Did i get a good deal?

nantnee

Well-known member
Paid $200 for a 85mm f1.8 nikon. Here are some pics. Deal or no Deal??? I also have a 50mm f1.4 nikon on the way from ebay that i'll post up later.

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There was some gunk on the edges.
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dvx1.jpg
 
Is the front lens just dusty or is that permanent?
Can you return?
I paid 119 for the same lens on ebay two months ago and it's in much better condition.
 
Doesn't seem like a good deal. Perhaps you can return if the description did not match?
Nikons in ragged condition often fetch too much.
 
The one in the pictures I bought from a camera store. Everything looked good except for the gunk in the lens and the outside is pretty used. But everything else functions nicely.
The second from the bottom is smudge from my fingers.

I paid $100 for the 50mm 1.4. To much?
 
ARE YOU KIDDING? A 1.8 85mm lens costs a fortune when you buy it new. This is a great deal. Don't even think about returning it. The best I could find for a 2.8 85mm lens was an old auto-focus for around 350 Euros. You have a manual 1.8!

As for the 50mm lens, any lens which costs 100 Euros or less is a good deal. I was not as lucky as you. I paid 100 Euros for a 1.8 50mm lens. I still consider it a great deal.

So you're in great shape. You should not even be asking such questions.

To sum things up, here are some list prices for new NIKOR lenses:

28mm F 2.8.......................930 Euros
50mm F 1.4.......................780 Euros
85mm F 1.4 AF................1600 Euros
85mm F 1.8 AF..................500 Euros

And by the way, don't forget most new lenses are auto-focus. Getting manual lenses is becoming a problem to find. If you can find them grab them.

Finally, there are lenses which you may never find again. So if you come across it, buy it. The best purchase I made was a 35-75mm F 2.8 (constant F) zoom lens which I use for practically everything I shoot. Imagine my surprise when I found out Nikon does not make that lens anymore and provides no replacement which does anything close to that.

The lens issue can be summed up in one sentence: Take it while you can!!!
 
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These Nikon lenses are so ridiculously expensive, even the old models. I've bought equivalent FD lenses for half this much and they're great glass. Not sure why Nikons would cost so much more.
 
ARE YOU KIDDING? A 1.8 85mm lens costs a fortune when you buy it new. This is a great deal. Don't even think about returning it. The best I could find for a 2.8 85mm lens was an old auto-focus for around 350 Euros. You have a manual 1.8!

As for the 50mm lens, any lens which costs 100 Euros or less is a good deal. I was not as lucky as you. I paid 100 Euros for a 1.8 50mm lens. I still consider it a great deal.

So you're in great shape. You should not even be asking such questions.

To sum things up, here are some list prices for new NIKOR lenses:

28mm F 2.8.......................930 Euros
50mm F 1.4.......................780 Euros
85mm F 1.4 AF................1600 Euros
85mm F 1.8 AF..................500 Euros

And by the way, don't forget most new lenses are auto-focus. Getting manual lenses is becoming a problem to find. If you can find them grab them.

Finally, there are lenses which you may never find again. So if you come across it, buy it. The best purchase I made was a 35-75mm F 2.8 (constant F) zoom lens which I use for practically everything I shoot. Imagine my surprise when I found out Nikon does not make that lens anymore and provides no replacement which does anything close to that.

The lens issue can be summed up in one sentence: Take it while you can!!!

must be supply vs demand; in the US there are tons of cheap used nikon glass
 
same as Japan, most stores have barrels of old manual lenses that no one wants anymore, nikon or otherwise.
 
85mm F1.8's do tend to be pricey in almost all the lens lines. It is one of the most expensive Minolta lenses for some reason. To get a Minolta 85mm MC or MD lens used on ebay or KEH you're going to be paying well over $200 whereas a kick a** Minolta 50mm MD F1.4 goes for about $40 - a huge difference.
I only thought $200 was a bit pricey cuz I bought a Nikon 85mm F1.8 AF-D in near new shape for $275 a few years ago when the economy was heated up. It's worth it to spend a little more and not be thinking later that you could have had that extra edge in contrast or resolution by not going with a cheaper lens.
I think used lens prices, like all fluctuating asset classes right now, are quite depressed. So if you have cash (mine is going to the IRS) now is a pretty good time to pick and choose. And it will probably be like that for the rest of 2009...
 
one of the things im worried about is the gunk inside, around the edges of the lens. Does stuff like that show up when shooting?
 
These Nikon lenses are so ridiculously expensive, even the old models. I've bought equivalent FD lenses for half this much and they're great glass. Not sure why Nikons would cost so much more.
Can't you still use them on current Nikon bodies? That's undoubtedly why.

Canon doesn't make any camera bodies with FD mounts anymore so they're cheaper second-hand than the equivalent manual Nikons.

It's why I have an FD mount for the LetusEx :)
 
Yes, FD gets a bad rap because of that and because you have to modify them to get to iris control. But for adapter use they're simply perfect and IMO is one of the best bang for the buck choices out there. Using a Letus FD mount no modification is even necessary. My $50 50mm 1.4 is sharp, very sharp, while the equivalent nikon easily costs twice to three times as much.

http://huyvu.smugmug.com/photos/499818995_T3ZHj-X3.jpg
 
do ya'll know if that stuff on inside edges will show up on the footage?
if you want to check the condition of the lens, point it to the sky and take pictures. if anything is inside or there are big scratches on the lens you can tell because it shows up on the photo.
that's what I do.
 
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