The first time you dropped a lens...

ranmyaku · Dec 15, 2007

well.. I just experienced this horrifying feeling for the first time. Luckily it was just the rather inexpensive kit lens that came with my D50, but still..

I had packed some of my gear in the back of my car, and was driving up to my girlfriends apartment for the weekend. This being christmas time and all, I asked her to buy me a really sweet camera bag so that I can store everything in one place and have it all protected somewhat from accidents. So I am looking forward to arriving. Well, upon arriving, I carefully take out my camera with my 105mm macro lens attached, making sure not to drop it or anything. (it was sitting on top of some clothes that I had brought for the weekend). Then I go to take out the few clothes I brought with me which were folded neatly. Unbeknownst to me, my 18-55 lens had wiggled in between some of those clothes, and when I pulled the clothes out it goes tumbling out of my car and hits with a 'thump' on the ground. Its like one of those slow motion things when its happening, you are thinking the whole time 'oh ****, oh ****' please don't break.

Won't you share your story as well..

Chris of Arabia · Dec 15, 2007

Only done something like this once. I went down a wadi with some friends to do some climbing, camera in tow. Anyway, come the end of the day when were were packing up, I turned round to see my rucksack gently toppling over and roll off down the scree slope emptying the contents as it did - wave bye, bye to one Canon A-1, standard lens and 24mm Tamron. At least the insurance paid up.

DSLR noob · Dec 15, 2007

I remember with my Canon D Rebel XT and Kit lens attached, I tossed it in a lawn chair and the woven taught nylon support part of the chair bounced it up and over the other armrest and onto the ground. Luckily this ground was grass b/c is overshot the edge of the concrete by a measly 2 cm or so. Just wiped of the camera and everything was ok. Another time my 50mm 1:1.8 Mk II was in a backpack and the next time I took it out, the 2 different halves of the lens barrel were in my backpack, as well as a few glass internals. I had a few text books in there, like 2 or so, and I always put it down carefully, but maybe it rolled into a corner and the book back got jolted causing the pressure of a book to crush it, I'm not sure. I now have a Mark I with a metal lens mount and better build.

Alex_B · Dec 15, 2007

first time I dropped a lens, it was attached to the camera still ... and both were attached to myself, ... and actually this was in the mountains and slightly dangerous for all three of us

lucky as we were, we landed not on solid rock, but in the water.

Sideburns · Dec 15, 2007

Never.

My brother dropped my XT and kit lens the first day I got it though...ON my half finished model car that I was working on for about a week so far...Broke the entire engine assembly.

But it was only from about a foot and it landed on the bottom on the camera body..so nothing happened to the camera. He got a good slap in the head though.

JIP · Dec 15, 2007

The worst I did was when I was canoeing with my wife and my Nikon 8008 (an expensive 1 year old camera at the time)..........

I am not sure yo uneed to har the rest but here goes. We were crossing a wde lake and a powered boat came speeding by, I reached down, turned just the right way and..... SPLASH!!!! we rolled the camera was around my neck and it was fried. My trusy Tamrac bag was floating by when I came up for air almost totally waterproof and protecting all the contents unfortunately my camera was not one of them. So as the best follow up to that all I could afford after that was the N70 wich was sooooooo much lesser of a camera at the time I still have both of them one is an expensive paperweight one is an expnsive paperweight that still works.

Joves · Dec 15, 2007

For me it was when I had my Pentax MX and, I was climbing in a canyon. One of my extra lenses came out of my pack. The lense was a 70mm f/2.8 if I remember right. That was quite a few years ago. My Nikon CoolPix 995 did have a terrible swimming acident. It actually worked for 3 more months afterwards.

Sw1tchFX · Dec 15, 2007

I've dropped my 35-70 f/2.8 and my 17-55 f/2.8.

Both went into the shop, the 35-70 becuase it stopped focusing and my 17-55 because I broke the AF motor and it wouldnt' focus past 10 feet. I still don't' think it's exactly right at 55mm after being fixed.

dpolston · Dec 15, 2007

I dropped a 70-200 2.8 Nikkor lens. I thought I'd cry! But all it did was ding the hood. I was very, very lucky!

Ls3D · Dec 15, 2007

So far so good, but this is a great reminder! In the words of slick willie, I feel your pain.

-Shea

gmarquez · Dec 15, 2007

I had my Nikon d80 in my camera bag with the kit lens (18-135), somewhat cushioned with the lens facing down. I hung the bad on a fencepost, as I was about to climb over the fence. The strap slips, and I soon find out that "somewhat cushioned" actually means "not cushioned at all".

Lens is now sticky when zooming, and auto focus hunts forever when near the extremes of the zoom range.

However, I had a 3 year replacement policy, which even covered "photographer is an idiot". They (Best Buy) replaced the kit lens AND THE CAMERA BODY.

So far so good, but I would have been happy with them just replacing the lens.

jstuedle · Dec 15, 2007

In high school, my brand new Nikkormat FS with new 50mm f/1.4 Nikkor S slid down the wood slant top of a desk in math class. DuH! The camera caught the edge of the wood seat, shearing off the rewind crank. Just before it hit the floor, I got my foot under it and broke it's fall and my pinky toe of my right foot. No other damage to the lens or camera. Although the lens cap did spring across 2 or 3 isles of the classroom. Other than limping for a few weeks and getting a new rewind crank and spindle for about $10, all was fine.

keith204 · Dec 15, 2007

I'm writing down all your names, so I never buy from you guys in the forum marketplace

Battou · Dec 15, 2007

My Sakar 135mm, I was sitting infront of my computer desk looking over the lens just after recieving it, at this time the aprature ring was jammed so I wanted to make sure that was the only issue. I turned to grab my body and put the lens on and as ouf of my hand she goes as I was repositioning the body. I screamed as it made this loud (and somewhat amplified) thud on the hardwood floor and procedded to roll under my computer chair. I actually felt it hit the floor, the metal construction makes even that short lens rather heavy.