Thanks St Patrick but Jagger was right!

This is what happened to me on St Patrick’s day weekend when I attempted to shoot a new video for the channel.

I knew I needed to do something for St Patrick’s day and given that for the past two years I have failed to find a model available for that day, I was really eager to get someone which I did. Jacquie, a local model, came with me to Carlton Hill which is a dramatic hill in the centre of Edinburgh. I thought this was going to be a great location for a video as it offers an overview of the famous Princess Street and Waverley train station.

I knew the day was not going to be the sunniest day of the week, but I had some hope the sun would pierce though just enough, so I could do a video on the natural light and the use of a reflector. I also thought the wind on Carlton Hill would be less strong than on the Arthur Seat, the other famous hill in the city centre.

One of the Tom Migot Photography Club had challenged me to be a bit sillier than usual in my video, so I had decided to paint my face in the Scottish colours despite the obvious “Irishness” of St Patrick’s day.

Once I had set up the gear, and after a couple of takes of the English version of the episode introduction, a mighty gust blew to the ground, my heavy duty Manfrotto tripod which my Canon 60D was mounted on. The camera remained attached to the tripod’s head, but the right rear corner got a dent which pushed the zoom button inside is no longer functional. About the Sigma 10-20mm F3.5 EX DC HSM lens, it got shattered under the impact.

On Monday morning I called my insurance who asked me to bring it to a camera store to get an estimate for the two gears. It is rather obvious the lens is beyond repair and I will be getting a new one. In regards to the 60D, that is another matter. It all depends on whether the replacement of the top part of the camera body can be changed and whether that is cheaper than buying a new camera body. It is worth noting the Canon 60D is no longer for sale so we would only find a Canon 70D.

So with some luck, i may end up with an upgrade. My insurance confirmed I would have a £150 excess to pay and I had not planned on spending that cash like that. I hope this won;t affect my insurance premium next year.

I will let you know what the expert’s verdict is and what I end up with.