I've been in love with photography since I have use of reason (or as far back and my memory goes). There have been times that I've been obsessed with it -- I remember shooting over two hundred shots of waves crashing on the Malecon in north Havana when I got my first SLR over 20 years ago (for a humanitarian trip) and loving each of those that came properly focused and exposed -- my mother, however, was not entirely happy I spent so much film and money on crashing waves instead of other, less mundane things. I remember, too, being camera-less for a long time in my college years and how frustrating that was. However, what has always remained true is that my wallet/pockets seem to always lag far behind my photography
needs. I've been using a decent Tamron 28-75/2.8 for at least five years, probably longer. It gets the job done and has its moments of heroism when it simply takes the shot better than what I had envisioned. However, I've been wanting to get more than just "getting the job done". I wanted versatility, I wanted range, I wanted sharpness, I wanted ridiculous bokeh, I wanted natural softness and so forth. But, a brief look on Amazon or any other photography establishment will discourage most people with a tight budget, including yours truly. A decent lens runs at least $700, hundreds more if it's an premium line (i.e. "L" glass from Canon). So, I never really had the pockets or guts to splurge on my beloved hobby.
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| Yashica 135/28 |
Then a few weeks ago, a co-worker and fellow photo enthusiast showed me some amazing results with a lens he had gotten off eBay for relatively very little money. I was, of course, very much apprehensive of buying anything off eBay having been burned a few times in the past -- let alone something as delicate as precision optics. But, if I was to get my photography needs met, I was going to have to take some risks. After researching what were the easiest lenses to adapt to the Canon EOS system, I settled for the Contax/Yashica. I bought the adapter for a little over $10 from Amazon. I then went on eBay and looked around for lenses for the C/Y mount. To my surprise there were literally hundreds of listings ranging from very inexpensive to quite pricey (for select Carl Zeiss lenses). A bit wary still I looked around until I found a good prime lens for under $50 (shipping included). I figured even if it was complete junk, $50 loss wouldn't be the end of the world. I narrowed it down to three or four candidates. They all met my price criteria and they were the same model (i.e. Yashica 135/2.8), so I went with the seller that had the best recent reviews/ratings regarding photo gear. A few days later, the lens arrived. I did an initial eyeball inspection looking for defects in the lens or lens assembly. All checked out. That day after work, took the lens for a spin. I took a few shots and came back to pixel peep on Lightroom. I was floored. The subject was tack sharp, the depth of field amazing. Alright, I officially contracted the photo bug. I went immediately on eBay this time with loftier goals: I wanted at least one Carl Zeiss glass in my repertoire. I looked and looked until I found the lens I wanted (50/1.7 Planar T*). I researched the closing price of similar lenses and I set my bid in the vicinity. I won the auction and a few days later the glass arrived. It passed my eyeball inspection and then blew my mind while looking through some of the test shots.
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| Carl Zeiss 50/1.7 |
So, then the question became more of "what lenses do I want?" instead of "what lenses can I afford?" With the 135 prime, the 50 prime, I wanted a wider one. So, went ahead purchased a Yashica 28/2.8 and upon arrival and testing I was not disappointed. All mechanical systems worked flawlessly and the optical performance exactly as expected. After taking dozens, if not hundreds, of test pictures of different subjects, I was convinced that my investment had yielded positive ROI (in terms of satisfaction, not monetization, of course).
All set and done, I spent less than half (!) of what the cheapest "L" glass cost (which I believe it's the non-IS 70-200/4) and have three amazing lenses to play with. I feel photographically re-awakened and with the need to take pictures and visually express myself. I, of course, while highly encourage fellow photographers on tight-budgets to leverage eBay, it goes without saying to be very careful and selective when purchasing second- or third-hand glass. So here are my rules of thumb:
- Always, always look for not just good ratings, but relevant seller ratings. I don't care a seller has a million positive feedback selling stickers, I want to see past and recent photo gear ratings.
- Look for the item description for condition and be fast and loose to ask questions to the seller.
- Skip the canned item specs. They are of little use. Pay attention to the description as explained above.
- Be in the lookout for copy-and-paste descriptions -- there were many. And, again, if ever in doubt ask away. Most legit sellers are all too happy to answer your queries in a timely fashion.
- In order to avoid annoying and potentially expensive bidding wars, set your maximum bid to the maximum you're willing to pay. eBay's new automated bid system will always give you the lowest price up to the maximum you set.
Below is the whole set of test shots that I took with the above lenses. I have many more, but I think most people appreciate better inanimate subjects :)
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