Welcome to our community

Be a part of something great, join today!

Log in
  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Used lens prices....

I'm in the market for a set of 8 or 10 Ultra Primes or S4s for sale at a reasonable price. If someone has it for sale, send photos and details. I'm willing to collect and pay upon delivery anywhere in NA and western Europe.
 
i drenched a 25mm S4 in salt water today...along with an Alexa Studio when a splash bag broke :) lol fun times!
 
i wish there was some cheap site to score all this used glass...im def interested in grabbing some in the coming months/years...trying to build a rental side business...
 
Last edited:
MARK SVEN OLSEN said:
I'm in the market for a set of 8 or 10 Ultra Primes or S4s for sale at a reasonable price. If someone has it for sale, send photos and details. I'm willing to collect and pay upon delivery anywhere in NA and western Europe.
Click to expand...
Mark,

We have this Cooke S4 set in house . . . available as 6-pcs or 8-pcs: http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?118320-For-Sale-Cooke-S4-Prime-Lens-Set&highlight=
And we have a 12-pc Ultra Prime set available & can break it down to 10-pcx if need be: http://westcoastcinevideo.com/West_Coast_Cine_Video/Prime_Lenses.html
 
Doesn't anyone think that there might be some affect from the Optitron and hopefully new THC mini and Foolcontrol systems of pulling focus via fly-by-wire. I mean a year from now the Sigma Art series of primes may be fully flushed out and the THC Mini might exist which would be one hell of a combination for really cheap compared to PL Primes. Plus they cover Dragon and any Full Frame cameras to come.

I don't know. But I certainly wouldn't be to surprised if PL glass tanks even more in the coming years.
 
I think too many people are buying glass new with hopes to rent it. But very few actually have the work to demand such lenses. Thus they sell it to get back some of their investment. But everyone else had the same idea. If only someone would have the same idea with homes in NYC area.....
 
I'm confused, Troy, haven't the prices have gone up... Like I said, b-speeds/SuperSpeed Mk1s for $5k a lens? Sorry, but no, they're not worth that amount of money; mechanically they're hodgepodge (as Zeiss made their transition to what I'd consider "contemporary cinema glass" [mk3 and newer]), and visually they can be replicated in post for the most part. I just don't see anyone actually selling a set (especially if gears weren't added and PLs weren't put on) for anything close to that amount...

But, yes, with tech like FoolControl making internal motors of cheap lenses surprisingly accurate (and in a lot of cases actually more pliable on a movie set than cinema glass), I'm expecting quite a few people to be stuck with expensive glass that is being passed over for cheaper, readily available, and even more independent-friendly glass that has built-in wireless... Upwards and onwards, I guess.
 
Glass is still grossly overpriced. $12k per Ultraprime is just redonculous and I think people are starting to realize that. As Timur said, people bought it thinking "Hey I spend $200 per lens per day, maybe I can do that instead of renting!" Instead what happens is that with that many lenses floating around the value drops substantially on the rental market and it's just too expensive for personal use. Meanwhile "cheap" glass is doing superbly well. Look at the GL Optics rehousing of the Sigma 18-35mm. $3,500 for a great lens. Duclos is turning a good bit of work converting Tokina 11-16s too. Even RPPs are just enormously profitable still lenses. The RPPs are the perfect example of 90% of an ultraprime being an acceptable sacrifice for most people.

Meanwhile "interesting" glass is holding its value really well. I don't see prices on Anamorphics trending down. There is no Sigma or Canon putting out mass market anamorphic lenses.

By the way, I disagree entirely with the notion too that glass is a good long term investment. We're precariously close to lightfield sensors being practical. As soon as lightfield lands in a big way all glass is obsolete unless you want to be shooting with a vintage Alexa or Epic Dragon in 10 years. Coverage issues are just the tip of the ice berg for the transition to lightfield capture.
 
Gavin Greenwalt said:
Glass is still grossly overpriced. $12k per Ultraprime is just redonculous and I think people are starting to realize that. As Timur said, people bought it thinking "Hey I spend $200 per lens per day, maybe I can do that instead of renting!" Instead what happens is that with that many lenses floating around the value drops substantially on the rental market and it's just too expensive for personal use. Meanwhile "cheap" glass is doing superbly well. Look at the GL Optics rehousing of the Sigma 18-35mm. $3,500 for a great lens. Duclos is turning a good bit of work converting Tokina 11-16s too. Even RPPs are just enormously profitable still lenses. The RPPs are the perfect example of 90% of an ultraprime being an acceptable sacrifice for most people.

Meanwhile "interesting" glass is holding its value really well. I don't see prices on Anamorphics trending down. There is no Sigma or Canon putting out mass market anamorphic lenses.

By the way, I disagree entirely with the notion too that glass is a good long term investment. We're precariously close to lightfield sensors being practical. As soon as lightfield lands in a big way all glass is obsolete unless you want to be shooting with a vintage Alexa or Epic Dragon in 10 years. Coverage issues are just the tip of the ice berg for the transition to lightfield capture.
Click to expand...

Those are some very, very broad statements that aren't hitting a few marks.

For instance optically and consistency what is touching the Ultra Primes? Red Pro Primes actually do a fair job at significantly less, but they aren't the same exactly. Though I'd take the RPP 50mm T1.8 over an UP 50mm. However, to clarify the Red Pro Primes are not rehoused still lenses. Though the 300mm can be found elsewhere.

While Lightfield is coming, but in terms of it taking over completely I am going say "not exactly". At least not for 10-15 years.

While there are some tremendous performers out there don't mistake lenses that have a higher resolving power against lenses that don't don't come exactly near them.

In the potential future what you will be seeing is a move to optics that can reslove past 200 line pairs and more in line with 400-600 line pairs. You'll also be seeing some interesting materials and techniques as well.
 
Phil Holland said:
In the potential future what you will be seeing is a move to optics that can reslove past 200 line pairs and more in line with 400-600 line pairs.
Click to expand...

Do you honestly want to see narrative films shot with lenses which can resolve 600 lines?

I can almost guarantee it will look horrible, with all the magic GONE from the image.

I'm already stunned by the race to get sharper and sharper images at the expense of knowing what is beautiful, what is alive, what is magic.
 
post your cheap lens finds and we will drive the prices up by buying them!
i though this was a joke post, since all i see is the huge raise in pricing on all PL glass, especially the vintage rare stuff.
please show me an optimo 45-120 for 20k!
 
Medavoym said:
Do you honestly want to see narrative films shot with lenses which can resolve 600 lines?

I can almost guarantee it will look horrible, with all the magic GONE from the image.

I'm already stunned by the race to get sharper and sharper images at the expense of knowing what is beautiful, what is alive, what is magic.
Click to expand...

The effect of stopping down is rather similar, but it's more about getting higher resolving lenses for higher resolution capture and display.

I don't think there's ever going to be a "one lens answer", but I do know and see where some of this is going.
 
Medavoym said:
Do you honestly want to see narrative films shot with lenses which can resolve 600 lines?

I can almost guarantee it will look horrible, with all the magic GONE from the image.

I'm already stunned by the race to get sharper and sharper images at the expense of knowing what is beautiful, what is alive, what is magic.
Click to expand...

I find your assumption that the two are mutually exclusive bizarre.
 
Gavin Greenwalt said:
Glass is still grossly overpriced. $12k per Ultraprime is just redonculous and I think people are starting to realize that. As Timur said, people bought it thinking "Hey I spend $200 per lens per day, maybe I can do that instead of renting!" Instead what happens is that with that many lenses floating around the value drops substantially on the rental market and it's just too expensive for personal use. Meanwhile "cheap" glass is doing superbly well. Look at the GL Optics rehousing of the Sigma 18-35mm. $3,500 for a great lens. Duclos is turning a good bit of work converting Tokina 11-16s too. Even RPPs are just enormously profitable still lenses. The RPPs are the perfect example of 90% of an ultraprime being an acceptable sacrifice for most people.

Meanwhile "interesting" glass is holding its value really well. I don't see prices on Anamorphics trending down. There is no Sigma or Canon putting out mass market anamorphic lenses.

By the way, I disagree entirely with the notion too that glass is a good long term investment. We're precariously close to lightfield sensors being practical. As soon as lightfield lands in a big way all glass is obsolete unless you want to be shooting with a vintage Alexa or Epic Dragon in 10 years. Coverage issues are just the tip of the ice berg for the transition to lightfield capture.
Click to expand...

I think your correct on some of these Points. Two years ago there was a serious shortage of PL lenses. It was crazy when a used set came up for sale they would get bid up like I've never seen. Now the market for PL lenses is more or less saturated, so there is some amount of natural downward pressure. When you can look around and shop for a used Ultra prime set between 3-4-5 different vendors or individuals at any given time.

We will see if manufacturers step up and produce a lot of cheaper sets that can actually compete with an Ultra prime (for example), as its not easy to achieve these feats. A consistent low stop of a 1.9 across 12-14 lenses or even 7-8 lenses is a big deal. There are good reasons why an Ultra prime cost 12-14k. A Super speed lens sets are a crazy feat. Master Primes, Super speeds, S5i's, Leica Summiluxes.... there are serious optical engineering feats to not just have a fast 50, or 85, but across an entire lens set..... If it was easy we'd see more companies make them at cheaper prices. No, we see inconsistent stops across a lens set, and chromatic edge issue, more breathing, and in general lenses that don't really compare in just about every category. Maybe that will change at some point or people will begin to care less as some things can be tweaked in post to help smooth out issues, but I'm not seeing a lot of people racing for electronic follow focusing via canon internal motors. I imagine it will get better in the future, but the facts stated above will keep pro's wanting consistent fast lens sets till these engineering facts start changing.

To produce a movie or a tv show or many types of productions cost a lot of money, including a crew full of technicians, etc. add to that post production and broadcast costs..... and in the scheme of things a camera rental package (and PL lenses) is not a line item that's out of whack, so no pressure to change when the alternatives don't perform. But there is a lot of web content and other types of production where every dollar is calculated, and a Cinema lens vs a Eos lens can make a difference. So the road is splitting in 2 directions and there is a place for high and low cost gear. I cant imagine anytime soon a big movie or tv show giving up PL lenses, but that segment of the industry may not be growing much either, where the lower cost side of the equation is surely growing. The demand for lower cost gear is there, but so is the need for quality PL lenses. One doesn't exclude the other. I see a lot of our low budget clients, want to use/rent the PL lenses when they get a higher budget job, why.... because they work better.
 
Erich Roland said:
... So the road is splitting in 2 directions and there is a place for high and low cost gear. I cant imagine anytime soon a big movie or tv show giving up PL lenses, but that segment of the industry may not be growing much either, where the lower cost side of the equation is surely growing. The demand for lower cost gear is there, but so is the need for quality PL lenses. One doesn't exclude the other....
Click to expand...

Actually seems like the higher end of industry (theatrical features and prime time narrative TV) is actually shrinking
every single year. While reality TV and web TV grows drastically every year.

But yes everyone wants to shoot everything on ultra primes given enough budget.
Problem is for reality TV and web TV the budgets aren't even close
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top