Good morning all,

Going on a trip to Alaska in Sept and while I have a telephoto lens the glass is just OK. I really want a good quality lens for this trip so I was considering renting one. Can anyone recommend a good, reliable rental website? I've found a few on the net but was wondering if anyone has any experience with any in particular they could recommend.

This is the lens I am looking to rent:

http://www.borrowlenses.com/product/.../olympus_300mm

MSRP for that lens is 6999.00 so not in my budget.

Input?

Thanks in advance.

Reb

They're awesome. Do it.

At the top of this forum, the Cameras forum, there is a sticky thread with links to buying and rental discussions.

BorrowLenses is certainly one vendor that people use a lot, but there are others at the linked thread.

The Olympus 300mm, f2.8 ED is a wonderful lens, but not every rental shop carries the Olympus brand, of course.

Wishing you good shooting in Alaska.

Thank you :) I recognize the issues with Olympus but since I started with them and have invested much in lenses for my E5, I hate to switch now. Maybe one day I'll graduate over to Canon :). For now it works for me. I just can't bring myself to buy a lens I won't use that often. Especially at a price tag like that.

I missed the sticky. I will check that out.

I'm so excited for this trip. I wish it was longer than a week. After that we are heading down to Crater and Diamond Lakes in Oregon.

Personally I've used Lensrentals.com and lensprotogo.com. I had flawless experiences with both of them, and I've heard that borrowedlenses is fantastic as well. So far in my own rental experience the one thing that did stand out that may be something to consider is that when I rented a body and a lense from lensprotogo, they shipped it together in a nice heavy duty pelican case. I'm not sure if that is standard, or based on what I rented, but if you are renting some big glass for a trip to Alaska, might make a difference in how it gets shipped.

I lived in Alaska for four years when I was younger. Its a truly amazing place. Have a great trip!

Oh, and when you said "Maybe one day I'll graduate over to Canon", you really meant Nikon right? :)

I'm looking at Borrowlenses.com. I hope to have it delivered to my hotel in Seattle and drop it at their store in Portland. Then I don't have to worry about it being shipped to and from Hawaii and I don't have to worry about carrying it on the flight. I carry my gear in a nice hard sided case that holds all my gear (body, lenses, batteries, etc and laptop). It also has wheels and fits in the overhead. I hope I can fit it in there. Going to try to be selective about which lenses I carry with me on this trip.

We are doing a one week cruise. I wish we were doing a road trip instead but this fits our schedule better. It will be nice to get a taste of each location. I've always wanted to see Alaska.

Oh sorry....you know how auto corret is. Yes, I meant Nikon :) Silly MacBook!

Rebel,

As a side note, if you're going through Seattle on your way in and out of Alaska, there is a Glazer's Camera Rental not far from the port that you depart Seattle from. I'm not sure if they have Olympus gear, though. Make sure you have a wide angle too! I rented the Canon 10-22 and it was wonderful for glacial shots and such.

Be advised, if you happen to be on a cruise like we were, and your flights are early in the day, be very careful about the timing of returning your rental.

Sorry about the specificity, but since I've had the experience I thought I'd share.

Quincy

I have a 9-18mm wide and a beautiful 8mm Fisheye. Both will be with me. My fisheye is better glass than the wide but the wide still gives me some beautiful shots.

Appreciate the advice. :) Everything helps.

I can highly recommend borrowlenses.com I've rented from them on a number of occasions.

One note: They won't ship to the hotel. I tried that once. It's understandable; too many opportunities for the equipment to stray before it actually gets into your hands, and too many people could sign for it.

They will however, ship to a nearby FedEx office to be held there for you to pick up.

Have a wonderuful trip!

Originally Posted by RebelSol I'm looking at Borrowlenses.com. I hope to have it delivered to my hotel in Seattle and drop it at their store in Portland. Then I don't have to worry about it being shipped to and from Hawaii and I don't have to worry about carrying it on the flight. I carry my gear in a nice hard sided case that holds all my gear (body, lenses, batteries, etc and laptop). It also has wheels and fits in the overhead. I hope I can fit it in there. Going to try to be selective about which lenses I carry with me on this trip. We are doing a one week cruise. I wish we were doing a road trip instead but this fits our schedule better. It will be nice to get a taste of each location. I've always wanted to see Alaska. Oh sorry....you know how auto corret is. Yes, I meant Nikon :) Silly MacBook!

BTW, borrowlenses ships with a prepaid return label in the box: you can simply repack the lens in the same box, put the new label on it and drop it at any FedEx shipping location. Just be sure to get a receipt from that location, for proof as to when you sent it back.

Side note: I always opt for the insurance on the equipment I rent. You just never know what could happen while the gear is in your care.

I used lens rentals and rented a 70-200 2.8 for a volleyball tournament. When i pressed the shutter button, the lens elements kept jumping while the IS was not on, but the photos still came out ok. I called them and told them the lens only did it in non-is mode, and i would continue to use it. When the day came, the elements jumped even with IS on. When i returned the lens i told them this; several days later they called me and said their techs were able to replicate the issue, so they would be sending it to Canon for repair. They refunded my $85 for my trouble!

Now as for Alaska, we went last August, left out of Vancouver. Of the seven days on the trip, it rained probably four or five. You will definitely need a rain cover (check out those that look like large clear bags with ties on each end, you can get two for around $7-i think they are made by optitech??). Also remember that the excursions may or may not get you wildlife, especially bears. If you are going to Juneau, use Harv n Marvs whale watching service. Good people, only 6 on a trip at a time.

I just came back from a business trip there, and they said the SE panhandle was setting records for rain. Make sure you dress in a baselayer and wear good rain gear. We basically lived in our fleece and base layers. Otherwise have fun. Love that State!

Originally Posted by dmead516 I used lens rentals and rented a 70-200 2.8 for a volleyball tournament. When i pressed the shutter button, the lens elements kept jumping while the IS was not on, but the photos still came out ok. I called them and told them the lens only did it in non-is mode, and i would continue to use it. When the day came, the elements jumped even with IS on. When i returned the lens i told them this; several days later they called me and said their techs were able to replicate the issue, so they would be sending it to Canon for repair. They refunded my $85 for my trouble! Now as for Alaska, we went last August, left out of Vancouver. Of the seven days on the trip, it rained probably four or five. You will definitely need a rain cover (check out those that look like large clear bags with ties on each end, you can get two for around $7-i think they are made by optitech??). Also remember that the excursions may or may not get you wildlife, especially bears. If you are going to Juneau, use Harv n Marvs whale watching service. Good people, only 6 on a trip at a time. I just came back from a business trip there, and they said the SE panhandle was setting records for rain. Make sure you dress in a baselayer and wear good rain gear. We basically lived in our fleece and base layers. Otherwise have fun. Love that State!

I'll definitely echo the rain comments. Be prepared for that. I had the 7D and my 24-70 L, so I just went gung ho for about two hours worth of whale watching in a solid drizzle.