THE FALL OF THE 20D !!!

Well, bad news sports fans!
I was out yesterday taking pics of the sandhill cranes (see links
below), and my trusty 20D took a bad fall off a handrail onto a wooden
deck. It was probably my fault since I had my shutter release cable
plugged into the 20D with the other end in my pocket. I turned around
and heard a terrible THUNK! as the 20D came crashing down with the 400
f/5.6L attached.
Part of the battery cover was broken, but that seems to be the only
damage. Good thing Canon makes their cameras and lenses so sturdy,
huh? Otherwise, this post would be titled, "ANNI ORDERS A 5D !!!"

The good news is that the battery cover is designed to be replaced
easily. You just squeeze a tiny metal thingy and it pops right off. I
was hoping I could just pop the battery cover off my Totally Digital
D60 to replace it, but alas, they are different sizes.

I've already ordered a replacement battery cover (only cost $15) so I
shouldn't be without the 20D for long. Good thing I got a good backup
in the Totally Digital D60. Anyways, here are some of the final shots
taken with the 20D .... for now.

http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55070833
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099948
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099953

Annika1980 wrote:
Well, bad news sports fans!
I was out yesterday taking pics of the sandhill cranes (see links
below), and my trusty 20D took a bad fall off a handrail onto a wooden
deck. It was probably my fault since I had my shutter release cable
plugged into the 20D with the other end in my pocket. I turned around
and heard a terrible THUNK! as the 20D came crashing down with the 400
f/5.6L attached.
Part of the battery cover was broken, but that seems to be the only
damage. Good thing Canon makes their cameras and lenses so sturdy,
huh? Otherwise, this post would be titled, "ANNI ORDERS A 5D !!!"

The good news is that the battery cover is designed to be replaced
easily. You just squeeze a tiny metal thingy and it pops right off. I
was hoping I could just pop the battery cover off my Totally Digital
D60 to replace it, but alas, they are different sizes.

I've already ordered a replacement battery cover (only cost $15) so I
shouldn't be without the 20D for long. Good thing I got a good backup
in the Totally Digital D60. Anyways, here are some of the final shots
taken with the 20D .... for now.

http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55070833
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099948
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099953


Hi Bret,
Nice that you live so close to sandhill cranes. Its an
8-hour drive for me to go to Bosque del Apache.

When I was in Australia, I sat my 1D Mark II on a bench,
then mistakenly moved and it slid off onto concrete.
Major thud! I check it out, and not only not
a scratch, but everything worked perfectly. Whew!

On your bird photos, something I learned from Art Morris:
Make sure the bird is turned at least slightly toward
you for more effective images. Your second image, the bird
is heading away from you, so you just see the bird's back and
back of its head. Of course all photo rules should be broken
at times (just my opinion), like this completely back side shot:
http://www.clarkvision.com/galleries...336.b-600.html

If you look at my bird page,
http://www.clarkvision.com/galleries/gallery.bird
notice the wing positions on side views: the far wing
is ahead of the near wing, so the bird is tilted toward
the camera. In your last image of the crane in flight, the close
wing is ahead, and not only does that indicate the bird is headed
away, but the wing blocks a lot of the view. A few seconds
earlier would have had the bird tilted toward you.

The it also helps if you can catch the bird's head when
he/she turns toward you. A lot of this can be accomplished
by correct positioning in the field. Try and get to
where the birds will be flying towards you, not away, and as
soon as they pass that away point, go for another subject.

Are you doing these handheld, or do you have a Wimberly head yet?
My first bird photo trip I was using a pan head and everyone said
I need a wimberly. They were right.

Roger

"Annika1980" wrote in message
oups.com...
Well, bad news sports fans!
I was out yesterday taking pics of the sandhill cranes (see links
below), and my trusty 20D took a bad fall off a handrail onto a wooden
deck. It was probably my fault since I had my shutter release cable
plugged into the 20D with the other end in my pocket. I turned around
and heard a terrible THUNK! as the 20D came crashing down with the 400
f/5.6L attached.
Part of the battery cover was broken, but that seems to be the only
damage. Good thing Canon makes their cameras and lenses so sturdy,
huh? Otherwise, this post would be titled, "ANNI ORDERS A 5D !!!"

The good news is that the battery cover is designed to be replaced
easily. You just squeeze a tiny metal thingy and it pops right off. I
was hoping I could just pop the battery cover off my Totally Digital
D60 to replace it, but alas, they are different sizes.

I've already ordered a replacement battery cover (only cost $15) so I
shouldn't be without the 20D for long. Good thing I got a good backup
in the Totally Digital D60. Anyways, here are some of the final shots
taken with the 20D .... for now.

http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55070833
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099948
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099953


Bad luck, Annika.

I do hope you were not thinking about your sex session of the other night,
instead of concentrating on your photography. As I said - "Priorities"

Roy G

Did you at least get a good shot of the railing at the moment of impact?


Annika1980 wrote:
Well, bad news sports fans!
I was out yesterday taking pics of the sandhill cranes (see links
below), and my trusty 20D took a bad fall off a handrail onto a wooden
deck. It was probably my fault since I had my shutter release cable
plugged into the 20D with the other end in my pocket. I turned around
and heard a terrible THUNK! as the 20D came crashing down with the 400
f/5.6L attached.
Part of the battery cover was broken, but that seems to be the only
damage. Good thing Canon makes their cameras and lenses so sturdy,
huh? Otherwise, this post would be titled, "ANNI ORDERS A 5D !!!"

The good news is that the battery cover is designed to be replaced
easily. You just squeeze a tiny metal thingy and it pops right off. I
was hoping I could just pop the battery cover off my Totally Digital
D60 to replace it, but alas, they are different sizes.

I've already ordered a replacement battery cover (only cost $15) so I
shouldn't be without the 20D for long. Good thing I got a good backup
in the Totally Digital D60. Anyways, here are some of the final shots
taken with the 20D .... for now.

http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55070833
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099948
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099953



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Annika1980 wrote:
..
The good news is that the battery cover is designed to be replaced
easily. You just squeeze a tiny metal thingy and it pops right off.
I was hoping I could just pop the battery cover off my Totally Digital
D60 to replace it, but alas, they are different sizes.
...

Nice shots of some nice birds.

BTW the reason the battery cover is removable is to attach the external
battery back. Glad it worked out well for you.


--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

On 21 Jan 2006 15:58:13 -0800, "Annika1980"
wrote:

Well, bad news sports fans!
I was out yesterday taking pics of the sandhill cranes (see links
below), and my trusty 20D took a bad fall off a handrail onto a wooden
deck. It was probably my fault since I had my shutter release cable
plugged into the 20D with the other end in my pocket. I turned around
and heard a terrible THUNK! as the 20D came crashing down with the 400
f/5.6L attached.
Part of the battery cover was broken, but that seems to be the only
damage. Good thing Canon makes their cameras and lenses so sturdy,
huh? Otherwise, this post would be titled, "ANNI ORDERS A 5D !!!"

The good news is that the battery cover is designed to be replaced
easily. You just squeeze a tiny metal thingy and it pops right off. I
was hoping I could just pop the battery cover off my Totally Digital
D60 to replace it, but alas, they are different sizes.

I've already ordered a replacement battery cover (only cost $15) so I
shouldn't be without the 20D for long. Good thing I got a good backup
in the Totally Digital D60. Anyways, here are some of the final shots
taken with the 20D .... for now.

http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55070833
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099948
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099953

Ouch!
I have nightmares about dropping my DRebel with either of my two new
lenses.
When I put it down, I always make sure the neck strap is away from the
edge of whatever it's on, to help minimize the chances of it being
pulled off. And we have tile floors!

--
Bill Funk
Replace "g" with "a"
funktionality.blogspot.com

"Annika1980" wrote in message
oups.com...
Well, bad news sports fans!
I was out yesterday taking pics of the sandhill cranes (see links
below), and my trusty 20D took a bad fall off a handrail onto a wooden
deck. It was probably my fault since I had my shutter release cable
plugged into the 20D with the other end in my pocket. I turned around
and heard a terrible THUNK! as the 20D came crashing down with the 400
f/5.6L attached.
Part of the battery cover was broken, but that seems to be the only
damage. Good thing Canon makes their cameras and lenses so sturdy,
huh? Otherwise, this post would be titled, "ANNI ORDERS A 5D !!!"

The good news is that the battery cover is designed to be replaced
easily. You just squeeze a tiny metal thingy and it pops right off. I
was hoping I could just pop the battery cover off my Totally Digital
D60 to replace it, but alas, they are different sizes.

I've already ordered a replacement battery cover (only cost $15) so I
shouldn't be without the 20D for long. Good thing I got a good backup
in the Totally Digital D60. Anyways, here are some of the final shots
taken with the 20D .... for now.

http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55070833
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099948
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099953

I'm glad to hear the camera works fine after the spill. It is good the
engineers are keeping these complex machines rugged. The electronics should
be rugged. It is the mechanical parts that take the beating in a fall.

BTW, My dRebel has a little clip that holds the battery in, so it will still
function with the battery cover off (it has the release hinge thingy too).
Perhaps the 20D has this and you can keep shooting.

Now, after having that L glass and camera hit the deck, the deck should be
examined by a structural engineer to be sure it is still safe to stand on
: )
John

Bill Funk wrote:

On 21 Jan 2006 15:58:13 -0800, "Annika1980"
wrote:

Well, bad news sports fans!
I was out yesterday taking pics of the sandhill cranes (see links
below), and my trusty 20D took a bad fall off a handrail onto a wooden
deck. It was probably my fault since I had my shutter release cable
plugged into the 20D with the other end in my pocket. I turned around
and heard a terrible THUNK! as the 20D came crashing down with the 400
f/5.6L attached.
Part of the battery cover was broken, but that seems to be the only
damage. Good thing Canon makes their cameras and lenses so sturdy,
huh? Otherwise, this post would be titled, "ANNI ORDERS A 5D !!!"

The good news is that the battery cover is designed to be replaced
easily. You just squeeze a tiny metal thingy and it pops right off. I
was hoping I could just pop the battery cover off my Totally Digital
D60 to replace it, but alas, they are different sizes.

I've already ordered a replacement battery cover (only cost $15) so I
shouldn't be without the 20D for long. Good thing I got a good backup
in the Totally Digital D60. Anyways, here are some of the final shots
taken with the 20D .... for now.

http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55070833
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099948
http://www.pbase.com/bret/image/55099953

Ouch!
I have nightmares about dropping my DRebel with either of my two new
lenses.

Me too. I just got a 500 mm f 4.0 l IS USM and I sure would like to go out
and try it, but I rather wait until all the ice is gone... Walling with a
such a lense on a 20D may hurt my bank account a lot...

Nice pictures!!

--
Jørn Dahl-Stamnes
http://www.dahl-stamnes.net/dahls/Foto/

On your bird photos, something I learned from Art Morris:
Make sure the bird is turned at least slightly toward
you for more effective images.

That's good advice, Roger, but sometimes difficult to accomplish in the
field, especially when there are lots of other people around. The big
birds that I'm after (eagles & cranes) don't like people so it seems
they fly away from you a lot more than toward you. Even when they get
spooked by something else their instincts take them away from where the
people are.
I've scouted out a few areas where there are no people due to all the
"NO TRESPASSING" signs posted there, so I may use some of those in the
future assuming I wanna risk getting shot. I've also considered other
methods to make the birds fly toward me. Have you had any experience
with remote explosives?

Are you doing these handheld, or do you have a Wimberly head yet?
My first bird photo trip I was using a pan head and everyone said
I need a wimberly. They were right.

Yeah, I do all my "birds in flight" shots handheld. I don't even own a
ballhead. I'd love to have a Wimberly (either the big one or the
smaller Sidekick model), but alas, I don't have your budget. I saw a
girl using a cheapo ($100) Manfrotto 322RC2 pistol-grip head that made
it very easy to track the birds in flight, so I might get one of these.


I'm assuming you use the big Wimberly head with your 500 f/4L? That
must be a sweet combo!
Now that the cranes are peaking around here, howz about loaning it to
me for a few weeks? I promise I won't drop it.
Ha ha.

On your bird photos, something I learned from Art Morris:
Make sure the bird is turned at least slightly toward
you for more effective images. Your second image, the bird
is heading away from you, so you just see the bird's back and
back of its head.

Here's one that might be more to your liking:

http://www.pbase.com/image/55167158