New York NYC RFF Meet-up wants to help fellow RFF member Phil_F_NM

[dave lackey]

Thanks all. We are at $837.40 from 26 donations!!!! Holy %$^#!

Dave Lackey is meeting with someone in person tonight about a Nikon D2Xs for $700. If that pans out, it might be a good buy since dave can check it out in person (I believe). The rest can be used for a lens.

John,

Just talked with the seller of the D2Xs that Kent linked us up to...the sale of this awesome camera is for real. I will meet with him on Wednesday morning at 10:15am at his office in Atlanta to verify the condition of the camera. This should give you enough time to catch most folks who would like to contribute something to this amazing cause, whatever the final outcome.🙂

 

[jsrockit]

Awesome Dave... thanks. Let me know how we should proceed... I can just send the funds to you via paypal and you can ship the camera directly to Phil if he's ok with that (and you're ok with that). 🙂

 

[jsrockit]

Of course, That's if Phil is cool with a D2Xs. 🙂

 

[astro8]

Give it a bit of time...some of us won't log in to RFF for at least a few more hours.

 

[jsrockit]

Donations incoming from Australia! We are at $907.40.

 

[Al Patterson]

Wow! Offline for work,and you all raised enough for one camera. Think I'l donate some. Let's see if we can get enough to replace BOTH cameras...

By the time I find my Paypal logon, donations are closed... Bummer.

 

[thambar]

He could always use any extra to purchase a few bricks of Tri-X for his new Nikon <g>.

 

[icebear]

Joining the party, I hope I'm not too late😉.
Money sent.

 

[jsrockit]

Wow! Offline for work,and you all raised enough for one camera. Think I'l donate some. Let's see if we can get enough to replace BOTH cameras...

Looks like we might get there... but maybe lenses could be more important in the short term?

 

[aeturnum]

Sent some money. I just had a camera stolen (it was insured thankfully) and I'm a hobbyist - the blow of losing the income would be very harsh. Best of luck and a big thank you to all the other people helping. RFF is a great community.

 

[gb hill]

I'm gonna send a few dollars to help out this wonderful cause.

 

[jsrockit]

$1051.12!!!!

People really stepped up this time.

Ok, it is bed time for me. I will confirm donations in the morning.

PS: I have decided not to sell anything of my own until this is all handled so I don't co-mingle funds within my paypal account. I want to keep this as clean as possible. I may need some help in the form of potential buyers of equipment. Outside of the body, we have lens or second body money quickly coming in. Perhaps Cal, Promodh, and I can check out the local shops too to make it easier.

 

[gb hill]

Wife just sent the money.🙂

 

[tjh]

I just sent some money.

Tom

 

[Carterofmars]

I kicked in a little for fellow RFF. Hope it helps. Maybe be we should start a post on gear insurance.

 

[jsrockit]

Phil has been in contact with me. Let's hold off on any camera decisions for now.

I have asked him to add some of his thoughts to this thread.

We have $1100.00. I think this is enough. Thank you everyone for all of the kindness, but I don't want it to get out of hand. 🙂

 

[kbg32]

John, what's the paypal address. I keep missing it!

 

[Phil_F_NM]

Thank You!

Thank You!

I'm either without words, or babbling on with far too many words regarding my feelings on this whole thing.
I'm floored at the generosity of the RFF group (and the LUG, for that matter) and I really don't know what else to say so I'm going to post my candid letter I wrote John (jsrockit) about my feelings regarding this and the greater place in photography in my life:

So, this was indeed a surprise and it made me a bit emotional as well as slightly hesitant at the offer for a bit. (At the same time I got a call from an old friend so things are a bit spinny.)
I digress. After the burglary, I went through some pretty intense disbelief, guilt, rage, disillusionment then came to a kind of peaceful place about this. I just couldn't keep up being angry anymore. The thief didn't get my Leica or my Nikon SP which left me thinking that I was still "ahead" as those cameras are the ones I truly care about.

I have gotten outside with the film cameras a bit lately and I've been a bit more inspired to shoot some with film. I really do wish I could just sit down with yourself, Cal and Pramodh to discuss this instead of over PM's and through the thread.

The offer of a completely new rig is incredibly generous and I'm stunned to see the community come together like this [for me.] There are a few little feelings I have in the back of my head which cause me some trepidation though.

This whole series of events have forced some kind of philosophical reassessment of what I'm doing right now and where I'm going.
While I was making money with the digital gear, it was incredibly stressful and I was thinking of getting out of news photography recently. I came to the conclusion that I am a contemplative photographer that doesn't want to take 700+ photos per day. The driving and getting lost, the deadlines, the angry texts from editors, the parking situation... It's all ridiculous. While I think it's ridiculous, at the same time I do need some income besides my part-time home depot job but I don't know if I want that income to come from news photography.

I just don't know right now where I want to go in the photographic world and I'm trying to look at the burglary as a mitzvah to help me get my head on straight with what I want to do and where I want to go. (add to that the fact that my friend who was my connection and editor at [the publication], and the reason I got my foot in the door there in the first place, just got laid off so I don't even know if I have my beat anymore.)

With this feeling towards the whole hustle of news and my growing disdain for it, there is some guilt inside that makes me think that I wouldn't be worthy of such an incredible gift as the RFF community has already come together to gather for me.

Could I do right by your generosity and really push forward in my work should I accept it? I mean, would my work be worthy of it? These are questions that are spinning through my head.

At the same time, there is a kind of desire of mine to further simplify my life and stick solely with film. Maybe go back to an X100 but I just don't know.

There is also the guilt that my roommate, Jane, was possibly more deeply traumatized by this than myself. She had some sentimental cameras stolen and the police brushed them off since they were low-dollar items (but so was the D2HS, ironically) and she's been angry that no one seems to care about her losses. I've kind of encouraged her to look for another Barnack as well as a Pentax but the Pentax was given to her by a family member so I'm not sure it's really replaceable.

I think the thoughts and kind words of the RFF group have been enough so far and I'm really floored at the possibility of having another DSLR appear out of sheer generosity of a whole bunch of people, some whom I've met but most who are only personalities through the computer.

I'm extremely grateful, please don't think otherwise, I just don't know where I'm going with photography for now.
I may post some of this to the thread. Like I said, I just wish I could have spoken with y'all in person to better elucidate my thoughts and feelings.

Sincerest regards to all,
Phil Forrest

 

[jsrockit]

John, what's the paypal address. I keep missing it!

Keith, I closed out the donations since we are at close to $1100. Thanks for wanting to contribute, but we have enough to help Phil out. Please see thread #98.

 

[sparrow6224]

To Phil: We (RFF, that is; not I, as I got home too late) have all pitched in to help replace the camera(s) / lenses that were stolen, not because you're Henri Cartier Bresson of Nikon DX digital but because you're one of us. We decide whether you're worthy, not you, and clearly we decided. No one sold his first-born here, everybody chipped in a little, it appears almost all on the painless side, because we all feel closer, safer, more buoyed when we can help one of our own. It is truly harder to receive than to give, I'll grant you; but your worthiness and future approaches to photography are not beholden to what was, for RFF folks, an act that helped bind us all more closely together. You're part of the group and the part you play in strengthening us all is to take the offer and not force John through three hours of work trying to figure out how to give it all back. You want my advice, (of course you do) the D2xs and a used Tamron 17-50/2.8, putatively quite competitive with the Nikon, smaller and much cheaper , along with the donated equipment, and you're back in business. If you choose a year from now to go a different direction, or even a month from now, pay it forward somehow. We ALL benefit from this process. This is what community means, at its best and least repressive. All best of luck to you and God bless.