A lens just out of reach. (hands reach not focal)

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john182rs

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John
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I dare say there is a few people in the same position as me right now.
Ive been looking to buy a mk1 70-200 f2.8 IS L Canon lens, its just so frustrating that i can not for the life of me find that last couple of hundred.

How many people see this or do you just settle for the next best thing.

Just thinking about it, should this be in "out of focus" the off topics section?
 
You just save up and look for a good quality second hand one. I put the money away every month, then a newish one came up (30 mins use) within my price range.
 
Just buy a used one, there will always be someone looking to upgrade to the mk II version.
how much have you got?
 
Just keep plugging away. I have a money box that I put £2 coins in, don't get them often so it's not like you miss the cash - banked it the other day as it had been a while and it was a £180 boost to my savings for 'stuff'.

You got this far so you'll find the rest, it takes a bit of time but it will be worth it in the end.
 
If you really are struggling that hard to save the money I would seriously be asking yourself if you actually need the lens or if it could be better spent elsewhere in you life? You could buy the perfectly adequate Sigma version for significantly less and have plenty of money left over for something else more important than a lens.
 
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"You could by the perfectly adequate..."

I tend to agree. I think that unless you are pixel peeping, printing very large or cropping excessively there are probably very few duff lenses out there these days. Unless it's weather sealing that attracts the OP to L's?
 
If i need a lens i wil lsave for it through overtime and very careful budgeting. I have got to the stage now where its more about rethinking the existing lens line up and finding a solution that works.

The problems is its not just lenses. I have to think about bags, batteries, flashes adapters, filters etc... they cost a lot of money too.
 
Put a load of your other (non photographic) 'junk' on ebay. You would be surprised how quickly it mounts up, even for the small (<£10) stuff.
 
User Name said:
Just buy a used one, there will always be someone looking to upgrade to the mk II version.
how much have you got?
Click to expand...

At this moment, I have £600 saved. I know that this month is a 5 week month so come the end of month I should have another £200-£400 saved.
I dont have anything really important in life to save for, i pay rent and stuff like most people, i think i have another £300pm to spend on me.
 
That's brilliant - that's into secondhand range.

I got my 70-200 f2.8 IS from here. 30 mins use from new for £1k.

New from Kelso was about another £200, so either way you're nearly there.
 
I read somewhere once that you should always pay cash for lenses so you appreciate quite how much you're spending - it's a very good suggestion, but I still don't do it!

I've bought a lot of glass on ebay and only had a couple of problems; mainly with fungii so make sure you ask before you buy - if they're "not sure" then it probably does; would someone who owns such an expensive lens without knowing these things?

It's important not to horde lenses; if there are any you don't use often, get them sold. Just be aware that ebay take a hell of a cut when you sell. There's a useful website that'll help you know what return you'll see and what ebay takes:

http://www.ebaycalculator.co.uk/

It's actually quite scary realising how much it is - usually 10 to 15% !! When you're talking about decent lenses, that's a sizeable chunk. Try selling through forums.

So, pay in readys, buy second hand (after questioning) and sell stuff before it depreciates too much.
 
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