Buying used/refurbed photography gear w/no knowledge?

[Evan55T]

Currently there's are used nikon d700's for sale @ adorama and @ this local camera shop in my town, unlike adorama the local camera shop in my town doesn't list the rating of how refurbed the camera is. The guy there just says it's *used* and has a 90 day warranty like every other local camera shop i've been to.

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So yeah the issue is i don't know how reliable/in working condition the camera @ the local shop or any shop i visit because i don't have any knowledge of the parts of a camera and what to check specifically. Like to me when i go to a shop and look @ a used camera i want to buy say a d700 i take a few shots/play around with it and just by looking at it looks fine to me tbh but like i said idk what i'm doing.

I probably could've googled this question/information or searched it up here but i figure i might as well ask if there is an easy solution or if camera's are just pretty reliable overall and i won't have to worry about a major issue with certain parts/pieces of the camera going bad.

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And yes i probably should do a ton of research on camera bodies/specific parts to check etc. as this question does seem sort of ignorant but i am trying to find an easy solution to this problem

 

[tirediron]

There is no "definite" check... Like all used gear, I would start with a thorough visual inspection. Is it clean, does it appear to have been well cared for (wear marks are fine, evidence of being dropped/banged, no so much)? Are the battery terminals clean? Do all the controls move smoothly and perform their intended function? How many shutter cycles? The D700 is rated for 150,000 shutter cycles, so if it's at 140,000, chance are it may be getting to the end of it's life, 'though mine has logged 200,000+ and continues to work just fine. Put a lens on it, take a few shots in different modes, at different settings, and see how they look.

 

[Evan55T]

There is no "definite" check... Like all used gear, I would start with a thorough visual inspection. Is it clean, does it appear to have been well cared for (wear marks are fine, evidence of being dropped/banged, no so much)? Are the battery terminals clean? Do all the controls move smoothly and perform their intended function? How many shutter cycles? The D700 is rated for 150,000 shutter cycles, so if it's at 140,000, chance are it may be getting to the end of it's life, 'though mine has logged 200,000+ and continues to work just fine. Put a lens on it, take a few shots in different modes, at different settings, and see how they look.

Thank you sir, i find buying photography gear sort of analogous to buying cars or certain parts though i'm just getting lazy and looking for an easy solution.

Also i could bring someone with me to take a look at it who has more experience then i do (which was my 1st idea), but atm no one is close by that i know of.

 

[john.margetts]

If it looks in good condition and everything works and you have a three month warranty - that is as good as you are going to get. If it is not a good camera, it should become apparent within three months.

 

[SquarePeg]

If you buy it, upload your first photos to something free like Picassa which will display the shutter count in the photo data. Or ask if you can check it at the store if they don't know what it is.

 

[Derrel]

If you buy it, upload your first photos to something free like Picassa which will display the shutter count in the photo data. Or ask if you can check it at the store if they don't know what it is.

Solid advice from all three posters above. Refurbished by Nikon is sold by Cameta Camera, for example, and this stuff has been cleaned, and checked. MUCH refurb gear was simply returned to the vendor, and in the USA cannot legally or ethically, be sold as NEW equipment.Best Buy has a really liberal, 30-day return period, and generates a LOT of refurb gear. This equipment is now being sold mostly through a handful of BIG dealerships, like Adorama, B&H, and Camera Camera. Again--the VAST,vast,vast majority of Refurbished by Nikon gear is returned merchandise--this is a far,far cry from "Used".

Many refurbs have One Wedding on them. Or One Christmas. Or one big wedding anniversary celebration. Or One big Family Reunion on them. I used to sell cameras at retail=, and I can tell you, "Buying instead of renting,and then returning," is what the Big Box retailers have made so,so easy to do. Buy a camera, shoot the event, return it, and in doing so create another almost-new refurb for the supply chain. Verrrrrrrrry different than a three year old used camera some local wedding pro sold to a small-town dealer.

Go into the shop. Stick in a memory card, and shoot some test shots, take the card home, and upload a .JPG from the Nikon in question, and get an online shutter count. A shutter count total, and comparing that against the camera, will likely tell you a lot. Like a car with 20,000 miles on it, and worn-out seat upholstery. 20K? No, more likely 200,020K.

 

[Evan55T]

If you buy it, upload your first photos to something free like Picassa which will display the shutter count in the photo data. Or ask if you can check it at the store if they don't know what it is.

Solid advice from all three posters above. Refurbished by Nikon is sold by Cameta Camera, for example, and this stuff has been cleaned, and checked. MUCH refurb gear was simply returned to the vendor, and in the USA cannot legally or ethically, be sold as NEW equipment.Best Buy has a really liberal, 30-day return period, and generates a LOT of refurb gear. This equipment is now being sold mostly through a handful of BIG dealerships, like Adorama, B&H, and Camera Camera. Again--the VAST,vast,vast majority of Refurbished by Nikon gear is returned merchandise--this is a far,far cry from "Used".

Many refurbs have One Wedding on them. Or One Christmas. Or one big wedding anniversary celebration. Or One big Family Reunion on them. I used to sell cameras at retail=, and I can tell you, "Buying instead of renting,and then returning," is what the Big Box retailers have made so,so easy to do. Buy a camera, shoot the event, return it, and in doing so create another almost-new refurb for the supply chain. Verrrrrrrrry different than a three year old used camera some local wedding pro sold to a small-town dealer.

Go into the shop. Stick in a memory card, and shoot some test shots, take the card home, and upload a .JPG from the Nikon in question, and get an online shutter count. A shutter count total, and comparing that against the camera, will likely tell you a lot. Like a car with 20,000 miles on it, and worn-out seat upholstery. 20K? No, more likely 200,020K.

Dude holy **** thank you so much good information

Yeah a lot of people are saying to bring my own mem card and take photos at the shop on the camera/lens and look it over in post processing. So would you say that is the top of your list to check for any major issues?

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Also in regards to the best buy return policy, could i potentially do that go out and buy a super expensive lens and camera if i were to say shoot an event like you said then return it after im done for full price that i paid for? Ik that sounds ethically wrong but hey more power to the people that thought of doing that lol.

 

[Derrel]

Yeah, bring your own card, and shoot some "real photos". See if it can focus a lens or two. See if the meter is right. LOOK at the camera...wear on the new Nions is hard to spot, compared to older film cameras. Look CLOSELY, and look for dirty areas in crevices. LEAVE and go home, and check the shutter count. Also...se what the NAME is that the camera assigns to the folder for the images.

But, shoot, return a new camera for full price? Yes, unethical.

 

[Evan55T]

Yeah, bring your own card, and shoot some "real photos". See if it can focus a lens or two. See if the meter is right. LOOK at the camera...wear on the new Nions is hard to spot, compared to older film cameras. Look CLOSELY, and look for dirty areas in crevices. LEAVE and go home, and check the shutter count. Also...se what the NAME is that the camera assigns to the folder for the images.

But, shoot, return a new camera for full price? Yes, unethical.

Thanks again for information, and yeah i mean i sort of learned how to drive a manual tranny by test driving vehicles at the dealership but obviously never buying them.

In regards to ethics/morals my conscious is free because i could care less about big corp companies/businesses like they already have loads of money so... but if it was something different involving an individual then yeah i'm never going to be dishonest (just my philosophy).

 

[unpopular]

Was the d700 part of the oily sensor recall? And if so, is there any way to determine if it had been recalled and repaired or if it was subject?

 

[tirediron]

Was the d700 part of the oily sensor recall? And if so, is there any way to determine if it had been recalled and repaired or if it was subject?

Not that I'm aware of... AFAIK, the D700 was one of the few releases where there were absolutely NO issues at all.

 

[Derrel]

Yes as tirediron says d700 was a solid camera. This is the camera that premiered around $3,495 and later dropped to $2,995 and then was closed out somewhere a little north of 2K. Unlike the D600 with the oil slinging and the self destructing shutter mechanism or the D800 with the left side focus problems, the d700 seemed to have been blessed with no widespread problems whatsoever.

 

[Evan55T]

So after i've take photos/shots with my memeory card inserted into the used camera im trying to buy what software do i upload it to again?

Or if upload an image/photo onto my computer will it just automatically show me the shuttercount/cycle?

 

[Evan55T]

*BUMP*

Have some images of the memory card/files here if anyone can please take a look at (uploaded to photoshop shouldn't be a diff between data in lightroom tho)?

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So is this really a 9-year old barnyard find d700 with only 2300 shutter count and im only paying lol650 for it.

 

[Derrel]

I am looking at this on my phone and I'm not sure where you're getting the 2300 frame count Kama especially since it says the folder is 700 underscore 8182 so it looks like at least 8182 frames perhaps many more.I can't really see what it is you're looking at. The best idea is to take a JPEG, the last one you shot on the camer, and upload that to one of the web-based services that offers you a shutter click count