Corax67
Well-known member
Hope this goes a little way to convincing BF members how important good insurance really is.
Booked a well earned day off to visit the Island of Skomer off the West Wales coast to photograph the resident seabird colonies - armed with all of the usual birders toys (Leica APO scope & bins, Canon 20D, 300mm f2.8, 70-200 f2.8, teleconverter et al) in my trusty Lowepro backpack I hopped the boat over & set about my task with glee. :king:
All was going well until I decided to go from long distance shots of Fulmar & Kittiwake on their cliff wall nests to arty close ups of Puffins. Off came the teleconverter which was placed in a spare lens pouch with a spare 1Gb pro CF card & my Canon timer release switch.
You can guess what happened next - in my haste I had not clipped the lens case onto my backpack and while lying on the floor composing my next photographic masterpiece glimpsed the case roll down the slope and off the edge of a 200 foot cliff ! ! ! :eek!: (splash)
Thankfully common sense overrode my natural instinct to perform a diving catch worthy of an England wicket keeper in a deciding test match (200 feet is a loooong way down) and I consoled myself that at least it hadn't been the 300mm f2.8.
Whilst I knew I had an "extended contents" cover on my home insurance I was not hopeful as I made the embarrassed call to the claims line |:$| they were WONDERFUL, details taken (with not even the hint of a giggle), an acknowledgement letter a few days later asking for recipts or original packaging (Ha Ha now my family cannot complain anymore that I never throw anything away) and soon the preferred supplier was on the phone giving me details of my nearest store & when I could expect replacement.
I have just returned from collecting my replacement items - a total turn around time of 10 days and I could not be happier with the level of support I received throughout the process. :clap:
My learning from this has been :
(1) Whatever the premiums cost I will never be without good insurance
(2) No matter how inspiring the next shot, ALWAYS check your kit is secured
(3) Keep any packaging & receipts - useful for future re-sale but ESSENTIAL for insurance claims (but it does annoy the other half)
(4) You never realise how much you use a piece of kit until you lose it - I so badly missed my teleconverter.
Now, where's that Sooty Tern gone ? ? ? ?
Booked a well earned day off to visit the Island of Skomer off the West Wales coast to photograph the resident seabird colonies - armed with all of the usual birders toys (Leica APO scope & bins, Canon 20D, 300mm f2.8, 70-200 f2.8, teleconverter et al) in my trusty Lowepro backpack I hopped the boat over & set about my task with glee. :king:
All was going well until I decided to go from long distance shots of Fulmar & Kittiwake on their cliff wall nests to arty close ups of Puffins. Off came the teleconverter which was placed in a spare lens pouch with a spare 1Gb pro CF card & my Canon timer release switch.
You can guess what happened next - in my haste I had not clipped the lens case onto my backpack and while lying on the floor composing my next photographic masterpiece glimpsed the case roll down the slope and off the edge of a 200 foot cliff ! ! ! :eek!: (splash)
Thankfully common sense overrode my natural instinct to perform a diving catch worthy of an England wicket keeper in a deciding test match (200 feet is a loooong way down) and I consoled myself that at least it hadn't been the 300mm f2.8.
Whilst I knew I had an "extended contents" cover on my home insurance I was not hopeful as I made the embarrassed call to the claims line |:$| they were WONDERFUL, details taken (with not even the hint of a giggle), an acknowledgement letter a few days later asking for recipts or original packaging (Ha Ha now my family cannot complain anymore that I never throw anything away) and soon the preferred supplier was on the phone giving me details of my nearest store & when I could expect replacement.
I have just returned from collecting my replacement items - a total turn around time of 10 days and I could not be happier with the level of support I received throughout the process. :clap:
My learning from this has been :
(1) Whatever the premiums cost I will never be without good insurance
(2) No matter how inspiring the next shot, ALWAYS check your kit is secured
(3) Keep any packaging & receipts - useful for future re-sale but ESSENTIAL for insurance claims (but it does annoy the other half)
(4) You never realise how much you use a piece of kit until you lose it - I so badly missed my teleconverter.
Now, where's that Sooty Tern gone ? ? ? ?
