Man dies trying to take photo

psychdoc · 12-14-2012, 10:11 AM - **1 Like**

Not worth dying for.
Comic dies after falling into Chicago hotel smokestack while taking photos | Fox News

This got me thinking. There are many times my wife will say, "its not worth risking your life to take that picture". I always used to laugh it off. This give me pause.

Does anyone have near-fatal experiences? The only one I have had was taking long night exposures of headlights at the side of a curvy road and a car nearly came off the road. I only got some dust and stones on me...

**jatrax** · 12-14-2012, 10:19 AM

Not near-fatal or at least I don't look at it that way. But I took a pretty serious fall trying to climb a waterfall to get a shot of the pool above. Foot slipped on a rock and I slid/fell about 20 feet. Managed to keep the camera safe but that meant a lot of me got scraped up. Just natures way of pointing out I'm not 20 any more. And no, the shot was not worth it.

Blue · 12-14-2012, 10:41 AM

Street photography in Haiti was pretty hairy.

mrNewt · 12-14-2012, 10:47 AM

I took a few chances at the track with cars zooming by at high speeds ... your heart is racing just as well in those moments

.
Worth it!? Probably not ... but it does make your adrenaline go up pretty fast.

Regarding the article ... I just gotta ask!
Did he took the picture and what camera was he using!?

Na Horuk · 12-14-2012, 11:47 AM

Too sad. I sometimes take photos and then later think "man, one mis-step there and it would have been a long fall!" but that's about it. I play it safe when photographing, not for my sake, but because I don't want to damage my humble gear

panoguy · 12-14-2012, 02:52 PM

I'm a rock climber and panographer, and I frequently mix the two. I've lost count of the number of times I've been on the edge of a cliff, taking photos with my camera balanced on a big tripod and a panohead, thinking mainly about my brackets and did I pre-focus for max DOF. Heck, I've even shot from the flag tower at racetracks, off the sides of helicopters, and many other precarious places.

It's unfortunate this young kid died taking a photo, but the reality is that he fell while climbing somewhere he wasn't supposed to go, and probably wasn't prepared for (unlike these guys). Having a camera was incidental.

Tom S. · 12-14-2012, 03:27 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by Blue

Street photography in Haiti was pretty hairy.

Dreadlocks?

Blue · 12-14-2012, 08:59 PM

Originally posted by Tom S.

Dreadlocks?

Dreadlocks were rare. They just don't like getting their pics taken.

magkelly · 12-14-2012, 10:45 PM

I don't like heights at all and I'm very clumsy at things like climbing, but I climbed up a 10 foot stone wall that had a wire fence layered in front of it once to get a shot of some crows in a foggy cemetery once. Going up was terrifying and I nearly killed myself trying to get back down. Took me 30 mins probably before I even tried it. I was scared out of my wits, caught on top of that wall like a cat in a tree. I paid for that shot. I skinned a knee on the fence, dinged an elbow, scratched my face, and landed badly on my R foot when I landed. I still to this day have issues with that foot though to be fair I've damaged it several times over the years so it's not just becuase of that incident entirely.

I also half fell into a pothole in front of Radio City Music hall and ripped up the tendons in my foot.I was on my way to a Moody Blues concert with friends and we had close orchestra seats. I should have gone straight to the hospital but it didn't seem too bad at first. By midway through the concert though my foot was so swollen my boot was cutting off my circulation and I was in agony. My friends I was with had to take me over to a nearby ER. As it turned out the doctor I saw was a Moodies fan himself. He cut my boot off, took an x-ray, patched me up real quick and we got me back to Radio City just in time for the encore, laugh. Now that was stupid. I should have gone straight home and put my foot up but I didn't. I let the guys carry me back in just to see the end.

I was off my foot for nearly 4 weeks after that but the foot never was the same after the first incident, let alone the second. It pops and I start limping on that foot sometimes even today. I have to be more careful about how I shoot and where the past few years. I just can't move as fast as I used to. So there are situations now that I might have done before that I simply wouldn't dare now. Too risky for me. I just don't believe in risking my life for a photo.

rawr · 12-15-2012, 03:01 AM

The guy in question met a sad fate indeed. I think his fall may have been related to his restaurant dinner immediately before he fell.

It's risky but the results can be spectacular. Look at what they do on this guy's site, for example, one of a number of Russian 'roofers':

Vitaly Raskalov on LiveJournal

You Tube

Show Yourself (Episode 1) - How to illegally climb up on the highest construction crane in Europe

wildman · 12-15-2012, 04:23 AM

Originally posted by psychdoc

Man dies trying to take photo

Impossible.
It is a well known fact that at 23 a young man is immortal.

**qblade** · 12-17-2012, 11:01 PM

Originally posted by panoguy

I'm a rock climber and panographer, and I frequently mix the two. I've lost count of the number of times I've been on the edge of a cliff, taking photos with my camera balanced on a big tripod and a panohead, thinking mainly about my brackets and did I pre-focus for max DOF. Heck, I've even shot from the flag tower at racetracks, off the sides of helicopters, and many other precarious places.

It's unfortunate this young kid died taking a photo, but the reality is that he fell while climbing somewhere he wasn't supposed to go, and probably wasn't prepared for (unlike these guys). Having a camera was incidental.

Thanks for the link to the guys that explore the Paris metro. Fascinating!

mde1970 · 12-18-2012, 08:53 AM

No near fatal experiences, but I regally enter potentially dangerous buildings to take photos (mainly abandoned & decaying stuff). Just use common sense to stay safe. Spongy/rotten floorboards are a regular occurrence, so will limit an explore to ground floor if they are bad.

**LaurenOE** · 12-18-2012, 09:21 AM

There have been times. I am fond of taking pictures of antiquities in the UK and around the world. I try and get images that are not cliche/touristy. I realize that the viewer of an image doesn't know what it takes to get some shots. Only I remember the effort. The danger I sometimes place myself in, has nothing to do with wanting the danger. Some people want the danger to be a part of the photograph. I'd rather not be in danger, but it just happens sometimes.

My most recent brush with danger had to do with some sleuthing of a secret Iceni Temple in the UK. I had worked out the coordinates and even touched base with the professor in charge of the dig. He verified the coordinates and was amazed that I got them right - and in a subtle way - told me to stay away.

Well, this year I wanted to get some pictures of the field, and stand in the actual spot of the temple. That is before it becomes a tourist spot. I managed to get into the field, was walking to the exact spot, when the farmer/tenant came roaring up on his quad and tried to run me over. He was screaming to get out of the field and not to take one more step toward where I was going. That is - we both knew exactly *why* I was in that barren field in the middle of hundreds of others.

He meant business and was so angry he could pop. I was happy to get to the car and start to drive away - just as the local police were arriving at the farm.

No harm, no foul, but definitely danger.

**ivanvernon** · 01-02-2013, 10:36 AM

Originally posted by mrNewt

I took a few chances at the track with cars zooming by at high speeds ... your heart is racing just as well in those moments

.
Worth it!? Probably not ... but it does make your adrenaline go up pretty fast.

Regarding the article ... I just gotta ask!
Did he took the picture and what camera was he using!?

Too funny!

12-14-2012, 10:11 AM - 1 Like	#1
psychdoc Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Bham Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 949	Man dies trying to take photo Not worth dying for. Comic dies after falling into Chicago hotel smokestack while taking photos \| Fox News This got me thinking. There are many times my wife will say, "its not worth risking your life to take that picture". I always used to laugh it off. This give me pause. Does anyone have near-fatal experiences? The only one I have had was taking long night exposures of headlights at the side of a curvy road and a car nearly came off the road. I only got some dust and stones on me...

12-18-2012, 09:21 AM	#14
LaurenOE Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Back in Florida, but worldwide gigs! Photos: Albums Posts: 3,690	There have been times. I am fond of taking pictures of antiquities in the UK and around the world. I try and get images that are not cliche/touristy. I realize that the viewer of an image doesn't know what it takes to get some shots. Only I remember the effort. The danger I sometimes place myself in, has nothing to do with wanting the danger. Some people want the danger to be a part of the photograph. I'd rather not be in danger, but it just happens sometimes. My most recent brush with danger had to do with some sleuthing of a secret Iceni Temple in the UK. I had worked out the coordinates and even touched base with the professor in charge of the dig. He verified the coordinates and was amazed that I got them right - and in a subtle way - told me to stay away. Well, this year I wanted to get some pictures of the field, and stand in the actual spot of the temple. That is before it becomes a tourist spot. I managed to get into the field, was walking to the exact spot, when the farmer/tenant came roaring up on his quad and tried to run me over. He was screaming to get out of the field and not to take one more step toward where I was going. That is - we both knew exactly why I was in that barren field in the middle of hundreds of others. He meant business and was so angry he could pop. I was happy to get to the car and start to drive away - just as the local police were arriving at the farm. No harm, no foul, but definitely danger. Last edited by LaurenOE; 12-18-2012 at 09:31 AM.

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12-14-2012, 10:19 AM	#2
jatrax Site Supporter Join Date: May 2010 Location: Washington Cascades Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 12,991	Not near-fatal or at least I don't look at it that way. But I took a pretty serious fall trying to climb a waterfall to get a shot of the pool above. Foot slipped on a rock and I slid/fell about 20 feet. Managed to keep the camera safe but that meant a lot of me got scraped up. Just natures way of pointing out I'm not 20 any more. And no, the shot was not worth it.

12-14-2012, 10:41 AM	#3
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	Street photography in Haiti was pretty hairy.

12-14-2012, 10:47 AM	#4
mrNewt Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: ON, RH Posts: 2,181	I took a few chances at the track with cars zooming by at high speeds ... your heart is racing just as well in those moments . Worth it!? Probably not ... but it does make your adrenaline go up pretty fast. Regarding the article ... I just gotta ask! Did he took the picture and what camera was he using!?

12-14-2012, 11:47 AM	#5
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	Too sad. I sometimes take photos and then later think "man, one mis-step there and it would have been a long fall!" but that's about it. I play it safe when photographing, not for my sake, but because I don't want to damage my humble gear

12-14-2012, 02:52 PM	#6
panoguy Pentaxian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Washington, D.C. Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,327	I'm a rock climber and panographer, and I frequently mix the two. I've lost count of the number of times I've been on the edge of a cliff, taking photos with my camera balanced on a big tripod and a panohead, thinking mainly about my brackets and did I pre-focus for max DOF. Heck, I've even shot from the flag tower at racetracks, off the sides of helicopters, and many other precarious places. It's unfortunate this young kid died taking a photo, but the reality is that he fell while climbing somewhere he wasn't supposed to go, and probably wasn't prepared for (unlike these guys). Having a camera was incidental.

12-14-2012, 03:27 PM - 1 Like	#7
Tom S. Veteran Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Michigan Photos: Albums Posts: 4,317	Originally posted by Blue Street photography in Haiti was pretty hairy. Dreadlocks?

12-14-2012, 08:59 PM	#8
Blue Moderator Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Florida Hill Country Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,377	Originally posted by Tom S. Dreadlocks? Dreadlocks were rare. They just don't like getting their pics taken.

12-14-2012, 10:45 PM	#9
magkelly Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,901	I don't like heights at all and I'm very clumsy at things like climbing, but I climbed up a 10 foot stone wall that had a wire fence layered in front of it once to get a shot of some crows in a foggy cemetery once. Going up was terrifying and I nearly killed myself trying to get back down. Took me 30 mins probably before I even tried it. I was scared out of my wits, caught on top of that wall like a cat in a tree. I paid for that shot. I skinned a knee on the fence, dinged an elbow, scratched my face, and landed badly on my R foot when I landed. I still to this day have issues with that foot though to be fair I've damaged it several times over the years so it's not just becuase of that incident entirely. I also half fell into a pothole in front of Radio City Music hall and ripped up the tendons in my foot.I was on my way to a Moody Blues concert with friends and we had close orchestra seats. I should have gone straight to the hospital but it didn't seem too bad at first. By midway through the concert though my foot was so swollen my boot was cutting off my circulation and I was in agony. My friends I was with had to take me over to a nearby ER. As it turned out the doctor I saw was a Moodies fan himself. He cut my boot off, took an x-ray, patched me up real quick and we got me back to Radio City just in time for the encore, laugh. Now that was stupid. I should have gone straight home and put my foot up but I didn't. I let the guys carry me back in just to see the end. I was off my foot for nearly 4 weeks after that but the foot never was the same after the first incident, let alone the second. It pops and I start limping on that foot sometimes even today. I have to be more careful about how I shoot and where the past few years. I just can't move as fast as I used to. So there are situations now that I might have done before that I simply wouldn't dare now. Too risky for me. I just don't believe in risking my life for a photo.

12-15-2012, 04:23 AM	#11
wildman Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Flyover America Posts: 4,469	Originally posted by psychdoc Man dies trying to take photo Impossible. It is a well known fact that at 23 a young man is immortal.

12-17-2012, 11:01 PM	#12
qblade Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Edina, MN Posts: 258	Originally posted by panoguy I'm a rock climber and panographer, and I frequently mix the two. I've lost count of the number of times I've been on the edge of a cliff, taking photos with my camera balanced on a big tripod and a panohead, thinking mainly about my brackets and did I pre-focus for max DOF. Heck, I've even shot from the flag tower at racetracks, off the sides of helicopters, and many other precarious places. It's unfortunate this young kid died taking a photo, but the reality is that he fell while climbing somewhere he wasn't supposed to go, and probably wasn't prepared for (unlike these guys). Having a camera was incidental. Thanks for the link to the guys that explore the Paris metro. Fascinating!

12-18-2012, 08:53 AM	#13
mde1970 Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Reading Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 313	No near fatal experiences, but I regally enter potentially dangerous buildings to take photos (mainly abandoned & decaying stuff). Just use common sense to stay safe. Spongy/rotten floorboards are a regular occurrence, so will limit an explore to ground floor if they are bad.

01-02-2013, 10:36 AM	#15
ivanvernon Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Medina, OH Photos: Albums Posts: 7,224	Originally posted by mrNewt I took a few chances at the track with cars zooming by at high speeds ... your heart is racing just as well in those moments . Worth it!? Probably not ... but it does make your adrenaline go up pretty fast. Regarding the article ... I just gotta ask! Did he took the picture and what camera was he using!? Too funny!