Are eBay Used Photo Gear Listings Bogus? Bucket-list City: Re-visiting the Emperors . Clean, Tight, and Graphic! Too, Too Cute. And the Nikon 80-400mm VR lens ...

What’s Up?

Monday morning proved to be perfect for flower photography. The breeze that came up as the sun peaked through early disappeared as early clouds took hold. Macro Plane B Part II is working to perfection. Lots on that here soon. I did some rough-roading with my new SUV and was a bit nervous going through some really deep puddles that left a bow wave rushing over the hood! The all-wheel drive worked to perfection and I was able to breathe easy when I made it back to pavement.

Amazingly, Canon used gear prices are rebounding a bit and there have been many recent sales. I spent a good part of Sunday brokering a deal for Dane Johnson’s practically new Canon 600mm f/4L IS II USM Lens. A deal is pending priced at $5,900.00.

There are lots of dark clouds to the east at 6:23am on Tuesday 28 JULY 2020 and I will be heading out for more flowers soon. With the daily afternoon and evening monsoons I do not dare head down to the lake …

Feel free to leave a comment as to which of today’s three featured images is the strongest. And do let us know why you made your choice.

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Via e-Mail from Multiple IPT veteran and good friend, Donna Bourdon

Donna is a long-time Canon shooter who is dipping her toes into the SONY waters. After purchasing her a9 ii and 200-600 from Steve Elkins at Bedfords, she enjoyed a healthy discount on the SONY guide. She sent me this last night:

I never could have set my new a9 ii without the video. It is amazing that you and Patrick were able to figure out this complex camera so quickly and then develop and shar the guide and the videos with us. Donna

SONY e-Guide Discount Program

Purchase a (new) qualifying SONY camera body (a7r iii, a7r iv, a9, a9 ii) from Bedfords or using a BIRDS AS ART B&H affiliate link, and you will receive a $40 discount on the SONY e-guide. Purchase a (new) SONY 200-600mm G lens from Bedfords or using a BIRDS AS ART B&H affiliate link, and you will receive a $25 discount on the SONY e-guide. Purchase a (new) SONY 600mm f/4 GM lens from Bedfords or using a BIRDS AS ART B&H affiliate link, and you will receive a free SONY e-guide with one or two videos.

Please send your Bedford’s or B&H receipts to me via e-mail to receive your discount and your ordering instructions. Folks purchasing from Bedfords and using the BIRDSASART code will save $50. Folks sending their B&H receipts may need to wait a few days to have their purchases confirmed. Folks using Bedfords will have their purchases confirmed immediately.

105 sold to rave reviews. The SONY e-Guide by Patrick Sparkman and Arthur Morris

The Sony Camera User’s e-Guide (and Videos)

Click here to purchase the guide with one Camera Set-up Video. Be sure to e-mail us by clicking here to specify your camera body so that we can send you a link for the correct video.

Click here to purchase the guide with two Camera Set-up Videos. Be sure to e-mail us by clicking here to specify your two camera bodies so that we can send you links for the correct videos.

Click here to learn more about the SONY e-Guide.

Are eBay Used Photo Gear Listings Bogus?

You tell me …

In the comments at the “BAA V-log: How to Carry a Long Lens On a Tripod. Or Not? Tons of Used Canon Gear at Great Low Prices!” blog post here, Steve asked:

Artie, could you explain why you think eBay prices are “bogus”?

Here is my expanded reply:

Here is one example: I just did a search on eBay for a Canon EOS-1DX Mark II. There were many. The last two sold on the BAA Used Gear page for $2798.00 and $2698.00. On eBay, there has been one listed for several days with less than 1700 actuations priced at $1700.00. With zero bids. There are about 50 listed for somewhere between $3,000 and $4,499.00. About 15 of those are listed for more than $4,000.00.

Now refine your search by checking the box for Completed Items. “eBay Completed Listings are listings that have run their course and ended either with a sale or as unsold. Before listing items on eBay, and to get the most money for an item you are selling, it is a good practice to research completed listings and price accordingly.”

There are at least 60 bodies — I gave up counting — listed as Completed Items. The prices range from $1900.00 to a high of $4299.00. Oh, and there is one listed for 99 cents. Of interest is one listed for $3250.00 with 15 bids as high as $2375.00. The listing was removed. About half of the completed listings showed zero bids.

Now refine your search to Sold. The first listing is one that supposedly sold for $3,312.00 on July 24, 2020. I say supposedly because the same camera had been listed for several days for $1700 (with zero bids). Another was listed as sold on May 20 for US $4,050.00 while just below that one was listed as sold for $1700.00 just two days before …

Does anything seem fishy to you? IAC, keep reading.

The B&H Preliminary Offer for a 9+ Canon EOS-1D X Mark II

Lastly, do you remember that I sold two 1DX II bodies hear recently for $2798.00 and $2698.00? I contacted the Used Department at B&H to see what they would offer for a 1DX Mark II. There offer — as above was an abysmally low $1550.00. Notice that it is a preliminary offer. They pay the shipping but once they have your gear, they are free to lower their offer … You might say that their offer is somewhat of an indication of what your gear might actually be worth. On average, each of the last two 1DX Mark II bodies sold on the BAA Used Gear page for $1198.00 more than the B&H low-ball offer. That works out to 77% more (less the cost of insured ground shipping). It looks as if e-Bay is not the only bogus operation around …

Do know that on very rare occasion, I might — depending on demand for various items — recommend that folks look into accepting a low-ball offer from B&H or another of the big guys …

artie

The BAA Used Gear Page

The BAA Used Gear Page is the place to sell your used photographic equipment. We will help you to get your gear sold quickly for 20 to 60% more than what the big guys are offering … Doubt me? Check out the Past Sales list at the bottom of the page.

Money Saving Reminder

If you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H, would enjoy free overnight shipping, and would like a $50 discount on your first purchase over $1000.00, click here to order and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout. If you are looking to strike a deal on Canon or Nikon gear (including the big telephotos) or on a multiple item order, contact Steve Elkins via e-mail or on his cell at (479) 381-2592 (Eastern time) and be sure to mention your BIRDSASART coupon code and use it for your online order. Steve has been great at getting folks the hot items that are out of stock at B&H. Those include the SONY a7r IV, the SONY 200-600, the SONY 600mm f/4 GM, and the Nikon 500mm PF. Steve is eager to please.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created on 24 OCTOBER 2018 at Snow Hill Island, Antarctica. I used the handheld Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR lens (at 370mm) with my back-up Nikon D850. ISO 400. Matrix metering plus about 1 2/3 stops; 1/2000 sec. at f/8 in Manual mode. Auto1 WB at 2:14pm on a cloudy-bright day. Image #1: Emperor Penguin adult

Bucket-list City: Re-visiting the Emperors …

Was It Worth It?

I spent many tens of thousands of dollars to fulfill a decades-long dream of getting down to photograph an Emperor Penguin colony, especially the incredibly cute teddy-bear-like chicks. I do not think that I have sold a single image from that trip … Truth be told, I have not even tried.

I am often asked, Was it worth it? I do not hesitate to answer, Yes. I got to do something wonderful for three whole days. I got to check an item off my bucket list. After the morning of Day 3, I was exhausted (it was a 4+ mile round trip to the colony). I was suffering from snow blindness — thank the lord that new friend Sue Flood loaned me a pair of sun-goggles! And I was so sated by the experience that I headed back to the ship way-early.

This image was also created on 25 OCTOBER 2018 at Snow Hill Island, Antarctica. Again I used the handheld Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR lens (at 400mm) with my back-up Nikon D850. ISO 400. Matrix metering plus about 1 2/3 stops; 1/1600 sec. at f/11 in Manual mode. Auto1 WB at 12:45pm on a cloudy-bright day. Image #2: Close-up of neck of Emperor Penguin

Clean, Tight, and Graphic

If any three words in the English language can be used to describe my style of bird photography, they would be clean, tight, and graphic. At times I get where I want to be at 1200mm. At times I get low and approach slowly. At Snow Hill, visitors are not permitted to approach the penguins. The Emperors are, however, allowed to approach the visitors. My strategy was to find a few birds in an area of clean snow — things can get pretty messy around penguin colonies, sit down on the ice, and wait. As the penguins are very curious, I usually did not have to wait long.

I never even dreamed of being able to create a neck-pattern abstract with “only” the 80-400 VR.

This image was created on 25 OCTOBER 2018 at Snow Hill Island, Antarctica. I used the handheld Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR lens (at 95mm) with my back-up Nikon D850. ISO 400. Matrix metering plus about 1 2/3 stops; 1/1250 sec. at f/11 in Manual mode. Auto1 WB at 1:01pm on a cloudy-bright day. Image #3: Creche of Emperor Penguin chicks

Too Cute!

King Penguin chicks are round and fat and brown and ugly. They are named Oakum Boys after the tar used to seal the planks on old-time sailing ships. Emperor Penguin chicks on the other hand, resemble cute little gray and white stuffed toys. Are they the cutest bird chicks on the planet or is it that they are so difficult to see? Perhaps both. In any case, they were the stars of the show.

Creche is from the French for “nursery.” For image #3, one or two adults tending this group of almost fifty young Emperors led them up on a small hill before leading them away in a long line to an unknown location.

The Nikon 80-400 VR

Two Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR lenses sold recently on the used gear page. The first generation of this lens was a dog, but the newest (and still current) version was a gem. I micro-adjusted mine with my back-up D-850 and the results were consistently razor/laser sharp. As with all of the intermediate telephoto zoom lenses, the 80-400 VR is amazingly versatile. The only negative of the Nikon version is the 7 foot minimum focusing distance that pales in comparison to the .98 meter close focus of both the SONY and the Canon 100-400mm zooms.

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To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog or Bedfords, for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

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Typos

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