AF100 now includes 14-140 lens

Shooter said:
Do you offer your clients some sort of "freebie" down the track a year later? If so..send them a cheque or do something free for them to show how special they were for actually working with you.

Being an "early adopter" has advantages and disadvantages. Get over it and get back to work.
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You're comparing services to products, and that makes no sense, but say i did provide a service and it was shot in HD but delivery was digital files and later on i got a blu-ray burner; of course i would offer to give the client a blu-ray copy as well. perhaps i would offer it free, or just at the cost of the disc, either way i would offer it. you can't tell me that you think that panasonic shouldn't offer the lens to anyone who bought it in the last two weeks? or perhaps you feel they should have to return it and pay a restocking fee and re-buy it? And for those of us who bought it months ago it would have at least saved them face to offer us a discount on it, or another lens. i probably wouldn't even have used the offer, but i would have appreciated it. I don't look for handouts, i just appreciate attention to detail.

so i stand by my opinion, and i feel more for those who purchased it within the last 2 weeks more than i feel for myself. They could have at least announced the deal say 2 weeks before so they didn't completely annoy the most recent purchasers. in the end it's all about courtesy, and what they did just shows their attention to their bottom line than considering it's loyal customer base.

And yes it's wrong to put any blame on Jan for this, if anything i feel terrible for you Jan because you've done a great job bringing our preferences to the big boys and they do things like this to make it that much harder for you to show that the company cares.

In the end it's something that all companies do, we're the pigeons and they're the old man on the bench with a bag of bread crumbs.

and shooter; me and my breadcrumbs are shooting and quite busy at the moment thank ye very much ;)
 
imdjay said:
In the end it's something that all companies do, we're the pigeons and they're the old man on the bench with a bag of bread crumbs.
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Actually it isn't something that all companies do. They do not go back and give away a freebie that is part of today's promotion. You couldn't begin to budget for that in a marketing sense nor would you be able to afford it, and thus no program would be available.

Just know this is a short interim, limited quantity promotion. It was all based on a rather bizarre set of circumstances that will cease to exist once this fairly small quantity of lenses are gone.

Best,

jan
 
ah that got read wrong, i didn't mean that all companies give away freebies, quite the opposite, that companies do what they do and we the end user can only make use of what's thrown to us.
 
spyke said:
I think Panasonic found a way of getting rid of their inventory of 14-140 lenses which have been panned by most users as overpriced and under-engineered (nice way of describing a crappy lens). I don't consider that to be a great buying incentive.

As for Shooter being a voice of reason, he sounds more like an angry old curmudgeon who likes picking a fight, no matter what the subject (lenses, audio, his cinematic vision and venerable Nikons and now his wife's car).
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x

I'm going to have to disagree. Most users have praised the 14-140 as a good all purpose lens, as long as you have the light to back it up.

As far as Shooter goes, he is one of the few people who is thinking rationally in this thread. You may not like his tongue in cheek tone, but you can't fault him for his stance.

And personally, would i like some sort of freebie from Panasonic? Of course. Am i likely to get one? No. I got one of the first cameras in Canada and i am not going to hold the lack of a freebie against Jan, or anyone else for that matter.
 
Sorry that Jan has to be the face of this here, she's a smart, experienced marketer who knows better, I was certain she argued against it for all the right reasons, anyone who called her out owes an apology.

Do I make attractive bids to gain new clients? Yes. But I also reward my longtime loyal ones all the time, all (smart) businesses do. If client A, who has spent a ton with me over the years, finds out new client B is getting a better rate, he's going to be pissed, and rightly so. So I make sure that my longstanding clients get respect in terms of aggressive pricing and services, just like every smart business. Hell, on a lesser scale, when my ISP and cable co.'s offered lower rates to new customers, I felt burned and complained, and guess what? I got an apology and a better deal.

As to the nonsense that the $800 should be paid off by now, money is money, and that $800 could have been paying off something else. Anyone who thinks it's no big deal can just send me off a check for $800. And what of the no budget filmmaker or kid fresh out of school who bought in to make their films?

One of the things that stings here is that it's so soon after launch. After a certain time period, when sales lag and the item needs a boost, then that's another story. Am I saying that there's an acceptable time frame for this kind of deal? Yes, I am. This freebie so soon after launch is disrespectful, plain and simple.
 
Sorry, Jan. I do owe you a public apology for including you in my post against the company. I can picture you at the marketing meeting standing up for us and saying, 'our buyers are not going to like this and we shouldn't do it'. Panasonic is at fault, not you.

Regards,
Scott
 
Okay, I think I've figured out how early adopters can get the free 14-140 lens.

Buy another AF-100! :beer:

Come on guys. It's just like buying anything else. Say you buy a shirt or a DVD or a disk drive at full price, then 2 weeks later the item goes on sale. Of course you feel the pain, but you can't really expect the seller to give you a retroactive discount. Vent your frustrations here, then go out and enjoy your (relatively) new camera.
 
...These sort of buying incentives happen all the time. Nothing new here. Though I do suspect it's related to the FS-100 coming on the market, so Panasonic ups the ante a bit.

spyke said:
I think Panasonic found a way of getting rid of their inventory of 14-140 lenses which have been panned by most users as overpriced and under-engineered (nice way of describing a crappy lens). I don't consider that to be a great buying incentive.
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I don't know any users who have panned this lens. It's quite a sharp zoom, especially considering it's focal length and price, and it's parfocal. Yes it's slow, but what other 10x zoom lens isn't, apart from a few $20K+ cine lenses.

spyke said:
As for Shooter being a voice of reason, he sounds more like an angry old curmudgeon who likes picking a fight, no matter what the subject (lenses, audio, his cinematic vision and venerable Nikons and now his wife's car).
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Based upon Shooter's work and his posts, I think he knows what he's talking about. Nor do I think he's got a bone to pick with anybody.

Some people are upset that they missed out on this new free lens incentive, I can understand that, but bitching about it is not going to change anything.
 
maybe pana did it becase the new lens is being produced?

Jan_Crittenden said:
Actually it isn't something that all companies do. They do not go back and give away a freebie that is part of today's promotion. You couldn't begin to budget for that in a marketing sense nor would you be able to afford it, and thus no program would be available.

Just know this is a short interim, limited quantity promotion. It was all based on a rather bizarre set of circumstances that will cease to exist once this fairly small quantity of lenses are gone.

Best,

jan
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I'm curious about this "bizarre set of circumstances." Is a better 14-140 or a similar all purpose lens coming out soon? As in maybe 14-180 2.8?
 
It never ends, does it?

Last year it was a bunch of crying because the 370 came close behind the 300.
It will always be this way.

I think some folks have a tendency to overlook the fact that the AF-100 pretty much ended up in final form based largely upon input from DVXUSERS (something for which we may be thankful). This is a process that began with the DVX100 . . . and something we can all thank Jan for.

I paid full price for my AF-100 (and my 14-140mm lens) and haven’t had the slightest regret.
In fact I used that lens exclusively a week ago and made nearly as much as the cost of the lens on a single job.

Perhaps a bit off subject but I have to think that some of the selling off, and negative comments on this particular camera have more to do with the fact that it isn’t “point & shoot” in the same way as some of the others (are close to). You actually have to think and practice to get a useful shot.

Now watch how many people cry that they missed the deal . . . once the lens supply is exhausted.
 
This is a good deal .. and i like texas media .. they've been good to work with.

i think a lot of people are intimidated by having to pick a lens when they're moving up
to this grade of camera.

jeff
 
We put that lens up against the Arri Alura at the NYC Weekend Workshop, on a big screen. It's just as sharp, on the AF100.

Yes the lens has its issues (it's slow and it doesn't hold focus/iris during a zoom, although it will correct after the zoom stops). But it also has a lot going for it.
 
I ........ bought ........ my camera ........ 6 days ago ........ :undecided

Barry- this is the only MFT auto lens that's fully compatible with the AF100 correct? The one mentioned in page 9, vol. 1 of the manual?

Jan- thanks for hanging in there- at least it's Friday :cheesy:
 
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Ed Kishel said:
I ........ bought ........ my camera ........ 6 days ago ........ :undecided
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If it came with decent return policy, just return it and reorder.

This is the only MFT auto lens that's fully compatible with the AF100, correct?
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This is the only lens that is advertised for HD video. It is quiet and sort of parfocal while allowing automatic operation on M43 bodies. The lens compatibility is routinely updated as new lenses get validated and/or firmware gets updated. You can refer the AF100 Lens Compatibility Chart for the latest information. This chart, however, is designed for automatic and semi-automatic lenses. Nearly all 3rd party lenses (both still and cine) can be used on the AF100 with a simple adapter in manual mode. Lastly, company called Birger Engineering is working on an electronic adapter for the Canon EF mount allowing Canon glass to work in auto on the AF100.
 
The af100 is $800 less than what I got the camera for. I was one of the first people in Canada to get one, and I have made enough money using it to buy an Epic. I think the only ones that complain about depreciation of technology are hobbyists. If you buy gear for business, you understand the logistics of running a business and understand that things depreciate. The best time to buy gear is when you need it... not when it seems like you might make money down the road with it.
 
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