My telescope mount failed mid-shoot at Joshua Tree last month

I was all set up for a 4-hour Milky Way timelapse and the motor just died 20 minutes in. Had to pack up and sit in the dark for 3 hours watching other people get shots - anyone else have gear crap out at the worst possible time?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_robin16d ago

Ugh "motor just died 20 minutes in" is the exact kind of nightmare that keeps me up at night. Had my tripod leg collapse right during a meteor shower shoot last August at a dark site two hours from home. The whole rig just tipped over slowly like a dying tree. My camera hit the dirt, lens scratched, and I spent the rest of the night trying to clean dust off the sensor with a microfiber cloth and my breath. Still makes me cringe thinking about how much that little scratch cost me. Did you at least get any usable frames from those first 20 minutes?

xena_taylor6416d agoTop Commenter

Those first 20 minutes actually came out okay, just enough to remind me what I was missing for the next 3 hours. I mean, I sat there watching some guy's $50 tripod hold steady while my fancy mount turned into a paperweight. Maybe it's just me but I feel like universe saves its worst gear failures for the nights with the clearest skies.

eric_wright775h ago

The universe saves its worst gear failures for the nights with the clearest skies" - man, that really hits home. I swear it's like a LAW of nature or something. It's the same with everything too, not just cameras. My car battery always dies on the coldest morning of the year, and my phone always runs out of battery right when I need GPS the most. It's like life is designed to test you at your breaking point, so you can either get mad or just laugh and pack up your telescope.