BIG THEFT: Steve Parish, Wildlife Photographer/Australia

Poisson Du Jour · Aug 7, 2012

This is a terrible, terrible blow for accomplished Australian wildlife photographer Steve Parish. First hit by floods that wiped out his publishing business, then (absent-mindedly?) leaving a couple of hundred thousand dollars' worth of camera stuff in his car, on the street overnight, which was then stolen (and incredibly, not insured) .

Story on ABC News.

hdeyong · Aug 7, 2012

That's a crying shame. Sure, it was a mistake to leave equipment like that in a car overnight, and not have it insured, but it being a mistake won't make him feel any less regretful. I feel really sorry for him.

munz6869 · Aug 7, 2012

Poor guy!!!

OddE · Aug 7, 2012

Ouch. And to think how upset I was after my F4 got stolen a few years ago - that was $500 or so of camera+lens which I used for a hobby, not to make a living off of.

I hope against hope his kit turns up again - a lot of the stuff is likely to be quite difficult to turn over, so keeping an eye on the auction sites and letting any major 2nd hand resellers have a list of the kit and S/Ns (if recorded!) may well produce a clue. I just hope it is not junked once whoever took it realizes that there's all sorts of equipment in the loot which doesn't even look remotely digital...

Poisson Du Jour · Aug 7, 2012

Many people here on APUG have suffered theft. I had most of my equipment (two EOS bodies, three lenses, flash and camera bag) stolen on Boxing Day 2003. Nowhere near $200,000, but it was very sentimental, and that's what hurts most.

I think there was a Hassy H3 and most of the Hassy system lenses in the theft (he also has a keen analogue interest in cine). I cannot get my head around why anybody would leave such a massive amount of top-shelf equipment in a car on the street overnight. The revelation that nothing was insured is just too horrible for me to contemplate: it must be hell for the man who has criss-crossed Australia with a monster load of glass and metal. I think trying to pass off a Hasselblad H3 and uber-expensive system lenses as "unwanted gifts" at Cash Converters will be the downfall of the thieves.

TheFlyingCamera · Aug 7, 2012

It would just take one clever individual to toss it in a bag, hop a cheap flight to Bangkok, and sell it there, even at a deep discount, to more than recoup the cost of the plane ticket. And in a foreign country, it'd be more likely to pass it off as not stolen.

Poisson Du Jour · Aug 7, 2012

TheFlyingCamera said:
It would just take one clever individual to toss it in a bag, hop a cheap flight to Bangkok, and sell it there, even at a deep discount, to more than recoup the cost of the plane ticket. And in a foreign country, it'd be more likely to pass it off as not stolen.

Yes, and in Thailand, those not clued up with the real deal of cameras would happily think the various cameras and lenses were good quality fakes.
Getting the kitty past the inquisitive eyes and noses of Customs here in Australia would be the first hurdle.

cliveh · Aug 7, 2012

To them it is only the value in money. If someone stole my M2 I would be heart broken. Even if the insurance payed for another one, it would not be the same.

Felinik · Aug 7, 2012

Thieves are amongst the worst scum on the planet, no matter if it's banks, insurance companies, or simple crooks stealing bicycles or breaking into cars!!

I hope the scum gets caught soon and that he get's his gear back asap!

lxdude · Aug 7, 2012

Felinik said:
Thieves are amongst the worst scum on the planet, no matter if it's banks, insurance companies, or simple crooks stealing bicycles or breaking into cars!!

I hope the scum gets caught soon and that he get's his gear back asap!

My sentiments exactly.

lxdude · Aug 7, 2012

Is there any word on if he had serial #'s, or pictures of the specialized or rare equipment?

Poisson Du Jour · Aug 7, 2012

Yes he has a running log of serial numbers, except for Nikons. His business after the devastating floods was a nasty blow in itself.

I can't really see how a pricey Hassie could be easily passed off anywhere on the planet. Who else has tried it?

Facebook page.

LJH · Aug 8, 2012

He also emphasises that he didn't claim that it wasn't insured, nor that it was $200k's worth of equipment.

Difficult to imagine the media beating up a story; however, it appears that it does happen…(Note the sarcasm).

spatz · Aug 8, 2012

man this sorta stuff just ain't cool. as a kid not long ago i grew up with Parish's colouring/photo books and got quite fond of them. whoever did this to him is a douche and the bag it comes in!

TheFlyingCamera · Aug 8, 2012

Poisson Du Jour said:
Yes, and in Thailand, those not clued up with the real deal of cameras would happily think the various cameras and lenses were good quality fakes.
Getting the kitty past the inquisitive eyes and noses of Customs here in Australia would be the first hurdle.

There are plenty of used camera dealers in Thailand who would know exactly what the stuff was and be more than happy to buy it. And I would imagine it would not be as hard as you think to take it OUT of the country - if/when asked, tell the customs inspector that you're a pro photographer going overseas on assignment. Or skip the hassle entirely and pop it in FedEx/DHL/TNT off to a buddy in Bangkok/Saigon/Singapore/Hong Kong/Beijing. Done quickly enough, the serial numbers wouldn't have time to make it into any international stolen property database, if the dealer would even have access to such a thing.

ROL · Aug 8, 2012

Felinik said:
Thieves are amongst the worst scum on the planet, no matter if it's banks, insurance companies, or simple crooks stealing bicycles or breaking into cars!!

It certainly feels that way when you're the victim, but I think there may be a few rape and torture victims who may disagree, Inspector Javert.

Felinik · Aug 9, 2012

ROL said:
It certainly feels that way when you're the victim, but I think there may be a few rape and torture victims who may disagree, Inspector Javert.

Hence "amongst".

cramej · Aug 9, 2012

"The award-winning photographer said his publishing business went into liquidation after it was affected by the Brisbane floods." Of course, it's not a funny situation, but the author's choice of words made me chuckle.

It's very unfortunate for him, but how could you not insure that kind of equipment???

EDIT: I see on his FB page that the claims made by the author are false. Shame on the journalist.

mark · Aug 9, 2012

As much as I hate paying the insurance bill and fighting them to pay up when things go wrong, when they do I am very happy for their existence. At least he was insured.

BIG THEFT: Steve Parish, Wildlife Photographer/Australia

Poisson Du Jour

hdeyong

munz6869

OddE

Poisson Du Jour

TheFlyingCamera

Membership Council

Poisson Du Jour

cliveh

Felinik

lxdude

lxdude

Poisson Du Jour

LJH

spatz

TheFlyingCamera

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ROL

Felinik

cramej

mark

BIG THEFT: Steve Parish, Wildlife Photographer/Australia

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