Ben Rubinstein
pro member
I would like to spend a few minutes expressing my gratitude to the wonderful people here at OPF.
Of late I have been going through numerous problems. My wedding business has been dying and my health, already subject to some serious issues took a downward turn with a nasty broken wrist from a fall at a wedding coupled with a significant deterioration in my other health problems. I had also undergone eye surgery for chronic condition which has until this year been uncureable. This has been a tough year.
Asher has been like a father to me throughout with his kindness behind the scenes, he was the first to catch on that my sales of sigificant amounts of equipment spelt trouble. However his was not the only emails and PM's I recieved asking if everything was ok and if there was anything that could be done to help. A member here even posted up one of my ad's on a different forum and has been actively trying to help me with sales!
I met with Asher recently and for the first time discovered he was a doctor and not only that a very accomplished one! I had been shy of discussing my problems with him in detail until then but when I found out (by chance) his profession, I felt able to tell him all. Not only did he give me some extremely useful immediate medical advice which I have already put into action but his offers of help and suggestions have given me a ray of hope into a dark pit of dispair which had been mine for two decades.
Recently I posted a thread here discussing a project I'd taken on, mostly as charity, for a college for disadvantaged youth coming from broken homes and drug backgrounds. I was having trouble with the virtual tours they had asked me to do to be used on their website specifically to encourage future students to see what an incredible place it was. The response here was as always, more than helpful!
I could not begin to believe it when Asher told me that an individual had anonymously donated a panoramic head to me to help me with the project and to help me to get into virtual tours as a possible career move. It was however true and Asher donated the shipping and sent it out to me here in Jerusalem and I'll be shooting with it next week in the college, hopefully on Monday.
The kindness of this individual in this donation will help these wonderful kids but has also helped me immensely. I cannot begin to thank him/her enough.
Now you are probably thinking that OPF is a pretty good place with some incredible people. It gets better though. Jaw droppingly better. Unbelieveably better.
Asher sent me a PM this week saying that another anonymous individual had decided to donate a lens of my choice to me up to a large amount of money. I have to admit that I couldn't believe it again! However someone here had decided that I was worth investing in to a huge degree! Asher had offered to again pay the shipping but as I'm back in the UK anyway and the prices these days are almost the same, to avoid import taxes I bought a Sigma 8mm Fisheye lens there yesterday. This lens together with the panohead are pretty much all I need to launch a new career in offering Virtual Tours to realtors, building contractors and the like for the new year to supplement my waning wedding photography business. The lens was more than the amount promised by my benefactor and although I had said I would, Asher covered the difference.
Helping someone out with advice, with the loan of equipment is one thing. Someone donating a new lens, it's just mindblowing. I wish I could meet this incredible person so I could look into the eyes and shake the hand of someone with a heart and soul that is just pure good.
I am speechless. I do not have the words to describe my gratitude, on behalf of these incredible kids but more so, much more so on behalf of myself. In an age where everyone is only looking out for number 1, the selfless generosity, through word and action, of the good folks at OPF, of these anonymous giants among the human race and of course of the man behind it all, Asher, cannot be lightly written down or expressed.
To all of you, from the depths of my heart. Thank you, thank you OPF!
Of late I have been going through numerous problems. My wedding business has been dying and my health, already subject to some serious issues took a downward turn with a nasty broken wrist from a fall at a wedding coupled with a significant deterioration in my other health problems. I had also undergone eye surgery for chronic condition which has until this year been uncureable. This has been a tough year.
Asher has been like a father to me throughout with his kindness behind the scenes, he was the first to catch on that my sales of sigificant amounts of equipment spelt trouble. However his was not the only emails and PM's I recieved asking if everything was ok and if there was anything that could be done to help. A member here even posted up one of my ad's on a different forum and has been actively trying to help me with sales!
I met with Asher recently and for the first time discovered he was a doctor and not only that a very accomplished one! I had been shy of discussing my problems with him in detail until then but when I found out (by chance) his profession, I felt able to tell him all. Not only did he give me some extremely useful immediate medical advice which I have already put into action but his offers of help and suggestions have given me a ray of hope into a dark pit of dispair which had been mine for two decades.
Recently I posted a thread here discussing a project I'd taken on, mostly as charity, for a college for disadvantaged youth coming from broken homes and drug backgrounds. I was having trouble with the virtual tours they had asked me to do to be used on their website specifically to encourage future students to see what an incredible place it was. The response here was as always, more than helpful!
I could not begin to believe it when Asher told me that an individual had anonymously donated a panoramic head to me to help me with the project and to help me to get into virtual tours as a possible career move. It was however true and Asher donated the shipping and sent it out to me here in Jerusalem and I'll be shooting with it next week in the college, hopefully on Monday.
The kindness of this individual in this donation will help these wonderful kids but has also helped me immensely. I cannot begin to thank him/her enough.
Now you are probably thinking that OPF is a pretty good place with some incredible people. It gets better though. Jaw droppingly better. Unbelieveably better.
Asher sent me a PM this week saying that another anonymous individual had decided to donate a lens of my choice to me up to a large amount of money. I have to admit that I couldn't believe it again! However someone here had decided that I was worth investing in to a huge degree! Asher had offered to again pay the shipping but as I'm back in the UK anyway and the prices these days are almost the same, to avoid import taxes I bought a Sigma 8mm Fisheye lens there yesterday. This lens together with the panohead are pretty much all I need to launch a new career in offering Virtual Tours to realtors, building contractors and the like for the new year to supplement my waning wedding photography business. The lens was more than the amount promised by my benefactor and although I had said I would, Asher covered the difference.
Helping someone out with advice, with the loan of equipment is one thing. Someone donating a new lens, it's just mindblowing. I wish I could meet this incredible person so I could look into the eyes and shake the hand of someone with a heart and soul that is just pure good.
I am speechless. I do not have the words to describe my gratitude, on behalf of these incredible kids but more so, much more so on behalf of myself. In an age where everyone is only looking out for number 1, the selfless generosity, through word and action, of the good folks at OPF, of these anonymous giants among the human race and of course of the man behind it all, Asher, cannot be lightly written down or expressed.
To all of you, from the depths of my heart. Thank you, thank you OPF!
