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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Be careful out there

A

a whitmer

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There's a zero tolerance policy for racism here on REDUSER and all other groups really. However, in the link and in the video there are no racist remarks, no racist statement in the article, or anything really pointing to that. There's no appalling violence either really, so perhaps it serves as a lesson of preparedness and alertness.

Perhaps more of a personal and even professional take. It's worth leaving the video up because thieves aren't after the color of your skin, butt they are are after your gear. It's worth seeing how these thieves performed this robbery.

What I mean by that is this is a well traversed area for tourists, with witnesses, and in broad daylight. Clearly they followed the crew, looks like two guys, and waited until they loaded up. Small chance they just stumbled across that at a key moment, but unlikely as casing vehicles has been very common and on the rise over the last 6 years.

In my case, several years ago, after entering a venue for a mere 30 minutes a vehicle pulled up to mine and parked next to it. Two men proceeded to break a rear window and got away with $$,$$$ in gear. This was on a major street in DTLA, at night, but still a well traversed road. Getting the security video from an adjacent building, they followed me for sure. Waited until I left the vehicle and entered the venue, then were done in about 3 minutes after they figured out how to break the window. That's with climbing into the vehicle through that break as my doors will not unlock when the vehicle is broken into. Even with that, they were in and out in moments really.

From what I understand in what transpired above, one of the girls ran from the thieves. They knew they were in the car and they did have a gun. Better to not exactly excite the situation in this case. This area I know well, and it's up a road, but there's a good chance nobody was within helping distance.

Be safe out there. Insure your gear. It's about the only thing you really can do. Last several times I worked in SF we had a security detail as well as one or two crew in or around the truck fairly often.
 
Phil Holland said:
There's a zero tolerance policy for racism here on REDUSER and all other groups really. However, in the link and in the video there are no racist remarks, no racist statement in the article, or anything really pointing to that. There's no appalling violence either really, so perhaps it serves as a lesson of preparedness and alertness.

Perhaps more of a personal and even professional take. It's worth leaving the video up because thieves aren't after the color of your skin, butt they are are after your gear. It's worth seeing how these thieves performed this robbery.

What I mean by that is this is a well traversed area for tourists, with witnesses, and in broad daylight. Clearly they followed the crew, looks like two guys, and waited until they loaded up. Small chance they just stumbled across that at a key moment, but unlikely as casing vehicles has been very common and on the rise over the last 6 years.
ha
In my case, several years ago, after entering a venue for a mere 30 minutes a vehicle pulled up to mine and parked next to it. Two men proceeded to break a rear window and got away with $$,$$$ in gear. This was on a major street in DTLA, at night, but still a well traversed road. Getting the security video from an adjacent building, they followed me for sure. Waited until I left the vehicle and entered the venue, then were done in about 3 minutes after they figured out how to break the window. That's with climbing into the vehicle through that break as my doors will not unlock when the vehicle is broken into. Even with that, they were in and out in moments really.

From what I understand in what transpired above, one of the girls ran from the thieves. They knew they were in the car and they did have a gun. Better to not exactly excite the situation in this case. This area I know well, and it's up a road, but there's a good chance nobody was within helping distance.

Be safe out there. Insure your gear. It's about the only thing you really can do. Last several times I worked in SF we had a security detail as well as one or two crew in or around the truck fairly often.
Click to expand...

The comments are full of Racism.

I understand first hand the importance of the message, but for me it is spoiled by what's behind it. I've personally had to change a few minds over gear ownership and possession. I don't ever want to be in that situation again. Sadly we have to pick and choose locations and environments where we can carry items and even when you do your best, some have other plans. Stay safe out there, keep your head up and eyes open.
 
Andrew Dease said:
Wow. Was it only last MONTH that I posted a thread about this asking for examples of this happening?

Must be that time of year for the Red Camera to be stolen, but in California this kind of smash and grab and beat em up is a normal Tuesday. :barbershop_quartet_member:
Click to expand...

There have been a few on YouTube over the years, but this is pretty dang brazen, and sadly reflects the 'smash-n-grab times. Even if the bandits are caught, nothing will happen. It's not just the cost of the equipment that's lost, but likely some footage as well. Maybe a day's worth of work, maybe more, and maybe losing the project altogether - whatever it was. Not to mention the loss of any sense of security going forward. This stuff stays with you.
 
I suggested on another site that cameras should have security features. Either encrypt the files which can only be read with the correct keys, or have a PIN that you have to enter every time you power up, just like we do on phones. The response? I got shot down. Can you believe it? Some people only want so much progress, and we're apparently not allowed any more than we have now.

Further, this can be applied to lenses with electronic contacts as well. Perhaps a simple security protocol can be designed so that lenses can't work on your camera unless you have the correct PIN for the lens.
 
When ut, Pack an old iPhone which does not cost much, with a sim in one of the more important camera cases. If things get ripped use "find my phone".
 
I'll be going to the US this year to visit a family and I have a plan to make a post pandemic solo travel content & vlogs in LA, Vegas, SF & NYC. I've been told to leave the RED at home.. Not even a Sony A7S3, they said to just use a low profile Insta360 cameras or a GoPro 10, or an iPhone 13 Pro + small gimbal & mic, at best.
Last time I visited was like 30 years ago..
It would be a shame to not be able to capture this rare journey in R3D and all its glory.

But, maybe that's a good advice...

I'll bring the RED though. Concealed Carry in public
 
Björn Benckert said:
When ut, Pack an old iPhone which does not cost much, with a sim in one of the more important camera cases. If things get ripped use "find my phone".
Click to expand...

Good idea. Computer security experts always say that it's better to have several smaller barriers than one large one.
 
A friend of mine was in San Fran for a job. Parked his rental car, and walked around the corner. Heard his window get smashed immediately, turned around and everything was stolen that fast. Rental car agency says it happens a few times a week. Apparently the thieves target rental cars because they are identifiable by the barcode stickers. Also, and correct me if I’m wrong there is no real punishment for vehicle break ins in San Francisco
 
I feel reallybad for any guys that have their equipment stolen... over the last 10years things have got worse in London too.

For a slightly wider perspective I thought i’d offer a different perspective from a shooting experience I had in Finland...

a few years ago while filming in Finland an assistant had accidentally left some film equipment outside our hotel.. i almost didn’t think it worth going back as we didn’t notice for over a hour (and in London it would 100% be gone).. the Finish fixer explained that there was zero chance it would be stolen and it would only be touched if a passerby was concerned about rain damaging it. We checked the weather forecast so we could have lunch 1st and then went back for the equipment. Cynically I thought it would be gone and my fixer was a naive idiot. I was wrong;-)
 
Karim D. Ghantous said:
I suggested on another site that cameras should have security features. Either encrypt the files which can only be read with the correct keys, or have a PIN that you have to enter every time you power up, just like we do on phones. The response? I got shot down. Can you believe it? Some people only want so much progress, and we're apparently not allowed any more than we have now.

Further, this can be applied to lenses with electronic contacts as well. Perhaps a simple security protocol can be designed so that lenses can't work on your camera unless you have the correct PIN for the lens.
Click to expand...

Mention of camera security at the 2:19 mark. Thieves followed this guy 40 miles to rob him.

 
Just replying to a few things here. The above illustrates a disturbing trend that exceeds simple casing, but rather tracking until vulnerable.

In terms of Airtags, they are very useful for sure. But higher end thieves are tracking them for a long time now. This can be pretty insane in crowded areas as it's easy to identify packages with tags in short or medium range proximity.

Here in LA it's very common to have trackers in vehicles. Similarly we can track computers, cell phones, etc. This has yet to deter criminals due to one critical factor. Time.

The only thing that is full proof-ish is insuring your equipment. This doesn't stop theft, but does prevent loss.

In regards to theft versus armed robbery, that's a big one right now. Brazen criminals are doing things in daylight, in neighborhoods, and high pop areas. Be aware of your surroundings and stay alert as much as possible. Especially loading and unloading gear. That particular moment is both an opportunity for robbery as well as notifying somebody you have items of value. Which the above thieves clearly took advantage of.
 
The theft of camera equipment, and especially film cameras, is not your garden variety car tires and televisions theft. Those are easy to move in a multitude of black markets. But film cameras, like Red, have a very limited audience, and it would be difficult to move them easliy. Which brings up the question: who's buying stolen Reds, or any film camera, and driving the lucrative theft of them?
 
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