Used equipment???

jus_tin

jus_tin

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Justin
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What is the risk with buying used equipment? Obviously marks of wear and tear arent that big of an issue but mechanically what could go wrong on a camera body?

Im looking to buy a camera but cant decide whether to go for a new one, or get a used one thats a better model which i wouldnt be able to afford brand new.
 
Jus_tin

IF you stick to decent outlets there is not much risk and you can always try before you buy, also check the for sale section on here.

MPB is also a good place to check out along with LCE

Nigel
 
if the camera is going to be main camera , i would be temped to buy new, unless you get it from someone you trust. has a second camera i see no problem if you get it from a good source ,better still if can see and try before you buy.

Cheers Steve
 
I've bought most of my kit 2nd hand with zero issues.
If you know what the kit is beforehand, there should be no dramas.
I bought a D3 and several 'pro' lenses and accessories here on TP and a number of other high-end items from 'budget' retailers...
 
MBP have pretty good prices and I think offer some kind of warranty on s/h stuff. They also seem to have a good rep on here.
 
Thanks for the replys, though not sure what the abbreviations are... TP / MPB / LCE???
 
LCE is London Camera Exchange. There is also Ffordes who do new and 2nd hand, and as has been suggested the classified section on here is a good place to look. Most of the items are in excellent condition and those that aren't are described as such. I have bought lots of kit from here and haven't been disappointed at all.

Andy
 
Thanks for all the info people!

My next question then...

As a beginner (bursting with enthusiasm)... am i better of buying a cheap body and focusing money on a good lens, or just buy a camera with standard lens?? Unless of course i find a good kit on here or something.

Ive had my bridge camera for a while now and looking to upgrade to something that i can develop further with. I've learnt all ther basics and familiar with all the manual functions so just want to upgrade and enhance what ive learnt so far. I mainly take landscape pictures, skys, some macro though would like to do more and abit of wildlife when i can. Just got back from a trip on safari and found my bridge camera useless especially when it came to zooming in. i will be going on safari again next year so this upgarde will be mainly for that. not sure how good a standard lens would be for that so thats why im wondering should i buy a cheap body and a good lens?? i know its down to budget and initially i was looking at spending £400 but could stretch to £500 at a max.
 
I've bought a lot of my kit second hand and only had a problem with one item, a Canon 400D. The first time we took the flashcard out it broke/bent pins on the cf slot and then wouldn't work, but I wasn't sure if that was just my youngest not putting the card in correctly. £180 repair bill though.

MPB are great, hand no problems using them and the kit is always far better than they've described. I'd buy secondhand from them over anyone else.

For Safari I'd guess you'd want a crop camera and a zoom to around 400mm? that's not cheap.
 
jus_tin said:
My next question then...

As a beginner (bursting with enthusiasm)... am i better of buying a cheap body and focusing money on a good lens, or just buy a camera with standard lens?? Unless of course i find a good kit on here or something.
Click to expand...

I'd say yes. You're likely to want to upgrade bodies quite often whereas a good lens will always be a good lens.

It's quite easy to pick up a decent second hand body on the forums here and spend the rest of your budget on the best glass you can afford. A 50mm 1.8 being the typical example of a wonderful lens at a great price though you may want to look at others depending on what you shoot.
 
LCE aren't that good on prices though, I'd personally stick with the classifieds here or MPB.
 
I had this same issue but then luckily got more money than I thought, my choice was new D80 or 2nd hand D200.

Basically this was going to be a choice of 2 almost identical camera but the more expensive one had better weather protection etc. In the end I got a new D200 from Hong Kong but having seen both cameras I am glad I got the better one.

Basically you will get a better camera going for second hand and get all the advantages or such. The disadvantages are:

Wear

This is easy to see even in photographs. The rubber goes smooth and levers loose their coatings. Doors might become looser as might other things.

Unseen damage

It is possible that damage could have been caused which might be expensive to repair such as using a 400v flash and blowing the flash board inside the camera - This would not be visible. Bent pins on the memory card slot - easy to spot it tested at all. Bent pins on expansion slots - USB, video, power, remote etc - these need checked. Out of alignment - It is quite possible that a bang on the camera might put the focussing system out. The screen on the back is small enough that you cannot easily see focus so again you need to check. Focus assist light - Yes I have seen this.

Consumables.

Batteries - These wear out, new ones are new!

Guarantee

A new camera will come with the manufacturers warranty. If the camera fails in (often 2 years now!!) the warranty period they will fix whatever it is and the camera should come back as good as new. If the seller goes bust the manufacturer will still normally sort this out.

Freebies

Often camera manufacturers will give freebies with new cameras. We have had free grips, free SB900 flashes, money off vouchers and even cash back
 
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