where there’s smoke there’s forum fire
Hi guys,
I am new to this site but I would really like some advice on buying lenses. I am about to purchase my first non-kit lens (the 35mm/f1.8) and I was wondering if I should wait until black friday to get it or just go ahead and get it now.
Thanks!
The 35. 1.8 is an outstanding lens..get it now before supplies run low. It is one of the favorite nikon lens for indoor family photo's.
Cheers,
Ali
Love mine and buy now since it seems that prices are to raise soon as per this blog.
I am unaware of there ever having been a Black Friday promotion on Nikon SLR lenses, and as others have said prices are on their way up if anything.
According to that same price increase post, Nikon's authorized retailers (people who get their stock directly from the company) cannot drop their prices below a certain point if they want to continue to be able to do business with Nikon, so you're not going to see lenses used as a doorbuster in black friday promotions.
Thanks for everyone's input! I will be buying it very soon then.
Also, do you think it's important to buy a lens with warranty/coverage? I would like to buy from Amazon but I have no prior experience so I'm not sure if it'll be worth it to maybe spend more for full coverage at somewhere like Ritz?
Thanks!
I bought mine from Amazon and service and product was first level
did you ever have to get it fixed or checked up?
I would not worry too much about extended warranties. Nikon offers five years already on their lenses.
If you buy a new USA lens or camera and you live in the USA, it doesn't matter where you bought it.
That is really the only thing you need to make sure of, since Amazon is not only a retailer but a front for other retailers with differing products.
If you have to get it serviced you will mail it to Nikon not the reseller. I have bought USA products from Amazon, B&H and other places and never had any problem with returns and as I mentioned Nikon is where you send repairs to (for example my D7000 bought at B&H last November is on it's way to Nikon in Escondido, CA for some repair). The warranty is LONG enough for lenses that there is plenty of time for you to spot a flaw and get it repaired. The likelihood of repairs however, is very low for Nikon lens.
Where you have to be more careful is eBay, but even there if you ask the right questions to the seller before buying, eBay Buyer Protection kicks in if you have a problem with a seller. This happened to me recently with fungus that was hard to spot on a 180 AI, but I have bought lenses before and since and never had problems.
I bought the 35mm f1.8 and liked it so much that I bought a second one several months later for my son-in-law for Christmas. If in the US and you buy a USA Warrenty lens, service with Nikon is no problem. I just had a Nikon 18-200 VR repaired that was 4 years and 9 months old at no cost and great service from the Nikon repair in New Jersey.
I wouldn't worry too much about extended warranties- you don't need them all that much, and if the lens is defective, you will usually find out in the first few days where you can get an exchange or refund fairly easily. They are fairly important with lenses that have a reputation for breaking down, but the 35/1.8 is simple enough that not much seems to go wrong. Just sticking with the warranty Nikon gives you should be enough.
Changed the title of this thread to keep it from becoming another "What lens should I buy" thread.
Sadly most nikkors don't go on sale black Friday (I have yet to see if the 35mm f1.8 does).
I personally would jump on it now.
Black friday is a good time to get hard drives and memory cards though.
I got an email from a member asking what "Black Friday" meant. Black Friday is the biggest shopping day in the United States. It signifies the first day of the Christmas shopping season and always starts on the Friday after Thanksgiving Day in late November.
Retailers usually discount certain items 25, 50, or 75 percent off retail prices in order to get shoppers to spend money at their stores. However they make it difficult to actually buy those items because they keep very limited stock or the sale is only for one or two hours.
Shoppers literally camp outside stores for several days waiting to be the first inside a store on Black Friday. Some people have even been trampled to death!
sounds more like :
Dumb Friday
lets say $200, less the sale discount 25% ??
thats $150.00
Doctor fees for frostbite, flu, trampling, redneck fighting, etc.
$250.00 + cost of lens $150.00 = $400.00
good bargin, go for it.
or, wait for the promotion by Nikon, buy a camera and get a lens for % off.
I never understood Black Friday. For the most part, Amazon has pretty cheap prices if you wait long enough and know the right sites to check every so often.
Free shipping for basically anything over $25, and I don't even need to leave my house.
Why bother wasting time camping when I could be home sleeping?
NikoDoby said:
I got an email from a member asking what "Black Friday" meant. Black Friday is the biggest shopping day in the United States. It signifies the first day of the Christmas shopping season and always starts on the Friday after Thanksgiving Day in late November.
Thanks for clarifying Niko, my mother would hate Black Friday, she thinks buying things in sales is demeaning, and waits till after they've finished before buying!!! :-)
Pity Samy's never discounts the Pro gear on black friday :(=
Really in general no dSLR gear goes on sale. There have been some discounts if you buy a body and lens or whatever, but for a lens that is already only around $200 it won't ever be on sale. Unless you are buying used or something then most are about the same price everywhere for new equipment.
Ive seen some of the consumer stuff (think D3100) on sale but you will have a better bet at a camera store for a sale (not on black friday)
tcole1983 said:
Really in general no dSLR gear goes on sale. There have been some discounts if you buy a body and lens or whatever, but for a lens that is already only around $200 it won't ever be on sale. Unless you are buying used or something then most are about the same price everywhere for new equipment.
Agreed. The only time camera gear is really on sale is just before it gets replaced by a newer product.
You probably won't get discounts on the cameras themselves but you will sometimes see bundle deals. For example you might get a free carry case and memory card with a DSLR or point & shoot purchase.
@lindo -- As many have stated, no need for extended warranty on USA versions of Nikon gear. Hence, stay away from those "gray market/import" lens that you see being sold on Adorama and B&H. Moreover, if you ever buy Nikon lens from other sites like eBay always ask if it is USA version or import. The honest sellers will be more than happy to give you that info, if not even have it listed on the add.
Happy shopping :)
I will also add about ebay and other sites. I would make sure they are an authorized Nikon dealer. I haven't tried it, but I can imagine you might might run into trouble with warranty service if you buy from an unauthorized dealer...example buying "new" from ebay that isn't an authorized dealer.
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