lars_bergquist Posted July 13, 2012 Share #1  Posted July 13, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) On Monday last week, I fell down a stone staircase in Italy and landed on a very hard and rough Tuscan stone floor. Around my neck hung my M9, in a Luigi Crescenzi halfcase (very suitable, indeed) and the current 35mm Summilux ASPH. The camera landed first. I followed, touching down with both my knees and both hands.  I froze. The people who came scurrying to help did probably think I was stunned. But my first thought was not 'am I hurt?' but 'have I just smashed Leica equipment for about 90,000 Swedish Crowns?'  Total results proved to be two scraped knees, an overly strained left shoulder (that absorbed the main impact on landing) and a c. 8mm bruise on the front edge of the lens hood; not even the black finish was broken through. Everything was in perfect working order, which was proved by the fact that I returned home after five days with several hundred pictures, 99% of them perfectly well focused and exposed under very demanding conditions. A Band-Aid on one knee did the rest. To quote one old Leica slogan: "They don't make them like that anymore. Except Leica – they still make them like that, but better." Maybe that goes for old men from the Age Before Most Anything, too.  My M9 will wear that impact mark like a trophy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted July 13, 2012 Posted July 13, 2012 Hi lars_bergquist, Take a look here Falling Down. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
wda Posted July 13, 2012 Share #2 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Sorry to hear your disturbing news, Lars. But a happy ending. Well Done Lars! Well Done Leica! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IWC Doppel Posted July 13, 2012 Share #3 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Very glad your both relatively unscathed ! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
spylaw4 Posted July 13, 2012 Share #4 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Luck and resilience! Glad both you and camera still work! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Hiles Posted July 13, 2012 Share #5 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Interesting story - glad you are OK. Leicas from the old-ish days were known to be as tough as old boards. I have sometimes wondered about now, what with all the electronics inside. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
roguewave Posted July 13, 2012 Share #6 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Lars, glad to hear that you didn't sustain any serious injuries. Don't press your luck. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMacD Posted July 13, 2012 Share #7 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) They still make them very tough. In 2 falls with digital M cameras, only once was even the rangefinder knocked out of alignment. Not so a Canon EOS 1Ds. Not so my shoulder. I once dropped a 21mm on a tile floor and there was no damage. Different story with a EOS zoom, a drop of 18" cracked the lens glass. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnbuckley Posted July 13, 2012 Share #8 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Lars - take care of that shoulder! The camera will take care of itself. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Messsucherkamera Posted July 13, 2012 Share #9 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Sounds like you had a painful fall - I'm glad you weren't more seriously injured. Â Many bitch about the price of Leica cameras and lenses. In the past, I have been guilty on occasion, too. But this incident proves out the old adage "You get what you pay for." Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
farnz Posted July 13, 2012 Share #10 Â Posted July 13, 2012 Very glad that you survived intact, Lars. Â Did the Tuscan stone floor sustain any damage from shoulder or knee? Â Pete. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Geschlecht Posted July 14, 2012 Share #11 Â Posted July 14, 2012 Hello Lars, Â It's good you are OK. Â Best Regards, Â Michael Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalArts 99 Posted July 14, 2012 Share #12 Â Posted July 14, 2012 You could have really done some damage to yourself. I'm glad to hear you weren't seriously injured. Â Watching the Tour de France this past week I cringe every time I see a rider hit the hard pavement. Talk about scrapes. Ouch. Â I hope you recuperate quickly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AB007 Posted July 14, 2012 Share #13 Â Posted July 14, 2012 Glad to know you didn't get hurt badly and you & your Leicas are A-OK. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rramesh Posted July 14, 2012 Share #14 Â Posted July 14, 2012 Hi Lars. It's a good thing you are OK. Otherwise you might have been sent to Solms for a check-up. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Allsopp Posted July 14, 2012 Share #15 Â Posted July 14, 2012 Glad you all survived! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted July 14, 2012 Share #16 Â Posted July 14, 2012 Did you have to travel to Solms to have that Band-aid put on your knee? How long did it take? What did it cost? Â I know that feeling. Glad you both escaped relatively well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
farnz Posted July 14, 2012 Share #17 Â Posted July 14, 2012 Did you have to travel to Solms to have that Band-aid put on your knee? .... Jaap, I believe that's only necessary when the knee wound is a red dot. Â Â Pete. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lars_bergquist Posted July 14, 2012 Author Share #18  Posted July 14, 2012 Thanks, folks. What I was really worried about initially was the lens and the rangefinder – but both are fine. Maybe not exclusively because of robust Leica construction but because the old fart still has some of his close combat reflexes available.  The Tuscan stone floor sustained no damage. The party had hired a refurbished old water mill and these places are usually quite sturdy. The shoulder muscles were back to normal after a couple of days, and my legs and shins are already so scarred after a wild lifetime that a couple of scars more make little difference.  We had gathered to see my son-in-law Stefan into his second half-century. Below is the semicentennarian himself in a characteristic pose. This was taken on an open terrace at night, lighted by two low energy lamps hanging from the roof beams. The v.2 35mm Summilux ASPH wide open, ISO 800, at 1/16. So yes, everything does work OK.  What followed is a different story. I turned out to have brought a gastro-enteritis along from Stockholm (!). I barely managed to keep upright but I did document five days of family fun by sheer will power. Focusing and exposure under critical conditions remained at a hit percentage of over 95%. But a radar failure in Munich threw the air traffic of continental Europe into complete confusion and changed one morning's quick hop from Florence to Stockholm into a three day nightmare, Friday to Sunday. On Monday morning I was admitted to hospital because of dehydration and exhaustion and I spent two days and nights receiving infusions – I had lost 5kgs during the week. I don't recommend the method. But now I'm fine again, thank you. Do they still make them that way?  The old man from the Hard Times Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/183591-falling-down/?do=findComment&comment=2062319'>More sharing options...
Manolo Laguillo Posted July 14, 2012 Share #19 Â Posted July 14, 2012 Stairs are certainly dangerous, more than what people think. Very good to hear you are ok, Lars! Cheers, Manolo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Blaster Posted July 14, 2012 Share #20 Â Posted July 14, 2012 Lars, Â As far as I am concerned, everything is secondary to the fact that you suffered no lasting injury. I'm so glad you're OK. Â Best wishes, Â John S. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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