[Cagey]

February 4, 2013 at 11:57 am

1100, way too low, 150 too low. Sold elsewhere, thanks anyhow

[Cagey]

January 23, 2013 at 6:45 pm

Mint 70-200 VRII Nikkor lens added

[Cagey]

January 9, 2013 at 11:28 am

Sb900 + 50mm are sold.

105 + TC available.

[Cagey]

January 5, 2013 at 6:29 pm

Price drops.

[Cagey]

December 13, 2012 at 4:53 pm

Nice lens, but I have my eye on some other gear, so I need cash here ;)

[Cagey]

September 19, 2012 at 1:53 am

Thanks :) I think I’m improving by the year on the macro side. Still a lot to learn, but ever willing. Here’s a few more recent ones, same lens on the D90: No flash this time, all natural lighting.

_DSC1876 by Cagey75, on Flickr

_DSC1858 by Cagey75, on Flickr

Honey Bee by Cagey75, on Flickr

_DSC1841 by Cagey75, on Flickr

[Cagey]

September 19, 2012 at 1:45 am

Good stuff, think I read that thread before. I’ll have a peek and see how their prices compare to here. Looking for a 70-200, won’t take a chance on one from that distance unless there’s a big saving.

[Cagey]

September 19, 2012 at 1:33 am

I bought at The camera centre on Henry street in the end. Great service, had a good chit-chat with the girl working there, and then the manager, who had answered my e-mail. Bank draft was no problem. They did not have the 24-70 in stock, but they are sending it out to me at no extra cost. They also took a few euro off a 35GB SD card for me. Last D800E they had in stock is now my new baby ;)

[Cagey]

September 16, 2012 at 4:33 pm

tranceman wrote:

I’m going to disappoint you but 600 is not going to get you any good lens. The other thing – one lens is not going to do the job. You can get something like 18-200 which will fall into your 600 budget but it is going to be a very dark lens and you’re not going to get any decent results if any. One camera, one lens, one of everything ?? Forget about it. You need double of everything when shooting a wedding. What if your camera, lens or flash fails ? at least borrow more equipment from a friend.
70-200 2.8 is a great lens to do weddings. there is few others but way above 600

I would strongly disagree with this advice, sorry. 600 is plenty enough to get some good glass, you just have to know what you’re looking for. Buy used, you could manage a tamron 17-50 2.8 [non-VC] and an older version [push-pull] 80-200mm 2.8 – I had both, sold both only last week! For just over your budget. Only reason I sold was because I’m going FX, other than that I’d have kept both. Excellent lenses, more than good enough for weddings once you know what you’re doing.

[Cagey]

September 16, 2012 at 4:30 pm

You could do worse than buy a Tamron 17-50 2.8 for the D90. It’s a combination I’ve used for about 3 years now, for just about every type of photography along the way [bar sports] – I also had an 80-200 2.8 which is a wonderful lens, great alternative to the 70-200, I had a very old one. Optically it was tack sharp, heavy to hold after a while though, and no tripod collar for safer hanging on an RS-sport strap. I used to attach the strap to the D90 body!! they’re tougher than you’d think ;)

Anyway, if that doesn’t suit, I’d go with the 24-70 2.8, stick that on your D700 and the 70-200 on the D90 for distance shots. 70mm on the D90 isn’t bad, 70-100 is a great range for candids. If you plan to keep the D90, the 17-55 is a cracker. But for the money, IMHO, it’s not worth that much more than a Tamron 17-50. The end results are so similar you wouldn’t notice. You’re paying for build quality.

[Cagey]

September 15, 2012 at 2:11 pm

thought I should update this to be fair. All 3 of the stores I emailed have now got back to me. All of them are willing to take Bank draft or bank transfer. I thought I’d emailed 4, but I hadn’t actually sent the one to Conns, I’m sure they would have got back to me on it too. Looks like I have a choice. Wherever I buy will be the store i use from here on, it may well come down to who gives the best deal, throws in a freebie or whatever. Any of these good for haggling?

[Cagey]

September 15, 2012 at 2:08 pm

That’ll be Berminghams then. I have heard a few similar stories about that shop. never actually been in there personally.

[Cagey]

September 12, 2012 at 11:07 pm

It may be surprising, and some have had very pleasant experiences I’m sure. But I doubt anyone would lie about such things, just because you’ve had great times in these stores, doesn’t mean they’re always great.

2 of the stores in Dublin are going to miss out on my future big purchases, because they couldn’t be arsed to respond to an email. I’m planning to upgrade all my gear to FX, some hefty buying ahead over the next few months. The camera centre responded pretty quick, that’s 1+ for them in my book.

[Cagey]

September 12, 2012 at 1:58 pm

paul wrote:

Bank transfer, cashier cheque from bank. Personally, I have always used my credit card, but mine isn’t limited to €2,500.

Visa credit card is one option, but I’m not sure i want to look after a CC again.

I emailed 4 camera stores in Dublin yesterday, one of them got back to me to say Bank draft is accepted. that is the one I will buy from, unless the others bother to respond. It was The camera centre that took the time.

[Cagey]

September 11, 2012 at 9:44 pm

What is the limit on a card like that? Would I be able to say, top it up by €5000 and use it without any hassle?

A quick look through their FAQ suggests you can only top it up €2500 within a year!? But can have it upgraded to top up to €50k.

What do people use when buying a car I wonder? besides credit cards, really don’t want to have to use those.