Mario’s Note: New article by Iaio Atamion, with everything you need to know to avoid having your camera, lenses or full photographic equipment stolen.
The worst nightmare that every photographer should certainly be that his camera is stolen, a situation that gets worse if in addition to the camera the lenses are removed, and it would be scratchy in disaster if the flash was added, and the accessories . . . The photographs. .
- Unfortunately.
- You have to keep in mind that you are a very attractive target to all of other people’s friends.
- You might think that this will never affect you.
- And hopefully.
- But in case.
- You better let yourself know.
Today I come to share with you some tips and recommendations so that you can prevent such situations and protect yourself from this threat.
While it is not always possible to prevent theft, it is possible to take the necessary precautions to reduce the chances of it happening. More and more friends of other people who, knowing how expensive the photographic equipment is, have photographers as their favorite target for their antics, so be careful and apply some basic prevention rules that are necessary otherwise you will want to be the next victim.
Video: Almost imperceptible lens flight
The saying goes: You don’t know what you have until you lose it? and it is very true. It is highly unlikely that you have memorized all the serial numbers for your lenses, or that you can recite the purchase invoice number for your camera, so the first thing to do is a good complete inventory.
To do this, I recommend that you list all of your equipment on a spreadsheet or spreadsheet, including:
And any other information you consider important, both for personal check and in case you have the misfortune of having to report to the authorities for theft, you’d better have everything organized and don’t trust yourself, because if you get robbed, you won’t have them available to do so.
Once you’ve completed a complete inventory of all your equipment and accessories, you can start evaluating the possibility of purchasing insurance to protect it.
Make a quick calculation, with a camera, a pair of lenses, a flash, some filters and other accessories, your equipment will surely be valued at a few hundred dollars, in some cases it can be thousands, so take out insurance. It does not seem like a crazy idea, especially if the camera is your work tool.
Insurance generally includes coverage against theft, loss, accidents and damage, but as you begin to learn about the terms of the benefit, you’ll see some drawbacks that may even harm you. avoid taking out insurance.
Insuring a relatively easy-to-fly equipment may not be the ideal deal for insurance companies, so it is not easy to find one that offers such a service without introducing clauses that border on the ridiculous.
Some recommendations
Sometimes it is not possible to transport all the equipment at the same time, if you have covered an event or worked in a studio you will know that it is impossible to carry the material with you all the time, you use something while leaving the rest of the equipment, lenses, etc. sections momentarily until you need it How can you be sure that it will not be stolen so that you can concentrate on your task, that of taking good photos?
Motion alarms are here to help you during this difficult time. They may not have been designed for the purpose of preventing the theft of your backpack or purse, but they fulfill that purpose perfectly. All you have to do is put the sensor inside your backpack or bag and take the receiver with you, so that if someone picks it up without your permission, the alarm sounds. Fire.
Proximity alarms go further because you can integrate them into your mobile phone, the principle is the same, a sensor is placed in the bag or backpack where you keep your equipment, but unlike movement alarms, thanks to the application that you need to install on your smartphone, not only can you set the alarm, but you can also set the tolerable distance before it goes off.
With the rise of GPS technology around the world, it was only a matter of time before manufacturers launched this type of product that allows, thanks to a small locator, to track a bag, backpack or storage case of our equipment.
They are more expensive than proximity and motion alarms, as not only do you need to get one of these locators, but in order to be able to track it when needed, as with cars, you will have to pay a monthly fee to be able to do so. monitoring through any application.
One of the most recommended for its size and quality is the Pocket Finder, although you can search online stores since there are several alternatives available, if you have experience with another brand, do not hesitate to share it in the comments below.
Who didn’t name a garment or object when I was a kid so everyone knew it belonged to him?The same goes for photographic equipment, albeit in a somewhat more sophisticated way.
Companies such as STOP or Inmobilize offer labels that not only identify objects with small labels with barcodes or QR codes that are difficult to detect and remove, but also, if someone buys equipment with such a label, when viewing online notify the buyer that the item is stolen.
There are also small chips on the market called RFIDs that can identify tagged objects from several meters away using a scanner. These are often used inadvertently by department stores to protect expensive items. For the normal user, they can be too elegant, but it never hurts to know what other options you have available in case you need them in the future.
Almost every item you buy comes with a recommendation to register on the manufacturer’s website for the latest news, updates, and benefits, but few actually take the time to make this invitation effective.
Recording doesn’t hurt and can save you more than a headache in the future, especially if you’re unlucky enough to have your camera or lenses stolen. If you haven’t taken the time to inventory that I recommended earlier, but you’ve registered your camera on the manufacturer’s website, you’ll be able to access all the data you need there so you can file a report with the police.
But what if I told you that if you take the time to record your photographic material on the Internet, your chances of recovering it in case of theft will increase considerably? Would you take the time to do it?
So far, I have recommended a few steps to reduce the chances of being the victim of a strange friend, but below I will explain how, once you have been the victim of a theft, you can still hope to get your material back.
As I have told you before, taking the time to register your products online can help you recover them, this is possible thanks to some sites dedicated to tracking all the photographs that circulate on the Internet and, after comparing them with their files, to detect if they were taken with a computer reported stolen or not.
How does it work?
You may not know it, but every time you take a photo with your digital camera, the data of the camera, lens, focal length, shutter speed, etc. are recorded. in each one of them. All this data is called EXIF, and it is not only useful to know in what technical conditions the photographs were taken, but also, thanks to sites like Stolen Camera Finder, it is very useful to see if the camera and the lens with which the photo was taken was legally acquired or not.
Here are the 3 most recognized web applications to track:
And finally, I leave you a series of tips that, although they do not prevent a theft 100%, will help you reduce the chances of this happening to you:
With this article I don’t mean to scare you into taking pictures much less, I’m just trying to give you a number of recommendations so you can do it more carefully. After all, the camera is a photographer’s great love.