Dropped 1DsIII

philthejuggler

philthejuggler

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Thought my 1DsIII was secure on a tripod and apparently it was not!

Dropped about 4 feet onto a wooden floor. Lens and camera appear fine.

Should I send it to Canon for a precautionary service or assume all is well and carry on regardless?

Thanks in advance

Phil!
 
grotty said:
How do you wear a strap when the camera is mounted on a tripod? I assume that I'm missing something...
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As normal. I don't see the problem. I am still alive 7 years after doing this day to day.
 
daugirdas said:
As normal. I don't see the problem. I am still alive 7 years after doing this day to day.
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I never suggested there was a problem, it just seems an overly cautious, fiddly and under normal circumstances, superfluous thing to do.
 
grotty said:
I never suggested there was a problem, it just seems an overly cautious, fiddly and under normal circumstances, superfluous thing to do.
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no not really. My tripod head (410) has failed to lock too many times, and the previous cheap manfrotto did the same. Why risk?
 
philthejuggler said:
Thought my 1DsIII was secure on a tripod and apparently it was not!

Dropped about 4 feet onto a wooden floor. Lens and camera appear fine.

Should I send it to Canon for a precautionary service or assume all is well and carry on regardless?

Thanks in advance

Phil!
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Do you use it professionally?
 
gramps said:
I would consider thinking about whether a possible future failure could be prevented by a service check. :)
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I was thinking that, but wonder what they might find that was about to break but currently worked?

Also I do take three bodies to a wedding so it wouldn't be a disaster if it died.

However if it might avoid future issues I'd pay for service!

Can't decide!!!
 
philthejuggler said:
I was thinking that, but wonder what they might find that was about to break but currently worked?

Also I do take three bodies to a wedding so it wouldn't be a disaster if it died.

However if it might avoid future issues I'd pay for service!

Can't decide!!!
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I would have thought it more vulnerable falling as a body with fitted lens, but if you always take 3 x combos for a job then the risk of being caught out is reduced.
 
daugirdas said:
no not really. My tripod head (410) has failed to lock too many times, and the previous cheap manfrotto did the same. Why risk?
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I can feel myself regretting this post already, but I've recently read your posts about how Lee filter holders are rubbish and the filters fall out, hi-tech holders are apparently as bad ( http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/nd-grad-filters.572869/#post-6648597 ) and now posts re manfrotto 410 and previous manfrotto tripod heads don't lock. I'm fairly certain there are thousands of happy users of all these items ( including myself for some of them) and have to ask whether you've ever stepped back, reviewed your experiences with those of other users and considered that it might not be the gear that's the problem? :whistle:
 
My failure to secure the camera on the tripod today was user error.

I've just realised the camera was attached to a tablet computer whose cable was wrecked in the drop - this may have taken some of the impact.
 
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Jim_Tod said:
I can feel myself regretting this post already, but I've recently read your posts about how Lee filter holders are rubbish and the filters fall out, hi-tech holders are apparently as bad ( http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/nd-grad-filters.572869/#post-6648597 ) and now posts re manfrotto 410 and previous manfrotto tripod heads don't lock. I'm fairly certain there are thousands of happy users of all these items ( including myself for some of them) and have to ask whether you've ever stepped back, reviewed your experiences with those of other users and considered that it might not be the gear that's the problem? :whistle:
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You will regret this! :p

My gear is used professionally, heavily but carefully. You really can't compare this to uncle Bob who used his filter 5 times and his 5D has 500 clicks on the clock 3 years after purchase. I am very happy your approach is not used aerospace engineering or automotive industry or else most of us would be dead. Just because you didn't use your gear well enough in tough conditions over a period of time doesn't mean it is fail proof. Of course the problem is me FFS because I travel around the world and not sit around a TV on a couch all day drinking beer and taking a random photo every year of my cat / dog or granddaughter. That is the difference.

For your information if you ever use 410 head, it really doesn't like any tiny bit of sand or water. It can be cleaned out and works well again, but until that is done it may fail to click in place. It also likes to be relubricated every so often. But then you'll never notice that if you take just 20 images indoors. That's probably also my fault here.

Staff edit: removed swearing
 
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when i am around the tripod , ( like you are on some shots) i wear the strap too....... i thought it was just "me" that did that!:) even if its not QR ...... only time i dont is on long shutter images
 
daugirdas said:
You will regret this! :p

My gear is used professionally, heavily but carefully. You really can't compare this to uncle Bob who used his filter 5 times and his 5D has 500 clicks on the clock 3 years after purchase. I am very happy your approach is not used aerospace engineering or automotive industry or else most of us would be dead. Just because you didn't use your gear well enough in tough conditions over a period of time doesn't mean it is fail proof. Of course the problem is me FFS because I travel around the world and not sit around a TV on a couch all day drinking beer and taking a random photo every year of my cat / dog or granddaughter. That is the difference.

For your information if you ever use 410 head, it really doesn't like any tiny bit of sand or water. It can be cleaned out and works well again, but until that is done it may fail to click in place. It also likes to be relubricated every so often. But then you'll never notice that if you take just 20 images indoors. That's probably also my fault here.
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I'm not sure you specifically answered the question which included your recent posts on filters also but i get a sense that your underlying response is along the lines of - i'm far to busy and important travelling the world making my living as a professional photographic god to concern myself with whether the gear i take is good enough to allow me to continue travelling the world making my living from photography without failure- anyone who doesn't wear out their gear or uses it properly is a mere amatuer and that's not you. I may have missed some subtleties in your response but overall this is my take on it.

You make some big assumptions about others don't you. I'm not a professional photographer, like many it's a hobby which i fit in amongst the rest of my life. With regards to approaches in different industries and professionalism- i'm a chartered structural engineer and undertake risk assessments as an integral part of my day job- consequences of bits of buildings, bridges and power stations falling down are usually a bit more serious than sand in the tripod head or playing dropsy with a big stopper. Aerospace and automotive engineers use similar techniques just to different extents based on potential consequence of failure. The one thing we all do as professionals is consider maintenance requirements. When there's a failure in our industries one of the first things to be looked at is the maintenance regime applied and decisions made surrounding the failure.

As a professional photographer, with a lot of careful use of your gear as you say- at what point in your maintenance regime did you notice that you had heavily used your gear to the extent that filters were getting loose in the holder and that you might need to replace the guides or similar with some of the spares that lee provide/ sell for just that sort of maintenance work- before or after your valuable filters fell out? When you put your camera onto the tripod head, you do check that it's fixed in and not loose i assume- especially around sand. It is also a strange decision to see that having used lee filters, presumably a satisfactory experience up till then through the 1.5m photos a year/month/ week / day ( delete as appropriate) you take in both a professional and personal capacity, ignore your lack of maintenance and then decide that the problem is that your gear is c**p because it needs maintained and checked as you use it and you had therefore better move away from lee filter holders. With that approach you should perhaps pray for new entrants to the market before you run out of other brands to criticise - or perhaps solve the issue and launch your own range of single use filters and tripod heads - i can see the strapline now ' for a certain type of professional photographer'

My view of professional photography has now changed- i don't recall Colin Prior wandering around the cairngorms, nepal or the karakorum saying "i couldn't get the shot i wanted because lee filter holders are rubbish and my manfrotto tripod head is s**t" but you've got me thinking that he's obviously not professional enough by not criticising his gear. Although i worry that this new approach to professionalism in photography reminds me of a saying my grandfather had that 'a bad workman always blames his tools'- perhaps it doesnt apply if you're a photographic god!
 
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I spent 3 hours with my camera on a tripod last week doing a timelapse, slightly worried about it coming off as it was a tad breezy. I very much doubt I would have liked to stand there for 3 hours attached the strap by not moving for fear of moving the camera itself.

I hope it's ok though. For peace of mind, I'd get it checked out especially as you are using it professionally.
 
kelack said:
I spent 3 hours with my camera on a tripod last week doing a timelapse, slightly worried about it coming off as it was a tad breezy. I very much doubt I would have liked to stand there for 3 hours attached the strap by not moving for fear of moving the camera itself.

I hope it's ok though. For peace of mind, I'd get it checked out especially as you are using it professionally.
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i'd just shoot with it for a day or 2, if any problems arise get it fixed, if not you're probably good to go, these things are built tough!
 
Phil,

A 4 foot drop for a pro body should be fine. As others have said if it seems fine keep shooting. My 1DIV has had worse drops than that and no problems.

The whole strap on a tripod thing is completely up to the user. I don't shoot with any neck strap because my experience is that on a tripod it increases the chances of the camera toppling. Especially when you're using big glass. For that reason I have the hand strap only and have had for years.

Neil
 
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