what?

Home · Register · Search · Software · Hosting · Software · Join Upload & Sell

FM Forum Rules
Nikon SLRs, primes, and zooms lenses reviews

FM Forums \| Nikon-mount SLRs \| Join Upload & Sell
1 2 3 end

what?

Dustin Gent
Offline
• • • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #1 · what?

CGrindahl wrote:
This thread has a trollish quality to it... a Canon shooter expressing an opinion about a Nikon product. Surprising how many folks feel this needs to be pursued.

It seems he does this a bit. Sad when people are so blind by brand loyalty they have to make some remark. People who have a need (or money) for the tools, price really is not an issue - since that makes them money.

Jan 31, 2013 at 08:00 PM

digitalbug30d
Offline
• • • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #2 · what?

yeah 4,000 less funny...lol

Jan 31, 2013 at 09:33 PM

BenV
Offline
• • • • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #3 · what?

I'm sure theres lots of people with deeper pockets than I, waiting to get one. If I made a living off wild-life photography, I'd be all over this.

Jan 31, 2013 at 09:37 PM

digitalbug30d
Offline
• • • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #4 · what?

sorry if you think its trollism,but I said the same with Canons lenses,and how photography is slowly becoming a rich mans hobby,and with an exotic car you know what you are buying into,can you really say the same for the prices for either the Nikon 24-70 or Canon's,these lenses were/are called the bread and butter lenses for many,yet these have almost doubled in price from their latter counterparts,if I wanted to enjoy bird photography what are my choice's? 5-13k lenses,so I just have to enjoy fruits of others that are lucky enough to have the extra cash laying around for such endeavors.

Jan 31, 2013 at 09:43 PM

binary visions
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #5 · what?

Slowly becoming a rich man's hobby?

Are you actually paying attention to the world around you, or do you just want to throw up some imagined problem?

Never before has it been so cheap to take fantastic images. A D3200 and an 18-55mm VR will let you take detailed, high-resolution images practically in the dark or in any other lighting condition imaginable, with sharp, contrast-y colors, and no processing expense. You can get a 70-300mm VR lens that's as sharp as many of the exotic telephotos of yesteryear, with 24 megapixels of crop-ability, allowing you to get closer than most of the 500mm lenses provided with film, but still hand-holding due to VR, and at higher shutter speeds thanks to better ISO capabilities.

In any event, if you're so sure that old lenses provided the same quality at cheaper prices, why not own those lenses? It's not like there isn't an enormous used market for lenses.

Just because there are ridiculous things like lenses costing more than a base model Honda Civic doesn't mean it's indicative of some widespread problem.

Jan 31, 2013 at 10:57 PM

PeaktoPeek
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #6 · what?

Its pretty simple, if its a hobby and you can't afford the tools then find another hobby or practice your hobby using the means you have at your disposal. Clearly a lens that costs $18,000 is made for people who either a) are making a living shooting their cameras or b)have the money to blow on their hobby. I also like to play golf, but there is no way I could ever afford to play at Pebble Beach. Should I complain about it on some golf forum, saying "its a rich man's game" or should I grab the clubs I bought off ebay and hit my local muni -- and have fun.

Jan 31, 2013 at 11:16 PM

brian_sp
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #7 · what?

PeaktoPeek wrote:
Its pretty simple, if its a hobby and you can't afford the tools then find another hobby

yea, like bass fishing, go buy the nice bass boat, motor, trailor, truck to tow it with and the other related gear, see where that price comes in at

Jan 31, 2013 at 11:37 PM

RoyC
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #8 · what?

brian_sp wrote:
PeaktoPeek wrote:
Its pretty simple, if its a hobby and you can't afford the tools then find another hobby

yea, like bass fishing, go buy the nice bass boat, motor, trailor, truck to tow it with and the other related gear, see where that price comes in at

Not quite, the bass fisherman buys a $25K boat and trailer, $50K SUV to tow it and a half dozen rods and reels to use while fishing. Then he goes in the local Bass Pro shop and bitches about the cost of a package of 25 plastic worms.

Feb 01, 2013 at 12:04 AM

cputeq
Offline
• • • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #9 · what?

digitalbug30d wrote:
If I wanted to enjoy bird photography what are my choice's? 5-13k lenses,so I just have to enjoy fruits of others that are lucky enough to have the extra cash laying around for such endeavors.

7D + 400/5.6 makes a fine bird setup, or Sigma 50-500. Not close enough? Get a 1.4x TC and 1D series and maintain AF. Or, you know, get a blind and physically move closer.

Lots of options not requiring the prices you claim. Troll post or ridiculous life outlook. So everything in this hobby is supposed to be within financial reach of you?

Feb 01, 2013 at 01:08 AM

Rodolfo Paiz
Offline
• • • • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #10 · what?

Danner wrote:
Do you have any reason to believe that a single order has actually been placed?

Yes, I know for sure of at least one order that has been placed.

Feb 01, 2013 at 01:12 AM

Avi B
Offline
• • • • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #11 · what?

Steve Perry wrote:
Danner wrote:
It seems nuts when you compare it to a 400 or 600 + TC?!??

That's what I thought too - until the MTFs were pointed out to me. If they hold in real world testing, it looks like the 800 with the TC is actually sharper than my 500 without one. If I can find a way to afford one, I'll be making a purchase (again, if the MTF numbers hold up)

It's also very handholdable, being about as "difficult" as the 200-400/4. Slightly heavier, but very well balanced on D3s (and I'd imagine D4).

Feb 01, 2013 at 01:21 AM

Andre Labonte
Offline
• • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #12 · what?

binary visions wrote:
Slowly becoming a rich man's hobby?

Are you actually paying attention to the world around you, or do you just want to throw up some imagined problem?

Never before has it been so cheap to take fantastic images. A D3200 and an 18-55mm VR will let you take detailed, high-resolution images practically in the dark or in any other lighting condition imaginable, with sharp, contrast-y colors, and no processing expense. You can get a 70-300mm VR lens that's as sharp as many of the exotic telephotos of yesteryear, with 24 megapixels of crop-ability, allowing you to get closer than most of the 500mm lenses provided with film, but still hand-holding due to VR, and at higher shutter speeds thanks to better ISO capabilities.

In any event, if you're so sure that old lenses provided the same quality at cheaper prices, why not own those lenses? It's not like there isn't an enormous used market for lenses.

Just because there are ridiculous things like lenses costing more than a base model Honda Civic doesn't mean it's indicative of some widespread problem.

+10

Feb 01, 2013 at 02:23 AM

Andre Labonte
Offline
• • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #13 · what?

Rodolfo Paiz wrote:
Danner wrote:
Do you have any reason to believe that a single order has actually been placed?

Yes, I know for sure of at least one order that has been placed.

Hmmm I wounder who would have placed that order ...

I have to say though, I was expecting this lens to come in at about $12K or $13K, not nearly $18K

Feb 01, 2013 at 02:24 AM

VetraLens
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #14 · what?

Eh. While I get where the sentiment is coming from...

I work at one of the few places in the country that has two different models of the new 4K TVs. One comes in at $25k, one at $17k. For an 84" TV. We've already sold multiple units, in just a few months.

In five years, those TVs will be worth 10% of what was paid today. Meanwhile, the 800mm will probably have only lost 10% of its value.

Feb 01, 2013 at 03:16 AM

Anthony Labbe
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #15 · what?

On the bright side, Both my copies of the 800mm 5.6 are sharp and look really good on my 3 84" 4kTV's...

Feb 01, 2013 at 02:06 PM

JTMeuret
Offline
•
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #16 · what?

The whole point here is, it's sad how greedy companies become over time. The demand for cameras and lenses is very high these days. I would like to know how much "profit" Nikon makes per lens at 'retail price', especially with this new 800 f/5.6. They have no reason to sell lenses at reasonable prices when people "gladly" jump on the wagon the second a new lens comes out.

Feb 02, 2013 at 12:10 PM

Dwight3
Offline
•
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #17 · what?

Perspective:

Camera bodies are upgraded on a 4-year schedule. You aren't required to upgrade, but the pressure is on at that point. If you're willing to spend $6K US on a camera body with a lifetime of maybe 10 years, how much are you willing to spend on a lens with a lifetime of decades?

How long do camera bodies hold their value? Lenses? This is an investment.

Feb 02, 2013 at 12:37 PM

binary visions
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.2 #18 · what?

JTMeuret wrote:
The whole point here is, it's sad how greedy companies become over time. The demand for cameras and lenses is very high these days. I would like to know how much "profit" Nikon makes per lens at 'retail price', especially with this new 800 f/5.6. They have no reason to sell lenses at reasonable prices when people "gladly" jump on the wagon the second a new lens comes out.

I suspect that Nikon is making very little off the sale of this lens.

Typically, flagship products like this are not high profit margin items - their value is in defining a brand.

I'm sure their are a lot of high profit margin lenses that Nikon sells, but this is very unlikely to be one of them.

Feb 02, 2013 at 01:25 PM

M635_Guy
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #19 · what?

binary visions wrote:
JTMeuret wrote:
The whole point here is, it's sad how greedy companies become over time. The demand for cameras and lenses is very high these days. I would like to know how much "profit" Nikon makes per lens at 'retail price', especially with this new 800 f/5.6. They have no reason to sell lenses at reasonable prices when people "gladly" jump on the wagon the second a new lens comes out.

I suspect that Nikon is making very little off the sale of this lens.

Typically, flagship products like this are not high profit margin items - their value is in defining a brand.

I'm sure their are a lot of high profit margin lenses that Nikon sells, but this is very unlikely to be one of them.

I totally agree. For some reason it seems like a popular drum to beat in the photography world, but I find it kind of silly. These are companies, not charities. As someone said above, it has never been so affordable to get amazing imaging power in your hands. In the case of this lens, I doubt they are making much at all in terms of real margin, whether gross dollars (due to low volume) or % (due to high base costs).

So after they've paid for all the development, testing, tooling, service infrastructure, etc., none of it cheap, how many more do they sell by dropping the price to, say $12K?? For that matter, let's say they get crazy and drop it to $9K, fully half of what they announced. How many more go out the door?

Probably very, very few. This is a lens for a very specific crowd. Their market is pretty small and dropping the price is unlikely to do anything more than cause them to lose money on an exotic piece of development. At the announced price, I doubt they'll make any money on it for the first couple of years - they're just paying off the costs of tooling and other sunk costs that are there no matter what. On top of that, this isn't a lens that sells as they add share - the crowd that buys this is already on a platform and won't switch for a single new piece of glass because they have several others that are big money already. You'll get new sales from bureaus/rental services as they replace damaged examples. A very small number of people will take up areas of photography where this lens is useful.

Ultimately, they aren't going to sell very many so they are being fiscally smart. I doubt they'll lose many sales at all at that price, only money if they reduced it. If the MTF ratings are accurate, this is a pretty amazing piece of work.

Shoot, even at $3K most of us couldn't and wouldn't have one. What is the point in ranting about the greedy company? It takes just a few minutes of considered thought to understand why Nikon is just being a prudent, reasonable company in this case. As usual.

Edited on Feb 02, 2013 at 03:15 PM · View previous versions

Feb 02, 2013 at 03:01 PM

Avi B
Offline
• • • • •
Upload & Sell: On

p.2 #20 · what?

Also, we should all realize that one of the reasons that things are getting more expensive is because your Federal Reserve "Bank" is printing money. If you devalue your currency, what do you expect?

Feb 02, 2013 at 03:07 PM

1 2 3 end
FM Forums \| Nikon-mount SLRs \| Join Upload & Sell 1 2 3 end