Good deal or not?

[mr noble]

I've got the opportunity to buy a Nikon 300mm f2.8 VR thats 6 months old and in good nic for about £1850.

Is that a "snap his arm off" deal or not? Don't "really" need one but if its a never to be repeated deal than I could stretch the wings on the gold card!!

Greg

[fergusd]

Sounds like a good deal to me . . .

Fd

[GetCarter]

You are obviously earning too much money. Sounds like an OK deal to me... what are they new about £2.7k? So £800 off list? I's snap arms off for £1600.

Edited by GetCarter on Sunday 14th January 12:52

[350wedge]

If its something your after then I'd say snap his arm off. Warehouse Express have them new at £2930.00 so its a significant saving on list price. Suppose it depends exactly what condition its in. If near new with very little marking then i say gopher it !!

[Teppic]

AJ Purdy are selling the lens at £2995.

You do the maths...

(In other words, yes, snap his hand off, unless the lens shows signs of abuse).

Edited by Teppic on Sunday 14th January 13:46

[mr noble]

The chap has put it up here too.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dl

He lives just round the corner from me.

You are right Steve! I shouldn't really spend so much on a lens that I don't really need.

I would most likely get more use from a 80-400 instead.

Think I'd rather give the Noble a new Roush exhaust.

Greg

[_dobbo_]

This lens will be in a totally different class to the 80-400VR. Feel free to buy this and I'll swap it with you for my 80-400!



Edit to add a bit more useful comment. if you are considering an 80-400 you should realise that whilst it is an excellent lens it is a compromise, becuase it has the older generation of VR on it, and because it does not have AF-S focusing.

This means if you are used to using an AF-S lens, the focusing on the 80-400 will seem slow and cumbersome. For the price the 80-400 is a great lens, but you have to bear in mind that this 300mm bad boy is 3 times the cost at list price.

I'd be sorely tempted to snap this up. It is however a completely different prospect to the 80-400 for numerous reasons.

Edited by _dobbo_ on Sunday 14th January 16:50

[fergusd]

I have the non VR version of the same lens (I guess the model before this one) . . . a friend upgraded to this lens and I got a good deal for a fast purchase . . .

Things to remember -

It's heavy, unless you're a terminator machine it's not something you can handhold for prolonged periods, so it's really monopod use mainly.
It's larger than it looks in the pictures . . . really . . . it is . . . ( www.darkphoton.org/images/wee200-bigmofo300.jpg )
I always though my second hooker 80-200/2.8 was a brilliant lens in terms of sharpness (and it is) but the 300/2.8 is stunning, so sharp, superb short DOF . . .
It's a prime (obviously) so that can be limiting compared to a zoom . . .

On the times I've used it and thought about it I've been blown away with the results, equally I've used it when not thinking about it and it is a handfull . . . VR may help a little I guess . . .

I recon longer zoom mentioned may be a more usable lens.

I also recon that I can sell it for more than what I paid for it and will be able to do so for some time so the money invested in it is not going to disappear . . . ;-)

I recon the price you mention is pretty good . . .

Fd

Edited by fergusd on Sunday 14th January 17:07

[CVP]

Like Fergus I had the previous version of this lens without the VR on it. It was an absolute belter in terms of quality. Used with proper technique it was totally razor sharp with a lovely contrast and the AFS can easily keep up with fast moving subjects.

I do concurr though it's really, really heavy and you will probably not be able to hand hold for a long period, much more a monopod / tripod kind of lens. If you do carry this around for a whole day you'll certainly feel it. Depth of field at f2.8 can be absolutely vanishingly small which you can use to get creative.

On the downside the 80-400 will allow you much more flexibility in your composition and is easier to lug around all day.

If you do a lot of photography where having that f2.8 max apperture is very important and the 300mm focal length works for you then at this price I'd say go for it. I loved mine loads it was a brilliant lens.

Cheers

Chris