Opinions on AF100 re-sale value after Scarlet is revealed?

Joe748

Joe748

Active member
Is anyone worried if the Scarlet is released under $10,000, will the value of the AF100 take a huge dive?
 
No I would start worrying about the resale value of the scarlet because a newer innovation will supersede it in not so distant future.
 
The quality of the video I have shot and will later shoot with my AF100 will not change an iota due to anything Red does or doesn't do. I prefer the security of owning a camera that is backed up by a huge company that has been in the pro video business for decades and has established a long reputation in the broadcast and industrial/educational TV fields. (Same could be said of Sony or Canon, of course.) And with Red, it always seems that something is missing from their releases or has to be accomplished by sticking on some kind of usually awkward and invariably expensive accessory. I prefer a rig that is as clean as possible and where everything works, predictably and reliably, from the start. Red may eventually mature to the point where I could trust them in this way -- say, to the same point that Panavision did, while still remaining a high-end "boutique" manufacturer (key word: support). But they're not there yet, no matter how good the Scarlet or any other product of theirs performs technically. In the meantime, I am pleased with the images and sound from my AF100 and the people I shoot with, and for, are impressed with it as well. There will always be something newer on the market -- such is technology. One company leaps ahead for a moment, then another. I try to take a longer term perspective and pick equipment, production techniques and business practices that will have long term value -- not because of what they can be sold for later, but for what they can do for me now.

Everything depreciates rapidly starting the second you open the box. I may like the Scarlet, or not; I might even own one someday. None of this makes me any less pleased with the AF100.

- Greg
 
Personally I'm not that interested in the Scarlet. If it ends up being what they previously said it would be then it's a 2/3" fixed lens camera. So small sensor with probably a deeper depth of field and you can't use primes unless adapters start showing up. Other than maybe having a higher resolution and raw files it seems like a step back vs what a lot of people have been clamoring for (prime lenses, interchangeable glass, and shallow depth of field). Epic-S could be a different story depending on what it actually ends up being and how much it will cost.
 
Joe748 said:
Is anyone worried if the Scarlet is released under $10,000, will the value of the AF100 take a huge dive?
Click to expand...

Not at all, though if I owned an F3, I might be a little concerned, but only a little, as it could still be apples and oranges. As Greg said, even if the baseline is 10K, it'll take more to have a fully functional package, and as someone else pointed out in another, similar thread, RED makes their money on accessories, so... that 10K Scarlet might be 20K when it's ready to shoot. Anywhoo, RED (and Canon, come to think of it) is all speculation at this point...
 
If the baseline retail doesn't go down on the AF100 (which it won't regardless of Scarlet) then don't worry so much about your resell value. It'll still hold. IF someone wants the AF100, they'll need to pay relative to the age of it, use, and retail of it brand new...NOT based on what else is out there.

There's always a buyer waiting, you just need to find them. :)
 
I'd worry if you haven't done anything with your Af100 yet :) Besides, you should buy gear if you can make money from it. Otherwise buying doesn't make sense and renting is the way to go. For me, Af100 is so affordable that it made no sense at all to rent. Same rules apply for the Scarlet. If you don't already have a business model, buying expensive gear will just bring you a depressing dent in your wallet.
 
Great post Bob! Jannard just posted that the Scarlet is going to be more expensive than initially thought...

Kegan
 
I just saw that as well. Maybe it's not what they originally planned or stated it would be (2/3", fixed lens). Next week will sure be interesting.
 
The release of Scarlet won't impact on my ability to earn with the AF-100.
By the time I part company with mine it will have paid for itself many times over (just like the cameras I've owned that preceded it).
Would I like to own a Scarlet someday? I don't know . . . more information is required.

I have little doubt that Scarlet will be responsible for many smiling faces in the months ahead.
Congratulations to Jim and the Red crew for "going where no man has gone before" and Best wishes for a huge success!
 
Anything more expensive than the AF101 is overkill for almost everything I do. I have to take into account how much a client is willing to pay for me to shoot with my own equipment and then the AF101 is the perfect match. I cannot justify anything more expensive even if I would like to have something better. I've already earned the investment on camera rental alone so it's now a money making machine.
 
No, they are two totally different tools.
I will be getting a Scarlet, but my HDX900,AF100 and 7D are used by different clients for different types of projects.
Much like one type of light cannot do it all.
I will be keeping my AF100, it's a nice in-between sensor, no too shallow depth of field (so these eyes are not blowing focus), but enough so I do not need my 7D.
The Scarlet will most likely be a RAW recording camera, much different workflow from the AF100, most clients will not want to deal with it, some will.
Buy, keep your camera(s) that are making money for you or that are providing some sort of artistic satisfaction.
 
Those of us who still own tired, decrepit, old-tech pro cameras like HVXs, Z1's, and older that still get the nod for decent-paying work will continue to not care how abyssmal their resale value may be.
 
I still have my Canon XH-A1. I don't use it as a camera anymore only as a deck to ingest DV or HDV. I don't care about resale ever with electronics. I care only about buying the right tool for the work I do. For now it's the AF-100. One thing I'm reconsidering is the money I spend on lenses. I have a nice set of Nikon and Lumix mounts. Moving forward I want PL only.
 
Too many people think of gear as an "investment". When you buy gear, software, expendables, you are investing in your business. We are a small production company focussing on corporate, training, and occasional documentary projects, but if you add up gaff tape, gel, c-47s, AA batteries for the wireless, we spend more on those than the price of a new AF-100 in a year.
 
I think of all cameras as "for-now" purchases, even my Hasselblad H3DII stills camera although I admit I'm hoping that'll last me a decade!

I only ever sell mine when my workflow has moved so far beyond them as to make them useless to me (eg I only sold my two DVX100's when I realised that I hadn't shot anything on tape in over two years and could never see myself doing so again). When I did sell them I was surprised to find that they actually HAD a resale value; it certainly wasn't anything that factored into my buying the cameras or getting rid of them when I did.

The AF100 has already made me its cost many times over so who cares what it is worth on eBay? I care what it can still do for me, and that's plenty for now.

Glass is more of an investment. My next round of purchases when I can afford them will be lush PL glass to last me the next couple of decades. I've mostly stuck to cheap but capable Lumix primes (and the Voigtlander which was just too sweet to resist) for the AF100 in the meantime. These have also paid for themselves many times over.

Cheers, Hywel.
 
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There will usually be someone willing to buy your used camera even 4 years down the road for at least half of what it cost you. If you are purchasing the camera for professional work then it's just icing on the cake. And then of course make sure to buy a new camera that costs more to offset the gain from selling :-)
 
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