Where do you get your gear?

[X-Morgan]

Hey guys an' gals, I'm looking into a wee bit of info regarding all your cameras and camera equipment.

Basically.....where do you go to get it? Brick & Mortar store or the Interwebz?

I've found a few sites with prices on it, but some sites tend to over inflate the price due to un-camera-savvy people will buy the most expensive thing there.

I've found one doing the Nikon D50 + 18-55mm G ED Lens for £393.07. 'Cos I've found a few sites wanting £500 for that setup, does anyone know of any better deals?

Cheers!

 

[Obsidian6]

It depends really.

for me personally, i find the best deals on used camera websites, and forums like fredmiranda.com ( i buy and sell a ton of gear on there )

But every now and then i like to go to a store like Calumet Photographic, just to talk with the guys there and whatever reps happen to be there. I don't buy new very often, mostly because i find better deals on used gear online, and i dont lose as much on resale, or sometimes if my deal was good enough i can even make money on the sale!

i have been heavily straying away from ebay lately, but i do use it every now and again. there are good deals to be had amongst the scams and horror stories.

I'm not sure if one store in particular ships overseas, but shoot me a PM and i will get you in touch with them.

Abram

 

[iHotu]

I use B+H and Amazon for new Canon EF equipment, and eBay for old Minolta MC stuff. It is hard to find good deals on eBay anymore, but it's fun to try.

 

[YS2003]

I bought Canon 30D, 70-200mm f/2.8, 50mm f/1.4, Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8, 100mm f/2.8, Bogen tripod/head, and other bunch of accessories (bags, extra batteries, remote shutter switch, battery grip, and etc) at Amazon.com. I am thinking about getting nice portrait lens (80 mm to 100 mm range) and wide angle lens in the future from Amazon as well. Amazon sometimes shows pricing from the different dealers so that I can pick my choice.

Before I do my purchase, I review the items I am going to buy by reading various user reviews. By this way, I can reduce the chance of getting things I would regret. Without some pre-purchase reviews, buyer's remorse might happen especially when you are buying items without actually seeing and touching them.

I heard good things about B&H. I hear a lot of their radio ads here in NY metro areas as well. But, I have never been there (it is such a hassel to go to City to buy things) even though it is less than 15 miles from my place.

As long as you are getting from the reputable onsite merchant, you would be okay in terms of after sales service (such as returns and what-not).

 

[Mike Teezie]

There was a thread on this a while back.

I get my gear at B&H.

 

[X-Morgan]

I keep on hearing B&H, where is this, is there any UK retail stores or is it online?

 

[Mord]

camden lock.

 

[seenew]

eeeeeeeeeeeebaaaaaaaay.

 

[ipacmm]

I buy from B&H or Amazon.com

I keep on hearing B&H, where is this, is there any UK retail stores or is it online?

B&H is a store out of NYC, they store is one block long and they have everything you can think of. They do ship overseas, so if you want to use them their web site is bhphotovideo.com

 

[Gamey]

For 2nd hand gear up to a grand I'll use Ebay. For New or more expensive 2nd hand I'll use either Mifsuds in Devon or Park Cameras in London. I have used B&H for a couple of lenses in the past and saved a fortune, but only because I was in NY anyway.

 

[X-Morgan]

I buy from B&H or Amazon.com




B&H is a store out of NYC, they store is one block long and they have everything you can think of. They do ship overseas, so if you want to use them their web site is bhphotovideo.com

Brillaint, cheers, I'm checking out their site right now, I'm really taking a fancy to the D50 with 18-50 and the 50-200 lens, that gives me broad range to work with.....now to see if they're in stock, ha that's another matter!

 

[crap freakboy]

camden lock.

but avoid the skinny Rasta near the Falafel bar else you'll end up with Playdough.

 

[cgratti]

I buy exclusively from B&H. Although they have a brick and mortar I buy online.

Never had a problem yet. Great service.

 

[law guy]

There was a thread on this a while back.

I get my gear at B&H.

Weren't there a few of these - it seems like we've done this topic several times in the last few months.

 

[jared_kipe]

I've ordered a few lenses from sigma4less.com, in fact all my lenses have come from there or ebay/craigslist. I'd buy a camera body from them too if I needed a new one.

 

[sjl]

Not that it'll matter much for most of the readers here, but I bought my new toys from this seller. Phoned in my order on Thursday, with explicit instructions to not charge the credit card until Monday; emailed authorisation for them to charge my card on Monday (once I'd verified that the funds had been put on the card); they arrived on Tuesday, shipping from Sydney to Melbourne (a distance of about 1050 km, or 650 miles - yes, Australia really is that big.)

The only gripe I had was that they shipped me a 1 GB compact flash card instead of the 77mm UV filter I wanted; the filter was shipped out yesterday after I alerted them to the problem, but hasn't yet arrived (no big drama; I won't have a chance to use the lens until at least Saturday, and it should arrive before then.) They've also included a pre-paid express post bag for me to ship back the CF card.

So the overall verdict: excellent prices (especially compared with Canon's recommended retail), and I'd be happy to deal with them again.

 

[ksz]

My foremost allegiance is to the best price and not to any store. I don't need sales advice or any extra support since I do my own homework. I shop on pricegrabber.com or other comparative shopping site and buy from the store that:

1. Offers the best price, lowest shipping, preferably no sales tax.
2. Offers a decent return and refund policy.
3. Has very good reseller ratings.

Given a choice between a 3-star site charging $30 less or a 4/5-star site charging $30 more, I will tend to go with the 4/5-star site. It may cost a little extra, but the hassle of dealing with a disreputable place is much more costly. In any case, the total online price has to be better than any local price or there's no point.