If you have had the opportunity to read my first post you know my personal collection consist of canon gear. If you did a rough total of what I own it should come up to about $5000. I must let you know that I didn't pay that for my gear. This post will show you how to get the most out of what you have now and save when you plan to upgrade.
1. Be Content!
So you are decided you want to be a pro photographer! Your friends and family like your photos and heck you do too! However, you feel like the one thing that will set you apart from the "tourist" photographers (the ones with the Canon and Nikon neck straps), is new pro gear! Well I am sad to announce that is wrong!
The gear you have now is the cheapest gear that you can own. Why? You already own it! I believe that you should push the gear you have now to its limits. Learn everything you can about it. Learn the menus and functions of each button. The best part of all of this is that the knowledge learned can used with your upgrade camera, if you decide to stay within the same family.
Once you are ready to upgrade do it because you have reached the limits of your current setup.
Couple of reasons why I upgraded:
- Wanted full frame to take full advantage of my lenses.
- Wanted better white balance
- Faster shutter speed
- Better ISO range
2. Buy Used!
I would strongly suggest buy used gear and equipment. The reason for this is that there are tons of savings to be had buying used. Don't get me wrong for some buying used is not for them. However, you can get great used deals.
As I did a quick price comparison on B & H Photo for a 7D Mark II. A new one came to the price of about $1900 while a used is about $1100 (taxes not included). The money saved can be used for buying quality lenses or other great gear.
A better example is my personal experience. I was ready to go full frame camera, and I was in toss up between a 6D and a 5D. I did a lot of research and read tons of reviews. Everything in me pointed to the 5D Mark III. I got in my car and drove over to Procam in Aurora, IL. I went in the store talked everything through and it came down to $1400 or $2200 before taxes (Canon was running a special at the time). My skill level at the time couldn't justify paying $2200 for a professional camera, so 6D won the battle.
After about 6 months later I ended one of my favorite sites (read below) and found a 5D Mark III with battery grip. I ended up selling the 6D and buying the 5D Mark III with a Canon battery grip. The best part is that I ended up profiting from it. The 5D was purchased for the sale price of the 6D (~$1200). How did I profit? Currently, a used 5D mark III is still selling for $2200 on BH without the grip. If I sold everything today I can expect to make $800 -$1000 profit on it. Do yourself a favor and BUY USED if you can!!!
3. Where/How I Buy
If you talk to my wife she knows I spend a lot of time on eBay, Amazon, and Craigslist (my favorite place). My suggestion would be to do the same when it comes time to upgrade/purchase your gear. There are so much more savings to be had on these sites than they put on.
eBay & Amazon
If you know anything about Amazon and eBay, sellers get charged a fee (roughly 10%) on their sales price. Also, these sites dictate shipping cost as well as takes a percent from that shipping cost too. Sellers take a hit on these sites selling items. This is where you swoop in, and get a discount.
Here's my play by play:
1. I search for items over priced or ending soon with no bids.
2. I contact those sellers and offer them a great deal. The goal is more profit than they would get through ebay, but I price it less than their offer. (Always make sure you can pay at that instant)
3. Find a secure way to send money. (NEVER DO MONEYORDER OR WIRE TRANSFER). I personally stick with Paypal.
4. Make sure all terms and conditions are met before you send/give anyone a dime.
5. Pay and enjoy your item. If a review can be given, give the best review EVER!!!
So far I have had no issues purchasing items this way. You may have to tweak it a little to get the deals to work for you. Other purchases via these sites were:
- 70-200 IS f2.8L - $978 (shipped)
- Sigma DG 35 1.4 - $550 (Shipped)
To be Continued.....
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