What is the NORM..

[Deleted User] · April 11, 2011

The user and all related content has been deleted.

Zet · April 11, 2011

I get most of my stuff from Amazon. I don't want to pay a lot for things like reflectors, tri-pods, batteries etc.

I just bought a SB 600 flash off of e-bay for a great price!

[Deleted User] · April 11, 2011

The user and all related content has been deleted.

cbantham · April 11, 2011

I always try to by the good/best quality product second hand before I look at new. Craigslist and eBay are great for that.

Soppy · April 14, 2011

Especially for things that are not camera specific, I try to buy the best (within reason) and I'll keep it forever (ie tripods, ball heads, reflectors, light modifiers) and with lenses I do what I can with what I have, and if the situation demands it I rent. I am a college student, so there isn't a whole lot of room for $800 lenses in my budget, though I am trying to save this summer. Basically, where quality matters, get the best, where you can skimp, do it. Foam core makes a good reflector and isn't $90 like a sunbouncer...

Molotov Everything · April 14, 2011

Hibiscus Ink photography wrote: »

Cool.
Well the thing is, i like to buy things like that but i was wondering
when it comes to flashes am i not loosing out by buying the cheap stuff??
I have one i bought from ebay it does its job.. but its the only flash iv used.

A flash isn't something I'd skimp on, you don't need to go nuts and buy the most expensive flashes available but I think a flash is one of the most crucial pieces of equipment you can buy.
I don't know what you're definition of the flash doing its job is, but I would like my flash to adjust position, angle, and intensity however I see fit (within reason) instead of going back to the old POS flash I bought in high school where I had to change other settings to accommodate the flash to get the right exposure.

rt2photo · April 15, 2011

I don't know that there is a norm - it depends entirely on you, your budget, your needs.

For me its easy - I buy the best quality I can afford. I've got no problem buying used, or cheaping out if it's something disposable or of little use, or a toy.

But lenses, speedlites - I'll buy the best I can - thats just not something worth buying cheap, you'll only end up buying it again.

wildviper · April 15, 2011

I have bought 4 tripods before I bought my most expensive one. The 4 were cheap quality and all broke. The most expensive...is serving me well. Obviously I ended up paying more in the long run.

I bought a cheap lens...I ended up selling that for a loss and buying a medium quality lens. Obviously this is going to cost me more than just going out and buying the 70-200/2.8 for example.

I bought a cheap umbrella. It bent and now I bought a more expensive higher quality umbrella. Once again, I paid more for this..

So the mantra is: "Had I only.....!" Now I buy the highest quality or do not buy it at all. My wife will be proud of me now. :P

My $0.02!

Pupator · April 15, 2011

Most people I know started out buying the cheapest they could find. Over time they found out why it was cheap and gradually upgraded to better stuff. This doesn't apply for every single thing - but for most things at least.

Art Scott · April 15, 2011

Hibiscus Ink photography wrote: »

Hi,
I was just thinking about camera gear and the things i buy..
Do most photographers bye the easy cheap gear e.g: reflectors etc..
or is everyone trying to get the big names..

What do you do/buy?

there is a huge difference between cheap and less expensive good equipment....I use lots of lesser expensive equipment but I have had very little really cheap....cheap to me is just another way of saying crap....jmho....

....Tripods I want quality stuff even if it does not have a top 5 name on it...I use Giottos 4 section pod...great......Reflectors I go cheap...but I am rough on my stuff and fabric can easily get orn out in nature, whether it is a $200 30 inch reflector or a $12 30 inch..umbrellas I usually go less expensive....I want good fabric and good movement in moving parts but again these will go out into nature and if it winds up in the Muddy Arkansas River I do not want a $200 umbrella floating toward Oklahoma....flash trigger...I use inexpensive ebay 16 channel trigger that have performed extremely well for over 2 yrs....shutter triggers pretty much the same as the flash triggers.....

zoomer · April 16, 2011

Buy the best the first time or end up buying it twice.

Nikolai · April 16, 2011

zoomer wrote: »

Buy the best the first time or end up buying it twice.

I'd rephrase: "buy the best, or suffer the consequences"

angevin1 · April 16, 2011

zoomer wrote: »

Buy the best the first time or end up buying it twice.

Sage advice, but a caveat: "Buy the Best you can Afford the first time....."

Though sometimes it may pay to have a cheaper option....Like when my SB600 went tumbling into the waterfall, and flashed as it sank into the water. Prob would have been more expensive tethering lesson had it been an AB800 and vagabond, or some such!:D

Molotov Everything · April 16, 2011

zoomer wrote: »

Buy the best the first time or end up buying it twice.

This makes me think of a friend of mine who is pretty new to photography. He doesn't really understand all the basic technical concepts yet but in the first 3 months or so, he's probably dropped close to $3000 on gear. He bought a tamron 70-200 2.8 VR and I don't think he really understands why people would want to buy that type of lens, he just read some stuff on the internet saying that a long fast lens is good to have.

So I'm not really sure. There's a chance he might 'grow in to' his gear as he learns more, in which case he'll be glad to have bought it. Or, he could have just wasted a bunch of money and end up selling it all a loss later on.
So maybe I'll amend your statement to "If you need it, buy the best the first time or end up buying it twice."

jwcoffee · April 17, 2011

Hibiscus Ink photography wrote: »

Hi,
I was just thinking about camera gear and the things i buy..
Do most photographers bye the easy cheap gear e.g: reflectors etc..
or is everyone trying to get the big names..

What do you do/buy?

I don't buy much anymore. I'm 65. I've replaced all of my poor equipment with good equipment. I agree that you should purchase the best that you can reasonably afford.

A point that I want to make regarding this post is that in this day and age we are blessed to have the Internet available to us along with all of the product reviews. Product reviews have helped to keep me out of trouble at least several times.

sellis · April 18, 2011

It depends on what it is- cameras, lenses, flashes...I buy the best items possible. For things that see limited use (umbrellas are the only things that come to mind), I buy cheap. Of course, this is after years of buying what I could afford at the moment only to upgrade to better later and wishing I hadn't wasted my money the first time around. I started out with a D70 to a D200 to a D300 to a D700 to a D3s. I couldn't possibly name the lenses I used to own before settling with my core 14-24, 24-70, 70-200. When I had to replace my tripod (lost or stolen), I went with a mid-range Bogen because I don't use one that often.
Then again, my flash modifiers are black or white foam sheets which is about as cheap as you can get, but they work.

Yaflyyadie · April 18, 2011

The savvy ones have spoken.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have learned a lot from them.
My .02 cents and take this as a good advise:

YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.

Now the ball is in your court.

JimKarczewski · April 18, 2011

I see all these people on strobist buying cheap Yongnou flashes, etc. While I seriously considered buying them, service is a PITA (just like Cactus V5.. I bought 9, 3 have broke.. Sending them back is almost more than buying new ones...)

You can get a decent power Yongnou flash for oh, $70, or go to KEH and buy an older Canon for $99. I'd rather the Canon because if I ever have a problem I can still send it back to CPS for repair, vs a trip to China.

Dana · April 18, 2011

Cringe! What's a new kid to do?
This thread has me soooo confused on whether to buy what I can or to save... eeek!

More on the pickle I am in here.

David_S85 · April 18, 2011

Hi Dana! Welcome to the forum. Doesn't that link just take you right back to this own thread?

FlyNavy · April 18, 2011

My first choice would be to buy used from a member of the DGrin forum.*** I have purchased many great items from DGrinners and have been very pleased with the accuracy of their description of the items. They have always exceeded my expectations.
Next choice would be to buy used from your local Craigslist.
Third choice would be Ebay.

*** Sadly one of the respected members of this forum just got ripped off by another member of this forum who claimed his item was in mint condition. So.......even though a DGrinner has 7895+ posts he may be a (insert nasty adjective here). Be very careful. Ask if there is any damage. Ask for high res photos!!!

Dana · April 19, 2011

David_S85 wrote: »

Hi Dana! Welcome to the forum. Doesn't that link just take you right back to this own thread?

The link takes you to my blog, where I vent and ramble on. The blog points back to this forum, since this thread is exactly what is causing my confusion about what the heck to buy. It's endless, really...

David_S85 · April 19, 2011

Dana wrote: »

The link takes you to my blog, where I vent and ramble on. The blog points back to this forum, since this thread is exactly what is causing my confusion about what the heck to buy. It's endless, really...

Ahh. Sorry. I didn't get that it was your blog.

[Deleted User] · April 20, 2011

The user and all related content has been deleted.

What is the NORM..

Comments