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How to buy old manual focus lenses (for beginners)
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 1:49 am    Post subject: How to buy old manual focus lenses (for beginners) Reply with quote

Some thoughts for beginners...

http://reviews.ebay.co.uk/How-to-buy-old-manual-focus-lenses_W0QQugidZ10000000004218732


Last edited by Attila on Fri Sep 05, 2008 9:38 pm; edited 2 times in total


PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 2:03 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Very good idea and very useful guide, bravo!

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PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 9:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Should be useful for newcomers. I just hope prices of those I'm bidding on don't rise too quickly Wink


PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 9:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Well done, Attila.

P.S.: You might want to check the link to your shop, it doesn't work.
"Sorry, this shop does not exist"


PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2008 1:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I will say big thank you guys if you improve it , many thanks in advance!

Link is fixed, thank you Carsten!


PostPosted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:06 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

My advice to beginners is to buy a couple of very cheap lenses and then learn to SEE ‘Performance’
Performance isn’t just sharpness, it is also resolution. By comparing shots from a decent lens and a mediocre one the ‘Beginner’ should start to see the differences.
Once one feels confident that they can tell a good lens from a poor one they can begin to serious seek the lenses they want.
I suggest a trip round the dealers, armed with your camera. Try lenses and take the results home to check.
Bargains on eBay are now rare. It can be a bit of fun buying lenses. Trying them and then putting them back up for sale, but most people get tired of that and would rather get on with some photography. Buying from shops is much a better option and in most cases cheaper than eBay.
I have bought and sold many lenses on eBay but all my best lenses have been from shops and even car boot sales.


PostPosted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 10:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

One thing that works for me is to buy cameras, not lenses. People who sell "that old camera they found in the basement" usually have no idea of the lenses, because in their eyes, they're just accessories. On the popular Dutch auction site marktplaats.nl, I often see Pentax M 50mm f/1.7 lenses being sold for EUR 50 or higher in the "lenses" section, while the same lens with a Pentax ME as rear cover can be bought for as little as 30 Euros in the "analog cameras" section...


PostPosted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 10:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Excellent idea!


PostPosted: Sat Aug 09, 2008 8:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I tried to buy camers with lenses, but all of them were infected by fungus Sad

Anyway, I can only have bad luck, because about 30% lenses I bought from ebay, were defective or in worse condition, than described (sellers with 99%+ feedback!). Fungus, flaws on MC, slow diaphragm, bad servicing (focusing to 2-3m, loose glass elements = half of picture fuzzy or soft image at each aperture value, loose barrel... etc.)

Most of the sellers refunded my payment, or gave me some kind of discount (I mostly request 50%, if the item is not as described, but functional), but not all of them were willing...


PostPosted: Sat Aug 09, 2008 11:12 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sorry to hear that, I have lot more less bad experience with sellers.