hammond

While scrambling down from the glacier at the base of Mount Kailash's North face, I had to make a jump between two boulders across the stream. Forgetting that I hadn't zipped my jacket pocket containing my Sigma 18-250mm, I lept with one hand securing my Nikon and the other outstretched for balance...

To my horror, my Sigma popped out of my pocket, bounced off a boulder, and landed in the water in a small bed of course gravel sand.

I took me a few seconds to retrieve the lens, and as soon as I picked it up, noticed water inside the lens. It was cold and the sun was going down, so I didn't have time to examine the full extent of the damage.

But an hour later when I reached camp, I tool out my lens and started drying it off (manually extending and retracting the zoom while wiping off the wetness until dry). There were still a few drops on the inner lens, but did as much as I could.

I then started examining the body of the lens, and couldn't find a single scratch! I had the hood on on reverse, and it seems it took the majority of the impact, but still only had a hardly noticeable mark.

I let the lens dry out for 2 days (not hard in that kind of altitude), plugged it onto my camera, and it worked same as it ever had!

dyximan

Lucky you, I fell in the river once with my 55 to 300 kit lens in my hip pouch and it was a goner

rgrenaderphoto Loc: Hollywood, CA

You should email Sigma directly, they love hearing stuff like that.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Send that story to Sigma. They might use it as a testimonial.