Your worst photography nightmares

smelltheglove

Just preparing for tomorrows wedding, and enjoying the silence in the house and got me thinking, I always have this terrible fear of forgetting about a wedding, probably never will considering it worries me so much.

So does anyone else have a photography nightmare? Or even lived their photography nightmare?

PCPhoto

worst nightmare = corrupted memory cards.

AnimalRights

Not being able to afford the Canon 5D mk III.

AnCatDubh

not taking the lens cap off and worse still because you shoot with both eyes open you don't notice.

So assuming you haven't forgotten the wedding, and haven't a corrupted memory card loaded, then this is probably up there with the best of em.

Ah, but in reality i'd fear losing the camera or breaking it which only causes me to be more careful which usually stifles the photography in the first place. I need to move to a place where i don't give a ....

Borderfox

Setting up here for tomorrow's wedding too. Worst nightmare is corrupt cards too. I have sixteen cards for tomorrow to spread them around, also an Epson P3000 to back up to also.

Thecageyone

Good luck with the wedding, set multiple alarms!

Since I've yet to do anything professional photography-wise, my fears are the more usual - dropping and breaking the camera [as I'm poor and can't afford to be doing such stupid things] - losing the camera or having it stolen from me because I left it on a wall/bench while tying my shoelace or something!

gerk86

i often shoot around the coast so I suppose dropping my d200 and 17mm f/2.8 into seawater would be a nightma.....oh wait......that actually happened

Fajitas!

Ugh, charged batteries and fresh CF cards. Nearly gotten caught out so many times now.

stabo

AnimalRights wrote: »

Not being able to afford the Canon 5D mk III.

How long do you have the 5D MKII? Why would you want to upgrade?

Fajitas!

stabo wrote: »

How long do you have the 5D MKII? Why would you want to upgrade?

Because he'll be a better photographer if he buys the MkIII

ThOnda

Nightmare? Naked Fajitas. Snoring. On me.

hmboards

Not pro so I don't lose sleep, but I did climb a tree in 1987 to get above the crowds, and waited an hour and a half on a not very comfortable branch for the open top bus to carry Stephen Roche past after winning the Tour de France. I got a perfect treetop view as the bus passed feet away from me and started shooting away. Then realised I forgot to load (or bring) the film!

smelltheglove

Corrupt cards, oh guys don't be freaking me out, I usually only get nervous about remembering it and getting there on time now you guys are making me worry about cards....

And Border, 16 cards????

My worst actual photography experience, a wedding also, not actually that bad but the sort of thing you worry about. I have always worried about what if something happened that meant I could not make a wedding, what would I do...?

Last October about 10 minutes, no joking, before I was to leave for a wedding I got a call to say my Nanny had passed away. So I knew I had to go do the work, family were understanding too, of course I couldnt pull out, off I went and got there on time, never mind a bit upset. So I pull up outside the house and get out of the car and one of the brides neighbours reverses into my car. Like I wasnt having a bad enough day, I bit the porr mans head off, felt terrible for it and did apologise. Then had to try and compose myself during the ceremony as, unbeknown to me, the bestmans girlfriend was my cousin, and there she was sitting directly behind the bride and groom so every time I zoomed into the I could see her teary eyes behind them. She left after the seremony so I continued on the day, actually still got good results, I was quite surprised.

conair01

the strap on my camera broke on paddys day(before the parade!) resulting in my 80-200 f2.8 hitting the ground with a heavy thud! for the split second a i feared the worse, but the metal hood saved my day..

Borderfox

16 cards but not filling them, change them often during the day limits loss. belt and braces approach

kensutz

Dubarry Park, 'nuff said!

smelltheglove

Borderfox wrote: »

16 cards but not filling them, change them often during the day limits loss. belt and braces approach

I see, I use 6 4gb cards only, so if one corrupts damage is minimal.

swingking

Making the effort to get up early for sunrise to take shots. Driving about 40 mins. Tripod setup camera set. Push the button.

"no card present" !!

Check bag and realized I don't have any spares

Diabhal_Glas

swingking wrote: »

Making the effort to get up early for sunrise to take shots. Driving about 40 mins. Tripod setup camera set. Push the button.

"no card present" !!

Check bag and realized I don't have any spares

Ah so I'm not the only one

32finn

smelltheglove wrote: »

Just preparing for tomorrows wedding, and enjoying the silence in the house and got me thinking, I always have this terrible fear of forgetting about a wedding, probably never will considering it worries me so much.

So does anyone else have a photography nightmare? Or even lived their photography nightmare?

I kind of lived your nightmare not so long ago. At my mates wedding there was no sign of the photographer turning up to do the getting ready shots for the bride. When she finally rang him he thought the wedding was the following day........doh!
Luckily i had my camera in the car so i popped over to her and i got some of the shots until he turned up!

AnimalRights

stabo wrote: »

How long do you have the 5D MKII? Why would you want to upgrade?

I like upgrading gadgets I am very happy with to a better version, basically I want the 7D AF in the 5D mk III.

I enjoyed going from the apple I-phone 3g to 3gs... And yes there were important differences.

maddogcollins

swingking wrote: »

Making the effort to get up early for sunrise to take shots. Driving about 40 mins. Tripod setup camera set. Push the button.

"no card present" !!

Check bag and realized I don't have any spares

Its happened and as a result i now keep a 2gb card in my wallet at all times.just in case it happens again.

Iv a habit of leaving the card in the sd slot on laptop.

oshead

Biggest fear? Being paid to do a gig and not doing a good/creative enough job of it. Though, so far so good...... I think.. :rolleyes:

Covey

Regular occurance... seeing the photo and not having the camera either with me or ready :eek::mad:

bernard0368

Been arrested by the chinese state police for unknowingly photographing an area outside Shanghai restricted to westerners. Was held for three hours till they retreived my passport from the hotel. Got better after they realised I was Irish (the power of an irish passport is great) and the company I was meeting sent someone to help.

Ricky91t

Would have to be corrupt cards for me too, Happened to me before while I was just copying over photos(I was being paid for) to process and email to the club so they could be sent to local papers and a magazine or two.. Not fun at all!

magicbastarder

not having enough film. happened once in woodlawn house, a derelict palladian mansion.

also, first wedding i ever shot - on the first roll, i forgot to change film speed to 1600 from the 100ASA that had been in the camera before.

DaireQuinlan

magicbastarder wrote: »

not having enough film. happened once in woodlawn house, a derelict palladian mansion.

also, first wedding i ever shot - on the first roll, i forgot to change film speed to 1600 from the 100ASA that had been in the camera before.

Actually, you know what I hate almost as much ? Just barely having enough film. You screw up and forget to raid the fridge before leaving so you've only got the 10 shots left on the roll in the camera. Then you carefully husband those 10 shots through the day, missing shot after shot because it's best to wait 'cos you only have the few shots. Then you come home and you still have 10 shots left on the roll. I've done that once or twice. It's such a PITA.

eas

my worries are less about photography hardware failure & more about basic practicalities of wedding photography - similar to STG.

1) Double booking a date / forgetting to update calender.
2) Getting into an accident / car failure en route to wedding
3) Getting lost between venues (en route to church specifically)
4) Damaging dress / jewelery / shoes during morning shoot
5) Above all I worry about how the bride reacts to the photos after she she's them.;)

NORTH1

This talk of currupt cards is begining to frighten me......they currupt?!?

Not that I'd be taking anything that would cost money.

PaulieC

bernard0368 wrote: »

unknowingly photographing an area outside Shanghai

how does one unknowingly photograph something ?

DaireQuinlan

cambo_gueno wrote: »

how does one unknowingly photograph something ?

http://www.theblindphotographer.com/main.asp?CL=ENG

arguments to the contrary notwithstanding ...

stabo

AnimalRights wrote: »

I like upgrading gadgets I am very happy with to a better version, basically I want the 7D AF in the 5D mk III.

I enjoyed going from the apple I-phone 3g to 3gs... And yes there were important differences.

Thats fair enough,im probaly a little bit jealous as i still have the 450D around the same time you got yours.

smelltheglove

eas wrote: »

my worries are less about photography hardware failure & more about basic practicalities of wedding photography - similar to STG.

1) Double booking a date / forgetting to update calender.
2) Getting into an accident / car failure en route to wedding
3) Getting lost between venues (en route to church specifically)
4) Damaging dress / jewelery / shoes during morning shoot
5) Above all I worry about how the bride reacts to the photos after she she's them.;)

I worry about all of those!

I double booked a pre wedding meeting once, they still booked me, that was actually the wedding I mentioned when my nanny died. I almost got lost on the way to the reception, when I ended up on a back road on the way to Carlow I realised the hubbie had put the sat av on the scenic route. Luckily the limo took a wrong turn so I still got there before the couple!

bernard0368

cambo_gueno wrote: »

how does one unknowingly photograph something ?

It was a small catholic church in poor area just outside Shangai. Which was subject to Government restrictions. While I thought this was a great area for a shoot. Little did I know that the powers that be did not want outsiders in the area. The whole place was just above a shanty area where economic refugees moved to looking for work in Shanghai.
The supplier I was meeting got in trouble too for letting me go to the area as well.

AnimalRights

stabo wrote: »

Thats fair enough,im probaly a little bit jealous as i still have the 450D around the same time you got yours.

The 450D at the time for me was my best Camera up to that date and I used it at some inportant festivals, didn't let me down but alas I went to FF and a bigger camera and while some people say "no too big" they really are easier to grip with and focus better, I mean when I use my mates 450D now I struggle to hold it right.

Blazer

Seeing a fantastic opportunity for a picture and then realizing you left your camera at home as you thought you wouldn't be needing it. :mad:

Ricky91t

Missing a 200 f/1.8, 300 f/2.8, 400 f/2.8 all for €400.. Yes that happened to all of us here bar 2...

trad

FBD Milk Rás early 90's one of thte press photographers riding pillion on a marshals motorbike dropped his camera at high speed. Only piece recovered intact was a battery cover.

Best photo I ever missed was coming off the cliff walk into Greystones on a brilliant sunny day and the wife says " look, there are 2 elephants in having a swim".

Fionn

worst disaster thats happened me, to date, was getting my Canon G10 stolen from the car in my driveway!!! about 2 weeks ago :mad: really miss a small handy pocketable camera - saving for replacement

I know of one local full-time photographer who lost the complete shots of a wedding some years ago - bad cards i think (lesson learned there) also know of a family who travelled to Scotland someplace to attend daughters Graduation only to be informed later that none of the grad photographs came out (like for the whole class!) when i go out to shoot anything these days I always think about those things and as BF said, use the belt & braces approach!

Oh! and a minor nightmare where I shot a club event at a ridiculous high high ISO - This was after a charity event held in a pub the night before (large amounts of drink and photography don't mix too well )

Borderfox

Just as we were talking about corrupt cards, this is my procedure before any event.

Get all cards together
Make sure there are no images left on cards if there is put them in a folder to check for duplicates on the external HD
Format all cards in camera ready for event

jpb1974

I hate loosing things and not knowing where I lost them... that bugs the sheet out of me.

Getting robbed is a sickly feeling.

I've done the get up at 5am and drive to the beach only to leave the battery at home charging. Fortunately it was a sheet sunrise so I was quite content to go home and get back in bed.

Don't fix before you dev... unless you want a roll of portraits of the invisible man.

Never go out landscaping without some toilet roll in your bag, doc leafs aren't as affective as many people make out

Rangefinders and Lens caps... that's an easy one to get wrong... did it on me Mamiya 7II... ouch.

Check the petrol in your car too... been there.

DaireQuinlan

jpb1974 wrote: »

Don't fix before you dev...

QFT