Is That a Hand Grenade in Your Pocket, or are You Just Happy to See Me?

In between the general remarks, bad jokes, back-biting and (unmoderated) Increase-Your-Man-Size spam in the comments today was this gem of a cautionary tale from Jim Warren.

It was in reference the flash overheating post from November 11th, and definitely bears noting:
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Sez Jim:

Things you definitely shouldn't do with an on camera flash:

I used to use a Metz 60-series flash (needed the range) back in the old days, when I used film rather than digital.

One day I wasn't thinking, and when I reloaded I left the flash turned on and laid it down on my leg. When I closed up the camera and it triggered the autowinder, it also triggered the flash. Which burned a 1/4 inch wide blister into my thigh, through my black trousers (which through photobleaching now had a 1/4 inch gray line on the thigh).

I still have a scar.

That flash would also kill an insect dead in mid-air, or sunburn your ear if you were bouncing off the wall bahind you. I'm glad I don't use it any more.

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That Reminds Me of The Time...

... back in 1986, when Tally Democrat shooter Mark Wallheiser was covering the (oft) rain-drenched Florida - Florida State football game. The Democrat used to run incredible photo spreads following the game. So the pressure was on the photogs to produce, no matter what.

So Mark wisely took the MD-12 motor drive off of his drenched Nikon FM so he could keep shooting. Just shoved it into his front pocket in the rain, and kept going using his thumb as a winder.

That was no big handicap -- bear in mind that an MD-12 only did 3.2 frames a second, unless you overclocked it by adding two extra AA batteries wired in line. Then it would do 6 FPS, until the shutter exploded.

Not-so-wise on Mark's part: Failing to consider the stepped-up voltage of the MD-12, now wet and mere millimeters from his crotch. Which, of course, did not end well. Suffice to say that Chief Osceola was not the only person doing a war dance on the sidelines that night.


[UPDATE: Mark chimed in one his own blog (Wallheiser has a BLOG?) to show that he still managed to make a great photo. And now that I think about it, Mark may be the only photog in the western world that felt a tinge of sympathy for the failed Christmas Day Crotch Bomb Terrorist.]


Always a big game, UF/FSU. We are wibbling with excitement at the Hobby House in anticipation of Saturday. And the propaganda is already flowing liberally around the web.

I'm sure all you Florida State fans are perfectly fine people under normal circumstances. But as for this week:

Go Gators. Beat FSU.