store photo gear in trunk?

BB
Posted By
Barbara_Brundage
May 8, 2004
Views
208
Replies
9
Status
Closed
Hi, all. I was over at Ding Darling wildlife refuge the other day and I was quite surprised by something I saw there. Luckily for me the car ahead of me on the drive through had two obviously professional photogs in it. You never saw such gear as those guys had.

It was great for me because I could be sure that whenever they stopped and got out there was something interesting hiding in the mangroves, but it was also frustrating because about 70% of the time it was something that was a piece of cake with their monster telephotos but that would have looked like a photo from an instamatic if I had tried with my little 200 mm lens.

Anyway, here’s my question: I was surprised, astounded really, that they had a trunk full not only of tripods and hoods and stuff, but also lenses and extra bodies (big honking Nikon pro model bodies and drives for the most part). In FL in the afternoon sun. Can you do that and expect your gear to live to tell the tale?
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KL
Kenneth_Liffmann
May 8, 2004
Heat and dust are enemies of electronics. They probably depreciate their equipment rapidly. Ken
JF
Jodi_Frye
May 8, 2004
Barb, …I had to laugh thinking bout this…I was wondering since they were ‘pros’ and could ‘afford’ all that gear…maybe they got their trunk rigged with an AC system ;)….kind of like how Tammy Fay Baker had an AC in her dog house.
BB
Barbara_Brundage
May 8, 2004
Hi, Jodi. Well, it was a Beamer roadster, so maybeÂ…
LK
Leen_Koper
May 8, 2004
Barbara, at first, don’t be impressed by pro equipment. Often many people have lots of money and extremely little talent so they think expensive equipment can compensate for the lack of skills. Most professional cameras and lenses are sold to amateurs; just only selling to professionals would make these cameras extremely expensive.
It is just like cars, people buy cars that can drive over 120 Mph just only to do their shopping. Many people, especially men buy expensive stuff to show "mine is bigger than yours".
Just like lots women prefer to undergo expensive and painful cosmetic surgery to look sexually attractive and nevertheless still have a headache when the sun says goodbye.

My gear is usually unprotected in the trunk of my car too when I’m on the job and I know it is more expensive than the car when I bought it new. I drive a little more careful, but until now -in 30 years- it hasnot suffered visibly.

Hoe often does one really need expensive long telephotolenses? Just only a little calculation will show you the cost of this gear per image. Probably the equivalent of a good meal in a nice restaurant. I prefer the restaurant.

Leen
BB
Barbara_Brundage
May 8, 2004
Hi, Leen.

I drive a little more careful, but until now -in 30 years- it hasnot suffered visibly.

I was thinking more of the fact that it’s powerfully hot in a car trunk in FL this time of year. Heck, it’s pretty darn hot in the passenger compartment, too, if the car’s been parked more than five minutes.
CS
Chuck_Snyder
May 8, 2004
Barbara, as more plastics are used in cameras, the sensitivity to heat goes up. Can you image what melting and distorting the body of your camera might do to the quality of its photos? Not to mention appearance…..!
LK
Leen_Koper
May 8, 2004
Barbara, usually it is not in the car when park. Then I use it. Although, since I went digital I don’t have to care about film getting too warm. Next to that, you will be surprised how much a film can take, especially the consumer films.

Chuck, in the 28 years I have been in retail, I have never seen or heard about a melted camera. Nevertheless, if it just only became a soft material, one could shape the body to ones own hand. 😉

Leen
PD
Pete_D
May 10, 2004
Barbara,

I believe that film would suffer more consequences of our heat down here. For Myself, I have a small insulated camera bag (soft sided) that holds camera, two lenses, and other smaller items like film, filters, and hoods. When I take the camera out of the bag it never seems to be very hot.

Wish I had known you were going to Darling, I would have driven down there:-)

That place always seems to have plenty of 1000mm lenses around as well as tripods that are constructed almost as strong as the lighthouse. A pleasant fellow let me mount my body on to one last year to shoot some spoonbills that return to the lake just before sunset (most of the time). All the photographers seem top be very cordial.

Pete
EW
Ed_Wurster
May 10, 2004
Barbara_Brundage wrote:
Anyway, here’s my question: I was surprised, astounded really, that they had a trunk full not only of tripods and hoods and stuff, but also lenses and extra bodies (big honking Nikon pro model bodies and drives for the most part). In FL in the afternoon sun. Can you do that and expect your gear to live to tell the tale?

You can look up the operating environment specs for the Nikon pro gear. Probably goes beyond a consumer camera.

My Olympus C-750 specifications are 32F to 104F for operation, and -4F to 140F for storage.

I do not store any electronic gear in my car for long periods, as the temperature could easily hit the high number for storage. If the camera is moving, and a/c is on, there is less of a problem.

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