Rent SLR Lenses Online Before you Buy
I’m on a bit of a camera kick this morning. Just after I scored a $299 Panasonic 1080p camcorder from Amazon today, I caught Sal Cangeloso’s thoughts about BorrowLenses.com – a camera lens rental service. I’ve been using my Canon EOS Rebel T1i for months, but only with two lenses. The standard 18-55mm kit lens is a good starter lens, but I’ve added a Canon 50mm f/1.8 prime lens as well. I’m in the market for a fast telephoto, but they don’t come cheap and that’s where BorrowLenses comes in.
For one week, Sal rented a Canon EF 85mm f/1.2 II USM for his digital SLR at the cost of $74 plus shipping and optional insurance. While that might sound like a large sum for a week’s worth of use, this particular lens would cost you $1,900 to purchase. So with that perspective in mind, I think the rental rate is quite reasonable. Some of the telephoto glass I’ve been longing for will easily set me back over $1,000. And if the lens doesn’t really meet my needs, I’m either out that $1,000 or I have to deal with selling it at some discount. From where I stand, a small up-front rental fee is cheap insurance to ensure that I like what I’m planning to buy. Note that some brick-and-mortar camera shops offer lens rentals, so BorrowLenses isn’t necessarily unique. However, Sal’s experience appears very positive, which is good enough for me.
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These guys are great, and for me they are LOCAL so pickup is easy. I actually knew one of the owners, so to try them was a no brainer. There are a number of company’s that do this, rentglass, rentalens, I have used both before and they work the same way. I DO find that there is more available at borrowlenses, that could be INVENTORY or it could be the ECONOMY, but with the other two in the PAST I did have some problems getting the glass I needed/wanted when I needed it. Most company’s now have a wait LIST, which is necessary. They all do good shipping, and only once in about five rentals did I have an issue with the lens, which was replace in two days NQA. It could have been an oversight, since it was and IS focus issue which someone wouldn’t have noticed just by looking at the lens. GREAT way to test out something to see if it fits for your needs and GREAT way to get something like a 300mm 2.8 for fall football season, just for the few nights you need it.