Kudos to Canon (Repair)

I thought I'd close the book on what happened to the 70-200 mm, 2.8L lens that got damaged at the beginning of the trip by letting you know the outcome: it's fixed, and based on my experience I'd heartily recommend Canon's on-line booking system for equipment repairs.

Total cost was just under $200, with postage to their facility running around $20 (USPS ground and insured for $1,000) and Canon's charge of $175, including postage back. The repair note said that the chassis was bent and in addition they clearly replaced the front ring as I know that was damaged by the fall as well.

I know none of the glass elements were broken (which you would assume constitutes a significant piece of the overall materials cost) but even so I was pleasantly surprised at the cost. I had steeled myself for more like $250 to $300, and the repair was even completed within three days of Canon receiving the lens despite this being the high season.

Comforting to know that this kind of back-up support is available to the average Joe with nothing more than an Internet connection to work with!