Poll of forgetfulness — items lost, dropped, or left behind

[Heroique]

Yesterday after shooting, I left behind my tripod. My beautiful & beloved Ries J-600 tripod.

And its J-250 head.

I was alone, parked next to a mountain road. As I prepared to leave, I stood the tripod on the passenger side of my car – “blocking” it from my view as I finished packing items on the driver’s side. Out of sight, out of mind. About 20 miles down the twisting-turning gravel road, something just didn’t feel right. I looked on the back seats where I normally keep the tripod, and – well, perhaps “DREAD” describes the moment best.

But no tragic finale here. When I returned, there it was! Standing proud and tall. (And yes, I did embrace it & apologize.) Good thing it’s a lonely mountain road. It stood all-alone for 90 minutes or so. I think I’ll put a name/address/phone/email label on it.

What did you leave behind? Or drop along the way? Any tips for absent-minded people like me?

[lenser]

Hasselblad A12 back loaded with exposed wedding film at a church 450 miles away from home base. Got it back, but the pastor up there was far less than "Christian" in trying to get it returned. He didn't even want to trouble himself to walk across the hall from his office into the sanctuary to look for it (I told him exactly where I had left it) and then said it wasn't worth his time to package and mail it even after I asked him to add what ever he felt his time was worth to the cost of postage. I hope his attitude received a big adjustment at the gates of the hereafter.

[Heroique]

(Nice story, Lenser. And I think St. Peter took note.)

Well, here’s the poll that didn’t “take.” I don’t think I can use “edit” to try adding the poll again – but this is what the options looked like. I bet option #3 would have attracted the most votes. Oh well, your stories & lessons should still be fun to read. And sharing them just might ease the pain!

“What did you lose, drop or leave behind?”

1) Camera (yes, we want to hear more about this one)
2) Lens
3) Lens caps/lens wraps
4) Lens shade
5) Filters/filter accessories
6) Shutter release cable
7) Light meter
8) Loupe
9) Tripod/tripod leg(s)/tripod head
10) Film holder/film (maybe this one would hurt the most)
11) Darkcloth
12) Unrelated items (wallet, keys, hat, jacket, compass, etc.)
13) “Heck, I’ve walked away & forgotten about my whole set-up!”
14) “The only thing I’ve ever left behind are footprints.”
15) Other (please share!)

[Eric James]

I left a Contax T3 and a Canon G10 on the shore of Lake Tahoe. I was shooting the full moon rise (-1 day) with my 4x5 and once the sun was down I forgot that I had taken the T3/G10 to the shore. I also lost a great shot at the same location because I arrived too late to manage an interesting composition.

[Gudmundur Ingolfsson]

I have to tell a funny story. Some ten years ago I was working in a small museum and I was quite warm with my winter jacked on , so I decided to hang it in a small cabinet I had seen around. When I opened that cabinet I found a hook for my jacked but also an 8x10" holder in a brand new condition but with the black side of the dark slides turned outwards so I decided it would have exposed sheets in it. I told the museum director I would take care of this holder ( I thought I had won a nice 8x10 holder). Then I took it to my studio and processed the sheets that I could feel as TMAX from the corner markings. The sheets were so easy to recognize as photographs taken by a well known foreign colleague some ten years earlier for a magazine essay. He sure was surprised to get his holder and sheets (processed) so long after he had lost them.

[Heroique]

Eric – did you go back and search in the dark?

Gudmundur – What a lucky find, and a generous return. I once found a small level near a waterfall, but since it wasn’t “engraved,” I figured I could keep it – I still have it.

(BTW, I really hope there’s someone out there who will, eventually, tell us about option #13…)

[Doremus Scudder]

Oh God...

Over the years I've had a number of mishaps. Most turned out well, however.

The worst was leaving my tripod and lovely Gitzo ball head on the side of the road after shooting dunes in Death Valley. I didn't even notice till the next day when I was clear out at the Racetrack and finally noticed I was missing a tripod. Fortunately, I had a backup with me.

You would think that that would have been the end of my tripod woes, but, no, I managed to leave it behind again. This time on the Oregon Coast. I parked, "suited up" with pack and photo vest and headed off down the coast. About a mile or so into the hike, I noticed a nice scene that demanded a photograph. Lo and behold, my tripod was not with me. I have no idea how I managed to walk so far without noticing that my hands were empty (the visit to the brewery the night before couldn't possibly have had an effect on my awareness that morning...). So, I turned around, walked back to the car and found the tripod sitting there next to the passenger door. Another couple of miles and I was back to my shot, but the light had changed.... no luck.

Another time, I was driving down the coast highway. Some jerk pulled up on my tail, honking and flashing his lights. Yes, I drive slower than normal traffic when looking for likely photo opportunities, but this guy was really being annoying. I sped up a bit, but he persisted. Finally, I pulled over to let him pass, but he pulled in behind me. I expected a tongue lashing for driving so slowly, but instead got my photo pack back (with camera and lenses intact), which I had left sitting on top of my car when I hopped in and took off. Boy was I thankful and boy did I feel stupid...

That's embarrassing enough for now, so I'll leave it there.

Best,

Doremus Scudder

[Steve Feldman]

Annoying story:

Packed my gear up for a night shoot of a bridge. Got to the location and parked in the dark. Pulled the tripod out of the trunk and one of the legs fell off. Crap! Found the leg on the ground in the dark. Found set screw under lots of junk in the trunk. Took 20 minutes to find. Found the screw driver I keep in the camera bag. Crap! You can't screw in a slotted screw with a phillips head driver. Started the screw with my fingernail. Went to take the photo anyway. Knew I couldn't completely extend the pod, so left it low. Set up the shot. Took out the meter. Crap! Can't see the meter in the dark. Didn't have a flashlight. So . . . I metered it anyway. Walked a block to the nearest lamp post, checked the meter reading, walked back to my camera setup. Exposure was for 2 minutes but forgot my watch. Counted off 2 minutes in my head, made 1 exposure, carried it all back to the car and went home. Next day developed the film and made a print. Came out pretty good.

Nowadays I always check the pod before I take it with me. And have 2 kinds of screwdriver and a flashlight in the camera bag. Oh, and a watch too.

A lesson well learned.

~Steve

[Preston]

Hmm? Let's see...

1. Fogot my spotmeter once.
2. Dropped a lens cap in a cravasse once. Bye, bye!
3. forgot to grab some additional quickloads and ran short, once.
4. Forgot my watch to time long exposures.
5. On more than one dawn shoot, I think I left my brain on the pillow, considering the comedy of errors that subsequently ensued!

I did find a Lee compendium shade caught on a willow branch, over on the East Side of the Sierra. I searchd around for a possible owner, but couldn't find him or her. I still have it.

[John Jarosz]

Left the case for my Leitz loupe in a rental car.

Hiking in a canyon with the 8x20, I got to my destination. It was quite cool and I was sweaty from carrying all the stuff, so I removed my vest and hat and placed it on a rock. Took the shots (which were OK) packed up and left without the vest & hat. Didn't realize it til I got home, they were gone - I couldn't take the time to go back the next day. Fortunately they weren't "official" camera equip.