My film back jammed shut at the worst possible moment

I was in the middle of a shoot at the old train yard yesterday, about to load a fresh roll of Portra 400. I slid the back closed and heard a nasty crunch. The latch mechanism just froze solid, trapping the film inside. I had to sit on a rusty rail for twenty minutes with a tiny flathead screwdriver, gently prying at the hinge until it gave way. Has anyone else had a film back fail like this, and is there a fix that doesn't involve surgery?

2 comments

2 Comments

chen.phoenix20d ago

It's always the gear you rely on that fails at the perfect moment. Classic Murphy's Law in action.

leo60320d ago

My phone battery died right as I was pulling up my boarding pass at the airport last week. @chen.phoenix, it feels like the more you need something to work, the higher the chance it just won't. I mean, my car key fob gave out last month when I was already running late for a meeting.