FTZ the weak link? And then this happened....!

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janzin

janzin

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So I'm excitedly in India photographing a tiger with two cubs and we are stationary, shooting with the Z8+ 100-400Z; and the Z9+FTZ + 500PF is on the seat and next thing I know we are moving without warning and BANG the Z9 hits the floor and I pick it up in two pieces--camera and lens :cry:

We are just three days into the trip and I am frantic, thinking the lens mount is destroyed but wait!--its "only" the FTZ which has split completely in half, one half still attached to the Z9 and one half to the lens! Both camera and lens are fine!!

If you ever wondered what the inside of an FTZ looks like :LOL:

IMG_2695-1.jpg


(Well that is not worth fixing, it went right in the trash.)

I am relieved BUT there is one problem, I did not bring a spare FTZ so I will not be able to use my 500PF the remainder of the trip which is a bit of a disappointment, but at least I have the 100-400 and the 1.4TC. Still....I am so bummed. Amazingly though, an incredibly generous Nikon photographer who was also staying at our lodge and who we'd gotten friendly with offered to lend me his FTZ--which he swore he didn't need--for the remainder of our trip, I just had to ship it back to him (in Italy!) after the trip. Whew, I was saved (reminder to always bring redundancy and usually I do but was really trying to pare down weight on this trip.) Another reminder, never leave your gear loose in a safari vehicle but I was caught up in the heat of the moment...lesson learned and hopefully remembered.

Anyway I have to think that the FTZ actually SAVED my gear because if it hadn't been on, it's likely the lens would have snapped off at the mount. Lens and camera worked fine the rest of the trip with the borrowed FTZ , WHEW.
 
As a rule we are a friendly bunch, but he went above and beyond. Maybe a gift card for a dinner out included in the return package?
 
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bleirer said:
As a rule we are a friendly bunch, but he went above and beyond. Maybe a gift card for a dinner out included in the return package?
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Yes this guy was amazingly generous, I must have asked him 10 times "are you sure you won't need it?" I've tried to think of something I could do or include in the package to repay him; but he lives in Rome so something like a gift card would be difficult. Meantime he still hasn't sent me his address to return it to him!
 
janzin said:
Yes this guy was amazingly generous, I must have asked him 10 times "are you sure you won't need it?" I've tried to think of something I could do or include in the package to repay him; but he lives in Rome so something like a gift card would be difficult. Meantime he still hasn't sent me his address to return it to him!
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I'd think Visa gift cards can be spent anywhere?
 
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Must have been some kind of severe impact to make it snap like that? Especially if you think it would have caused the lens mount itself to break if the FTZ was not there?
 
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MrFotoFool said:
Must have been some kind of severe impact to make it snap like that? Especially if you think it would have caused the lens mount itself to break if the FTZ was not there?
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I guess...we must have bounced over an obstacle, it happened so fast, all I heard was the thud and saw it lying on the floor! I didn't even realize it was in two pieces until I picked it up and they camera and lens were no longer attached.
 
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