Hong Kong Crime Report

[Don Ellis]

The Overview
___________________________________

As Philip Ganderton mentioned in another post, I recently lost my G1 -- plus my G2 and my 420EX flash –- in a burglary.

Just as troublesome was the loss of all the bits and pieces -- the many UV, infrared, polarizing, neutral density and close-up filters; three Lensmate adapters; two Microdrives; a Palm; mobile phone; and two business-card cases that I only later learned were worth US$500 (gifts from Leela).
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The Burglary
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Sometime between midnight and 5am on the morning of 25 June 2003, a fairly agile and very quiet burglar slithered through the window in our en suite bathroom (partially shown below), walked to the foot of the bed where we were sleeping, opened Leela's large bag (which looks a lot like my camera bag) and spread everything out on the sheepskin rug before deciding on cash only.

http://www.kleptography.com/dl/fm/shower_framed640.jpg

Then he picked up the cordless phone (probably thinking it was a mobile phone -- ha, ha!) about a foot from my head before heading for my office. There he found all my camera gear neatly packaged in an attractive Domke bag (black, to blend with the night) and took that along with all my cash and my subway card for that perfect getaway.

Surprisingly, he missed Leela's G2 sitting just above her bag, as well as the contents of an enameled turtle in my office -- a 60-year-old silver bracelet, my 37-year-old Rolex, and my thinner-than-a-communion-wafer Ole Matheson watch -- which was sitting an inch from where he placed my empty wallet.

So we believe the raid was targeted on the cameras –- it’s a belief, however, that’s not aiding in their recovery.

He then tiptoed (or clumped, who knows? -- I was asleep) down the stairs and walked out through the patio doors. I suppose we were lucky. Quite often these guys work in teams and wake people up, tie them up, and force ATM code numbers and safe combinations out of them at knifepoint.

All told the Domke bag and its contents were worth US$4600.

One moderately satisfying thought is that the G1 was modified to shoot handheld infrared -- without a hot mirror, it should taken suitably horrible color shots.
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The Update
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A month after the burglary I bought what may be the last new G1 in Hong Kong, possibly the world -- US$255 with a year’s warranty (in Hong Kong, anyway). I shot half a dozen pictures to make sure it worked and on July 28th I shipped it off for modification.

So this is the only color photo you’ll ever see from that G1... which, after taking a second look, is the good news. :p

http://www.kleptography.com/dl/fm/ceiling_lamp640.jpg

While I’m waiting for its return, I’m buying the usual bits –- Lensmate adapter, infrared and close-up filters -– so I’ll at least be back in the infrared business. I often said that if I had to choose between color and infrared, I’d go for infrared. I guess I was right -- it's certainly the first capability that I'm replacing.

Although Leela has been kind enough to lend me her G2 for color shots, it’s not the same as having your own camera, so I’ll specialize in infrared for awhile.

The next update to this story will likely be accompanied by infrared photos.

Cheers,

Don

[phuocle]

Don, that totally sucks!

Where are you in HK? I've been there many times for work and have stayed in both Central and Kowloon. For such a large, densely populated city, I felt perfectly safe.

From your tale, I'm going to have to be careful in HK from now on. I hope that you have insurance and can recover at least some of the monetary loss, although the invasion of privacy feeling will take a while to diminish.

[Don Ellis]

phuocle wrote:
Don, that totally sucks!

Not a lot of disagreement there... the biggest problems are finding a G1, sending it to the states for modification, and replacing some fairly expensive filters.


Where are you in HK? I've been there many times for work and have stayed in both Central and Kowloon. For such a large, densely populated city, I felt perfectly safe.
Hong Kong is one of the safest cities in the world, but we do have our share of burglaries. At least most of the crimes are non-violent and we're not allowed to carry guns -- still pretty rare in robberies and homicides.

We're out in the country -- Clear Water Bay -- in a local village. The major concern out here is illegal immigrants from the mainland, robbing for money and stealing for food. That's one of the reasons most people have dogs.

From your tale, I'm going to have to be careful in HK from now on. I hope that you have insurance and can recover at least some of the monetary loss, although the invasion of privacy feeling will take a while to diminish.
I wouldn't worry. I've been here for 18 years and Leela's been here for 22 -- this is the first time for both of us.

Thanks for your concern.

On another subject, I noticed that you mentioned having a problem accessing my website the other day. You caught me completely redoing the large photos -- I went through every one of them and recompressed them to make them faster to download. I realized that my focus on image quality was ballooning the images too much.

So I downloaded the entire website, recompressed the photos, deleted the entire website online, and uploaded the new website. You obviously got caught in the middle of all that.

Sorry.

Don

[phuocle]

Don Ellis wrote:
On another subject, I noticed that you mentioned having a problem accessing my website the other day. You caught me completely redoing the large photos -- I went through every one of them and recompressed them to make them faster to download. I realized that my focus on image quality was ballooning the images too much.

So I downloaded the entire website, recompressed the photos, deleted the entire website online, and uploaded the new website. You obviously got caught in the middle of all that.

Sorry.

Don


Not a problem - I'll check it out again tonight.

[pappy]

Don, thank you for sharing this horrible event and sincere condolences on your loss. As you pointed out, one consolation is that no personal violence was involved (he's lucky you didn't wake up).

I look forward to seeing your 'new' infrared photographs in the near future.

regards,
peter

[rssfhs]

Poor you! I know how you must feel. My brother is a professional jazz woodwind player in Nevada and just had nearly all his instruments (saxophones, clarinets, oboes, bassooons, etc.) stolen from his apartment.

Mt other brothers' house was broken into also a few years back, but fortunately the thief was not too clever. He took his old stereo, which was probably worth $100 at the most, and left his collection of signed first edition illustrated books from the 20s and 30s, etc. which is worth tens of thousands of dollars!

Anyway, glad you weren't hurt. That's the most important thing!

Craig

[gandini]

Don:
It's wonderful to have you back posting to the Forum! I mentioned your loss of the G1 mainly because I realised the boards suffer from your absence, and every time I put the R72 filter on I think of your wonderful images. As you know, I gave my G1 to a friend thinking he might enjoy an entre to the world of digital photography. Unfortunately the camera languishes with flat battery in a cupboard somewhere, having never seen the light of day, or night. A great loss to me, as I would use it exclusively for IR photography just as you chose to do. Anyway, thems the breaks as the old saw goes.
So, many happy returns, from a big fan of all your work (that one and only color image from the G1 ain't too shabby, Don!)

cheers,

[SoCal69]

Don:

I am sorry to hear about your loss...I for one have missed the wonderful shots you regularly posted and hope that you will soon grace us with your work again.

[CyberDyneSystems]

Don

You are a true magician with a camera,.. I am so sorry about the theft.

But a tool is a tool and your talent is with you.

I hope your spirits are not to down ofter this invasion :(

[Don Ellis]

pappy wrote: (he's lucky you didn't wake up).
I'd like to think so, but then it's just a thought. Years ago a friend of mine forced me to have my horoscope read by an astrologer she swore by. Skeptical, I submitted my gender, birthday and birthplace and let him have a go without ever meeting him.

Among many other accurate things, he said that I would always be protected overseas -- in this case, I think my protection was remaining asleep. :)

I look forward to seeing your 'new' infrared photographs in the near future.
Thanks very much... I look forward to posting them.

Best regards,

Don

[Don Ellis]

rssfhs wrote:
Poor you! I know how you must feel. My brother is a professional jazz woodwind player in Nevada and just had nearly all his instruments (saxophones, clarinets, oboes, bassooons, etc.) stolen from his apartment.
Hi Craig,

What an incredible loss... it was as bold as my burglary in its own way. My guy had to crawl through a tiny window in an inhabited house but once he was in I had everything neatly packed in a convenient carrybag for him.

Your brother's theft was more like house-moving.

Anyway, glad you weren't hurt. That's the most important thing!
Leela's the most important thing but I do tend to rate myself #2. :)

Thanks for the thought. Hope your brother is making music again.

Don

[Don Ellis]

socal69 wrote: I am sorry to hear about your loss...I for one have missed the wonderful shots you regularly posted and hope that you will soon grace us with your work again.
I think I should have posted sooner... it's easy to forget how many friends you have here. Being a Manly Guy, however, I was in seclusion for the first month. I'm better now. :)

On a more scientific note, it's interesting to see my priorities in replacing things and I'll keep you posted on the additions.

Thanks for your kind words, Chuck.

Don

[Don Ellis]

CyberDyneSystems wrote: You are a true magician with a camera,.. I am so sorry about the theft.

But a tool is a tool and your talent is with you.

I hope your spirits are not to down ofter this invasion :(
Very kind of you to put it that way, thank you.

I was a little down -- and occasionally amazed -- for about a month (on an objective level, you've got to give somebody credit for talent and nerve). Now that a little time has passed and I've purchased a new G1, I'm feeling much brighter. I've always liked the industrial look and feel of that black-and-gray brick and it's good to own one again.

I look forward to getting it back -- might even go see if I can find me some wild cows. :)

Cheers,

Don

[Don Ellis]

gandini wrote: Don: It's wonderful to have you back posting to the Forum!
Hi Philip,

It's nice to be back from the Land of the Unamused.

I mentioned your loss of the G1 mainly because I realised the boards suffer from your absence, and every time I put the R72 filter on I think of your wonderful images.
As always, too kind... but much appreciated. Thank you.

As you know, I gave my G1 to a friend thinking he might enjoy an entre to the world of digital photography. Unfortunately the camera languishes with flat battery in a cupboard somewhere, having never seen the light of day, or night. A great loss to me, as I would use it exclusively for IR photography just as you chose to do. Anyway, thems the breaks as the old saw goes.
I've often thought of your generous nature and that gift and had hoped it was being used by someone who appreciated both. How to say this?... you can't ask for it back, eh? Maybe buy him a film camera and trade? Doesn't sound like it but if you could plead "out-of-production" and "scientific need"...

I think I told you that we bought Leela a G1 the day before the G2 was announced. So we gave her G1 to her daughter in London. What I may not have mentioned is that we have been rewarded ever since with individual pictures and wonderful collages. It was the classic "gift that keeps on giving."

Of course if I hadn't been able to find a G1, I might have bought a G2 and offered to trade her. :)

So, many happy returns, from a big fan of all your work (that one and only color image from the G1 ain't too shabby, Don!)
Thank you, as always... it's nice to be back.

Cheers,

Don

[Leighow]

DON

I would say tha it is a god thing you are a deep sleeper !

A neighbour was burgularized a few years back while the house was empty for the evening. The only sign of activity was a beside dish and for -- minus a piece of apple pie. Later checks for silverware stashed between garments in the basement revealed that it was gone too!

IR is quite lovely. But don't ignore color.

Nature didn't, and your portraits and nightscapes, et al require same !



HOWIE

[Don Ellis]

Leighow wrote:IR is quite lovely. But don't ignore color.

Nature didn't, and your portraits and nightscapes, et al require same !

Hi Howie,

Thanks for the thoughts... this guy wandered in last night to remind me about color. Fortunately, Leela's G2 is still close at hand and she's quite generous about sharing it.

Cheers,

Don

http://www.kleptography.com/dl/fm/mantis_black_framed640.jpg

[marie]

so very , sorry about what happened don
and what happened to craigs brother also.

we are all very very glad that no one was hurt
not one of you could ever be replaced.

the pictures here are very nice .
why could the burglar not have been a collector of these fellows instead ?
(he was happier with what he got, says you)

best wishes and thoughts to you all,

take care
marie

[new girl on the bloc]

Don,

What a tale. My condolonces for the loss of something so close to you, something that you loved. I know that I would be very hurt if I lost my G3. It is like my second pair of eyes ;)

Your devotion to IR makes me want to explore it that much more, though it sounds like the G3 is not great for that although Susan Doel at Lensmate assures me that it can be done with the R72 filter. ?

[Don Ellis]

new girl on the bloc wrote:
What a tale. My condolonces for the loss of something so close to you, something that you loved. I know that I would be very hurt if I lost my G3. It is like my second pair of eyes ;)
Thanks for your thoughts... it's really quite a nuisance trying to piece everything together again, especially both my cameras are no longer in production.

Your devotion to IR makes me want to explore it that much more, though it sounds like the G3 is not great for that although Susan Doel at Lensmate assures me that it can be done with the R72 filter. ?
I believe anything that Susan tells me... really. I have a lot of respect for Susan and Tony at Lensmate.

In another thread, Philip Ganderton proves that the G3 can do infrared but he'll be the first to admit it's just not as easy or quite as good as with the G1.

That said, the R72 is one of the least-expensive infrared filters so I would suggest that you give it a try. If you do, drop us a line and we'll offer some suggestions (like shooting in RAW mode and setting a custom white balance during conversion).

Good luck.

Don

[G2Jim]

Wow Don - scary. The bright side is it could have been much worse, and most equipment can be replaced. The down side is you'll probably never feel quite as secure in your own home.

Best wishes for a full re-stocking of your gear and emotional rebound. At least it will help make the rest of us maybe think twice about documenting possesions for insurance purposes, securing doors & windows at night, and realizing our health and loved ones are the most important things.

[new girl on the bloc]

Don, thank you for your reply. I will give the filter a try and most likely, being completely green re IR photography, ask for your expert help. Thanks for the kind offer. No wonder the mantis's like you ;)

[Spirit]

Wow... sorry to hear this. Glad you're both okay.

Great pics, btw. :)

[Don Ellis]

g2jim wrote:
Wow Don - scary. The bright side is it could have been much worse, and most equipment can be replaced. The down side is you'll probably never feel quite as secure in your own home.
Thanks, Jim... I think that because we didn't wake up and because we believe the burglar targeted the camera equipment -- nothing else was taken except cash and mobile phones that were sitting nearby silently screaming, "Take me, too!") -- it's been easier than we thought to get comfortable in our home again.

Best wishes for a full re-stocking of your gear and emotional rebound.
I'll make a few changes this time around, but not many... for one thing, I won't buy the 3-part Hoya Close-up Filter set... too many filters to stack for too little gain. Instead of a +1, +2, +4 set, I'll just buy a +5 and be done with it -- except for the +10 which I also owned. I will be replacing that as well.

I'm finding one of my most-missed features of Leela's standard G2 to be macro ability, so right after I finish this message, I'll be doing some online ordering. :)

At least it will help make the rest of us maybe think twice about documenting possesions for insurance purposes, securing doors & windows at night, and realizing our health and loved ones are the most important things.
I was telling Tony at Lensmate how I'd found four perfect plastic boxes -- two to carry the G1 and G2 and two to carry all the other items that would normally float around a camera bag -- and how well they fit in the Domke camera bag and told him I would take some pictures of the entire set-up to show him. Didn't get around to it before they were taken.

Later, the insurance investigator asked me if I had a picture of me carrying the camera bag. Amazingly enough, I occasionally shoot my reflection in some store window or other, so I was somewhat saved by narcissism (not that you're ever going to see one because they're uniformly terrible).

So, you're right. Photograph your photo equipment -- preferably with you in the frame.

Cheers,

Don

[Don Ellis]

Spirit -- thanks for your thoughts.

New Girl -- you're always welcome to ask questions. And I'm always happy to send you to Philip. :) I didn't mention a tripod, but I assume you know you'll have to use one.

Cheers,

Don