I WAS ROBBED!

[Brian C. Miller]

I purchased a cheap $100 gun safe at a local hardware store. It's not the best that can be had, but its tall enough to store long guns in it, and lots of room for camera gear. It can be bolted down. Stuff can be kept dry with chemical driers made for closets.

Never been robbed, but went through three fires, and had one psychopath show up at my front door.

[Bruce Wehman]

Andrew, my condolences: I know how you feel. The first time we were broken into, they got everything of value that could be easily carried. The cop that investigated suggested that for small stuff like camera gear all you have to do is hide it. It seems that crooks don’t have a lot of time to do much searching. The second time we were robbed they got everything except the camera and lighting gear which was stashed behind some ratty plywood leaning against a wall in the basement – the last place anyone would look for things of value. With that lesson learned, my present house has a false wall, behind which go all valuables, whenever the house is unoccupied for any length of time.

[tim atherton]

errr - yoy might not want to advertise that last one Bruce....

[Bruce Wehman]

That’s all right. I left out the bamboo spikes.

[Eric Rose]

Andrew I have emailed you contact info for the major camera stores in Calgary. Sent to a canada.com address.

[Kerik Kouklis]

"This cat was 1/2 Lynx and was the size of a medium dog."
I gotta get me one of those! But, seriously, Andrew, sorry about your loss. I had a bunch of gear stolen out of the trunk of my car in '97. A beautiful Korona 7x17 camera, holders, classic lenses, etc. Yes, I had insurance on all but a few things that I had purchased since the last time I submitted my equipment list to my insurance company (keep those lists up to date if you buy/sell frequently!) I had serial numbers for everything, contacted local pawn shops, listed the gear on the website for stolen gear, watched eBay like a hawk, etc. Never got any of it back. Even though I recovered some $$ from my insurance company, the old, classic gear is difficult to replace. It's not like I can call B&H and order a mint condition 14" Dagor mounted in a Compur Electronic Shutter. But, after the anger and pain subsides, you move on.

[domenico Foschi]

Andrew, I feel so bad for you at this moment, and outraged at the fact that some scum, might wipe out your hard earned tools of expression in moments....
I was just talking to my girlfriend this morning how much I value this comeraderie. I hope you will replace soon your gear with a lottery ticket.
Bastards!!

[Doug Dolde]

I am not going to add to all the sympathy but I recently saw some quite large gun safes at Wal Mart for $350.

[Robert McBride]

You know, this raises an interesting issue. If the insurance pays a fair amount for the equipment, would you stay with traditional photography or go digital? This could be a difficult choice for any of the readers of this news group.

I’m not trying to be flippant, but just wanted to brighten a bummer of a situation. If lost as much gear as that I might consider Rollei's X-Act2 or something like it as a new beginning.

RM

[robert_4927]

RM.... You wouldn't even ask that question of a guy who just lost a Canham 8x10 if you understood the passion for film and alternative processes. So please don't turn this man's misfortune into a digital vs. film debate. He has listed that he lost a densitometer. My guess is that this means he is developing negatives to a certain density range for alternative processes like pt/pd or azo. So to try and promote digital will probably fall on deaf ears. His new beginning might just be a new Ebony 8x10 or something comparable. " This could be a difficult choice for any of the readers of this news group".....It would take me about a half of second to decide. Does that sound difficult?