gonna purchase a BMC , 5d body and 21mm zeiss cp.2 prime. I emailed Abelcine for a quote and they gave me MSRP prices. Are there no deals on large purchases? Anyone have any good recommendations?
For the 5D, used is best. Or watch Canon Direct for a deal on refurbs. They had the 5DII recently at around $1,725, but you can often find a 15% discount there.
Honestly, that isn't a huge spend for most pro dealers. You really have a choice between paying a bit more from a dealer that will provide you excellent customer support, be there on the phone for you, know you by name, has a loaner available if you are in trouble, etc. but who is used to $20K top $50K spens as a "normal" sale. And/or piecing out a kit yourself by carefully buying used, or new at special price points/sales.
In between is placing an order at B&H (or Adorama, Calumet, etc.) for a good, solid retailer you can trust, but where you remain essentially annonymous, and your $8,000 order is just a one or two step transaction.
That is just a general, quick response. When I had a studio and shot Broncolor, I had about $50K of equipment and knew all 3 of my sales people - including the owner - like friends. But for Canon gear, even things like the $8,000 1DsII and $20,000 of L lenses, it was just a B&H or Calumet order.
