have never mangled any of my Nikon film gear;<br>

maybe the gods are telling me something?</p>

<p> </p>