Broken camera or lens stories

mikemike · 06-24-2010, 07:13 PM

My sister broke her camera last night at the club, she dropped it on the dance floor and it was trampled by a big fat chick dancing behind her by the time she found it.

Whats your best story of a way that you or someone close to you has destroyed a camera or lens?

goddo31 · 06-25-2010, 04:47 AM

Best story? Wouldn't it be more of a horror story? :P
Back in 2006 I got a brand new Optio A10 compact. A few months later I went on a nice holiday, and ended up dropping and breaking it when I slipped over. I was devastated

But I ended up buying another one and claiming it on travel insurance, so it worked out OK...

ducdao · 06-25-2010, 05:14 AM

Originally posted by mikemike

My sister broke her camera last night at the club, she dropped it on the dance floor and it was trampled by a big fat chick dancing behind her by the time she found it.

Whats your best story of a way that you or someone close to you has destroyed a camera or lens?

What was her camera? P&S or DSLR?

I dropped my Canon P&S several times in nightclubs but I was lucky enough not having any fat chicks behind me so my Canon survived until now

Arjay Bee · 06-25-2010, 05:42 AM

As a boy I remember my dad dropping and 'breaking' his camera -he replaced it with a miranda slr and hand held spotmeter. This was upgraded to a Spotmatic and some Takumar lenses - which I eventually received. On a visit home I souveniered the broken camera -an Ansco MF folder type which had been kept safely in the hallway closet for 40 years. Still had film loaded - cosmetic damage only. Shutter mechanism just needed uncludging to get working again.
Made me realise that my dad had used the dropping excuse to upgrade way back when - things never change.

unixrevolution · 06-25-2010, 06:18 AM

I got a Pentax Optio M40 off of ebay. My first GOOD truly compact digital since my 3.1MP HP Photosmart 420 (which has a Pentax lens, BTW.)

On the first day after I got it, I took it to work. I pulled it from my pocket to show my co-worker Rob, and it dropped on the ground. Wouldn't AF, wouldn't take pictures properly.

Second day

Fortunately it was only $40.

I then bought my current Optio A40. One day last winter I pulled it out to take a photo, and the LCD was broken. My heart stopped. I had been crawling on the floor at work to install network cables and must have put too much weight on it.

I was lucky enough to be able to buy and then successfully replace the LCD screen in the A40. Good thing too, I love this camera. It now lives in a Lowepro D-Wrap "burrito" case.

Other cameras and lenses I've broken: I had a Konica AR-mount 50 f/1.4 come apart in my hands. I was using it, and it stopped focusing, then went "spink" and wouldn't adjust aperture anymore.

I had a K1000 take a picture then...freeze entirely. Mirror stuck in the up position. Same with my Fiancee's MG.

Dropped my Sigma 10-20mm. Broke a $30 UV filter but otherwise no damage.

Also dropped a FA 28-80mm F/3.5-5.6. I was going to use it on the *ist I have the day I got it and dropped it on the driveway. Broke the UV filter and bent the lens barrel so that close focusing is too tight for the AF motor.

I've dropped other stuff, but none of the rest of what I've dropped has actually broken.

mikemike · 06-25-2010, 06:23 AM

@duc dao - it was a sony p&s
@arjay - I have seen the camera, it is definitely not an excuse it had met with the business end of a stiletto heel and had about 175 lbs (80 kg) of force applied to it.

TaoMaas · 06-25-2010, 06:57 AM

I had a couple of film cameras that fell off my tripod when I didn't get the quick-release locked completely. The first time, all I had to do was remove the bottom plate and flatten out a couple of dings. The second time required a trip to the repair shop for the camera...the lens (a nearly-new Vivitar Series 1 28-90 f2.8) was a total loss. The fall warped the barrel of the lens.

ducdao · 06-25-2010, 07:09 AM

Originally posted by unixrevolution

I got a Pentax Optio M40 off of ebay. My first GOOD truly compact digital since my 3.1MP HP Photosmart 420 (which has a Pentax lens, BTW.)

On the first day after I got it, I took it to work. I pulled it from my pocket to show my co-worker Rob, and it dropped on the ground. Wouldn't AF, wouldn't take pictures properly.

Second day

Fortunately it was only $40.

I then bought my current Optio A40. One day last winter I pulled it out to take a photo, and the LCD was broken. My heart stopped. I had been crawling on the floor at work to install network cables and must have put too much weight on it.

I was lucky enough to be able to buy and then successfully replace the LCD screen in the A40. Good thing too, I love this camera. It now lives in a Lowepro D-Wrap "burrito" case.

Other cameras and lenses I've broken: I had a Konica AR-mount 50 f/1.4 come apart in my hands. I was using it, and it stopped focusing, then went "spink" and wouldn't adjust aperture anymore.

I had a K1000 take a picture then...freeze entirely. Mirror stuck in the up position. Same with my Fiancee's MG.

Dropped my Sigma 10-20mm. Broke a $30 UV filter but otherwise no damage.

Also dropped a FA 28-80mm F/3.5-5.6. I was going to use it on the *ist I have the day I got it and dropped it on the driveway. Broke the UV filter and bent the lens barrel so that close focusing is too tight for the AF motor.

I've dropped other stuff, but none of the rest of what I've dropped has actually broken.

I would never let you hold my gears for sure

Steinback · 06-25-2010, 07:21 PM

I have the guts of a $1k Sony P&S that a student society I belonged to bought in ~2001. I wasn't at the event where the camera met its untimely end and never heard a reasonable explanation of the events leading up to it, but somehow a girl managed to drop the camera and then drive over it with a golf cart during some form of beer fuelled debauchery.

SpecialK · 06-25-2010, 07:46 PM

Have a Sigma 70-300 APO that I put on the shelf after getting the Pentax 55-300. Several months later, I took the 70-300 and a Pentax 50-200 to the local camera place to see if they wanted to buy them. The Sigma had a floppy aperture blade. It worked the last time I had used it. I still have it on the shelf, and someday I may disassemble it to see how it goes together, not to try to fix it necessarily.

DeliaRana · 06-25-2010, 09:36 PM

In 2003 I had a new Canon P&S and a new puppy. The lab puppy normally spent the night in his kennel. I decided not to put him in the kennel one night. I cleaned up, there wasn't anything on the floor and the camera was on the computer desk pushed all the way to the back. The camera was the only thing he messed with that night. He bit down on it and completely cracked the lcd on it. Couldn't get it to work after that.

Michelle · 06-26-2010, 11:54 AM

In 1994 DH andI were celebrating our first anniversary at the Oregon coast. We climbed up on some rocks to watch the tide go out. I look over and there is this amazing rock all covered in urchins and star fish that get exposed every time a wave rolls out. I wanted a picture of that rock, but I didn't want to climb off the rock I was sitting on. After a bit of cajoling, (and perhaps a naughty promise or two, after all it *was* our first anniversary!) I convince DH to get down and get a picture. He's in the surf up to his knees and bent over to get close to the rock when a strong wave comes in and knocks him off his feet.... and the camera out of his hands. He grabbed the camera and stood up before he got washed out to sea, but as you know, salt water and flim do not mix.

**ChrisPlatt** · 06-26-2010, 07:42 PM

Your sister should consider herself lucky the "big fat chick" didn't slip and fall.
The price of a camera pales in comparison to the cost of a lawsuit.

Chris

straightshooter · 06-27-2010, 03:05 PM

I was working midnight shift and I got a call around 10PM asking me to bring my camera (Spottie II) to work with me. The evening shift supervisor wanted me to photograph some damage to a towbar that occurred when one of the ramp agents had to push the late night flight to Atlanta back from the gate. After I had done the photographs using my Spottie and a Honeywell Strobonar with the 510v battery pack on my belt, I walked back into Operations and set my camera and flash up on the counter (about 4' high). I was getting ready to unhook the sync and power cords when the phone from Flight Control started ringing. Now understand that this is not a normal ringing phone...picture the ringing of the bell at the start of the Kentucky Derby and at about the same volume. When I spun around to answer the phone, this pulled my Spottie off the counter onto the tile over concrete hard floor, landing lens first and destroying my SMC Tak 50/1.4. Fortunately for me since the supervisor had asked me to bring it in and the damage occurred on company time, I got a new lens and my camera got a complete checkup courtesy of Delta.

CW

Votesh · 06-27-2010, 03:33 PM

I just got a Contax 18mm Distagon to convert to K mount using a Leitax converter. In trying to remove the mount from the lens I stripped the heads of all 4 screws holding it down. It is on its way to Eric Hendrickson so he can hopefully undo my major screw up.

A few years ago after I got my first digital camera, a Minolta Dimage XT, I had it in the pocket of my hoodie, and as I was getting out of a friend's van it fell 3-4ft straight onto an asphalt driveway. The corner was dented, but the camera still worked perfectly. It was one tough cookie.

Other than that, I've been lucky. The most damage I've done to any of my other gear was dropping the lens cap for the 31mm Ltd on some concrete on accident, and having some small indentations left in the metal.

06-24-2010, 07:13 PM	#1
mikemike Inactive Account Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: New Orleans Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,053	Broken camera or lens stories My sister broke her camera last night at the club, she dropped it on the dance floor and it was trampled by a big fat chick dancing behind her by the time she found it. Whats your best story of a way that you or someone close to you has destroyed a camera or lens?

06-25-2010, 06:18 AM	#5
unixrevolution Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Waldorf, MD Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,861	I got a Pentax Optio M40 off of ebay. My first GOOD truly compact digital since my 3.1MP HP Photosmart 420 (which has a Pentax lens, BTW.) On the first day after I got it, I took it to work. I pulled it from my pocket to show my co-worker Rob, and it dropped on the ground. Wouldn't AF, wouldn't take pictures properly. Second day Fortunately it was only $40. I then bought my current Optio A40. One day last winter I pulled it out to take a photo, and the LCD was broken. My heart stopped. I had been crawling on the floor at work to install network cables and must have put too much weight on it. I was lucky enough to be able to buy and then successfully replace the LCD screen in the A40. Good thing too, I love this camera. It now lives in a Lowepro D-Wrap "burrito" case. Other cameras and lenses I've broken: I had a Konica AR-mount 50 f/1.4 come apart in my hands. I was using it, and it stopped focusing, then went "spink" and wouldn't adjust aperture anymore. I had a K1000 take a picture then...freeze entirely. Mirror stuck in the up position. Same with my Fiancee's MG. Dropped my Sigma 10-20mm. Broke a $30 UV filter but otherwise no damage. Also dropped a FA 28-80mm F/3.5-5.6. I was going to use it on the ist I have the day I got it and dropped it on the driveway. Broke the UV filter and bent the lens barrel so that close focusing is too tight for the AF motor. I've dropped other stuff, but none of the rest of what I've dropped has actually broken. Last edited by unixrevolution; 06-25-2010 at 06:23 AM.*

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06-25-2010, 04:47 AM	#2
goddo31 Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Perth, Western Australia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,576	Best story? Wouldn't it be more of a horror story? :P Back in 2006 I got a brand new Optio A10 compact. A few months later I went on a nice holiday, and ended up dropping and breaking it when I slipped over. I was devastated But I ended up buying another one and claiming it on travel insurance, so it worked out OK...

06-25-2010, 05:14 AM	#3
ducdao Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Montreal/Vermont Posts: 2,160	Originally posted by mikemike My sister broke her camera last night at the club, she dropped it on the dance floor and it was trampled by a big fat chick dancing behind her by the time she found it. Whats your best story of a way that you or someone close to you has destroyed a camera or lens? What was her camera? P&S or DSLR? I dropped my Canon P&S several times in nightclubs but I was lucky enough not having any fat chicks behind me so my Canon survived until now

06-25-2010, 05:42 AM	#4
Arjay Bee Pentaxian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Horn Island, Torres Straits, Q Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,715	As a boy I remember my dad dropping and 'breaking' his camera -he replaced it with a miranda slr and hand held spotmeter. This was upgraded to a Spotmatic and some Takumar lenses - which I eventually received. On a visit home I souveniered the broken camera -an Ansco MF folder type which had been kept safely in the hallway closet for 40 years. Still had film loaded - cosmetic damage only. Shutter mechanism just needed uncludging to get working again. Made me realise that my dad had used the dropping excuse to upgrade way back when - things never change.

06-25-2010, 06:23 AM	#6
mikemike Inactive Account Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: New Orleans Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,053 Original Poster	@duc dao - it was a sony p&s @arjay - I have seen the camera, it is definitely not an excuse it had met with the business end of a stiletto heel and had about 175 lbs (80 kg) of force applied to it.

06-25-2010, 06:57 AM	#7
TaoMaas Pentaxian Join Date: May 2007 Location: Oklahoma City Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,574	I had a couple of film cameras that fell off my tripod when I didn't get the quick-release locked completely. The first time, all I had to do was remove the bottom plate and flatten out a couple of dings. The second time required a trip to the repair shop for the camera...the lens (a nearly-new Vivitar Series 1 28-90 f2.8) was a total loss. The fall warped the barrel of the lens.

06-25-2010, 07:09 AM	#8
ducdao Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Montreal/Vermont Posts: 2,160	Originally posted by unixrevolution I got a Pentax Optio M40 off of ebay. My first GOOD truly compact digital since my 3.1MP HP Photosmart 420 (which has a Pentax lens, BTW.) On the first day after I got it, I took it to work. I pulled it from my pocket to show my co-worker Rob, and it dropped on the ground. Wouldn't AF, wouldn't take pictures properly. Second day Fortunately it was only $40. I then bought my current Optio A40. One day last winter I pulled it out to take a photo, and the LCD was broken. My heart stopped. I had been crawling on the floor at work to install network cables and must have put too much weight on it. I was lucky enough to be able to buy and then successfully replace the LCD screen in the A40. Good thing too, I love this camera. It now lives in a Lowepro D-Wrap "burrito" case. Other cameras and lenses I've broken: I had a Konica AR-mount 50 f/1.4 come apart in my hands. I was using it, and it stopped focusing, then went "spink" and wouldn't adjust aperture anymore. I had a K1000 take a picture then...freeze entirely. Mirror stuck in the up position. Same with my Fiancee's MG. Dropped my Sigma 10-20mm. Broke a $30 UV filter but otherwise no damage. Also dropped a FA 28-80mm F/3.5-5.6. I was going to use it on the *ist I have the day I got it and dropped it on the driveway. Broke the UV filter and bent the lens barrel so that close focusing is too tight for the AF motor. I've dropped other stuff, but none of the rest of what I've dropped has actually broken. I would never let you hold my gears for sure

06-25-2010, 07:21 PM	#9
Steinback Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: GTA, ON, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,673	I have the guts of a $1k Sony P&S that a student society I belonged to bought in ~2001. I wasn't at the event where the camera met its untimely end and never heard a reasonable explanation of the events leading up to it, but somehow a girl managed to drop the camera and then drive over it with a golf cart during some form of beer fuelled debauchery.

06-25-2010, 07:46 PM	#10
SpecialK Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: So California Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,481	Have a Sigma 70-300 APO that I put on the shelf after getting the Pentax 55-300. Several months later, I took the 70-300 and a Pentax 50-200 to the local camera place to see if they wanted to buy them. The Sigma had a floppy aperture blade. It worked the last time I had used it. I still have it on the shelf, and someday I may disassemble it to see how it goes together, not to try to fix it necessarily.

06-25-2010, 09:36 PM	#11
DeliaRana Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Georgia Photos: Albums Posts: 388	In 2003 I had a new Canon P&S and a new puppy. The lab puppy normally spent the night in his kennel. I decided not to put him in the kennel one night. I cleaned up, there wasn't anything on the floor and the camera was on the computer desk pushed all the way to the back. The camera was the only thing he messed with that night. He bit down on it and completely cracked the lcd on it. Couldn't get it to work after that.

06-26-2010, 11:54 AM	#12
Michelle New Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Upstate NY Posts: 16	In 1994 DH andI were celebrating our first anniversary at the Oregon coast. We climbed up on some rocks to watch the tide go out. I look over and there is this amazing rock all covered in urchins and star fish that get exposed every time a wave rolls out. I wanted a picture of that rock, but I didn't want to climb off the rock I was sitting on. After a bit of cajoling, (and perhaps a naughty promise or two, after all it was our first anniversary!) I convince DH to get down and get a picture. He's in the surf up to his knees and bent over to get close to the rock when a strong wave comes in and knocks him off his feet.... and the camera out of his hands. He grabbed the camera and stood up before he got washed out to sea, but as you know, salt water and flim do not mix.

06-26-2010, 07:42 PM	#13
ChrisPlatt Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Rockaway Beach NYC Posts: 7,696	Your sister should consider herself lucky the "big fat chick" didn't slip and fall. The price of a camera pales in comparison to the cost of a lawsuit. Chris

06-27-2010, 03:05 PM	#14
straightshooter Inactive Account Join Date: May 2008 Location: Forest Park, Georgia/Jacksonville, Florida Photos: Gallery Posts: 633	I was working midnight shift and I got a call around 10PM asking me to bring my camera (Spottie II) to work with me. The evening shift supervisor wanted me to photograph some damage to a towbar that occurred when one of the ramp agents had to push the late night flight to Atlanta back from the gate. After I had done the photographs using my Spottie and a Honeywell Strobonar with the 510v battery pack on my belt, I walked back into Operations and set my camera and flash up on the counter (about 4' high). I was getting ready to unhook the sync and power cords when the phone from Flight Control started ringing. Now understand that this is not a normal ringing phone...picture the ringing of the bell at the start of the Kentucky Derby and at about the same volume. When I spun around to answer the phone, this pulled my Spottie off the counter onto the tile over concrete hard floor, landing lens first and destroying my SMC Tak 50/1.4. Fortunately for me since the supervisor had asked me to bring it in and the damage occurred on company time, I got a new lens and my camera got a complete checkup courtesy of Delta. CW

06-27-2010, 03:33 PM	#15
Votesh Inactive Account Join Date: Apr 2008 Photos: Gallery Posts: 817	I just got a Contax 18mm Distagon to convert to K mount using a Leitax converter. In trying to remove the mount from the lens I stripped the heads of all 4 screws holding it down. It is on its way to Eric Hendrickson so he can hopefully undo my major screw up. A few years ago after I got my first digital camera, a Minolta Dimage XT, I had it in the pocket of my hoodie, and as I was getting out of a friend's van it fell 3-4ft straight onto an asphalt driveway. The corner was dented, but the camera still worked perfectly. It was one tough cookie. Other than that, I've been lucky. The most damage I've done to any of my other gear was dropping the lens cap for the 31mm Ltd on some concrete on accident, and having some small indentations left in the metal.