Oh well...

[Richard Crowe]

I pulled the trigger on a used Sony A7iii camera from Hawaii camera for $1700, shipping included. They are supplying a six month warranty.

I was going to go cheap and get a Sony A7Rii camera but, I really like the AF capabilities of the newer Sony cameras. I also like the limited touch screen operation of the A7iii. I know that I would never be totally happy with the A7Rii and would always be casting an envious eye on the A7iii. The A7iii and my Sony 85mm f/1.8 should make a great portrait combination.

I will be selling my full frame Canon 6D Mark-2 and that price added to what I am getting for some other Canon camera gear will more than pay for the A7iii.

I will probably be also selling my Canon100mm f/2.8 (non-L) macro lens....

 

[MWhite]

I pulled the trigger on a used Sony A7iii camera from Hawaii camera for $1700, shipping included. They are supplying a six month warranty.

I was going to go cheap and get a Sony A7Rii camera but, I really like the AF capabilities of the newer Sony cameras. I also like the limited touch screen operation of the A7iii. I know that I would never be totally happy with the A7Rii and would always be casting an envious eye on the A7iii. The A7iii and my Sony 85mm f/1.8 should make a great portrait combination.

I will be selling my full frame Canon 6D Mark-2 and that price added to what I am getting for some other Canon camera gear will more than pay for the A7iii.

I will probably be also selling my Canon100mm f/2.8 (non-L) macro lens....

You'll like the A7III. Life is short.

 

[WoodWorks]

Life is short.

Yes, eat dessert first!

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

You can tell from my postings that I like mine. I think you'll enjoy it. I'm sure your computer won't miss the large files of the A7Rii either.

 

[sven karma]

Even limited touchscreen is a no-brainer (the PITA of going from A5100 to A7s), enjoy!

 

[Richard Crowe]

The eBay seller of the A7iii that I purchased, Hawaii Camera, informed me that they had made a "mistake" and rented the camera that I had purchased. I didn't know that the camera had been part of their rental stable. They touted it as a "one owner" camera. A rental camera may be a "one owner" camera but it can also be a "many user" camera. And... people often don't treat rental gear as gently as I treat my own stuff. Hawaii Camera gave me the option of another A7iii (obviously from their rental fleet) or cancelling the sale and returning my money. I opted for the latter. I don't mind renting a camera but, I would not want to buy a rental camera.
I think that I will wait. First, to see what Sony puts on the table with the replacement for the A6500 later this month or Second, to wait until I sell a couple more pieces of Canon gear and be able to afford a new A7iii without taking any money out of my family fortune

 

[SamSS]

Richard, you should give Greentoe a try. I think you could get a brand new USA for around $1650 to $1800 max. Read up about Greentoe.

 

[MWhite]

After reading about your experience with Hawaii Camera, I think that I would give them a big pass. One owner, but a rental, is - in my book - deceptive.

Although I have never used them, Lensrentals.com, seems like it might be worth a look. I initially stumbled on them because of their very interesting blog. If you rent gear from them, you have the option of applying part of the rental fee to its purchase. The price of buying is partially dependent on how often the gear has been rented. So, if it has been rented once, you'll pay more than if it has been rented 20 times. But, you get to actually try out what you're considering buying. I, for example, don't own a really long lens, but if I do go off to some exotic place full of wildlife I will want to have one with me. I'll rent it first, and then if I really like it and my account looks promising I'll consider buying it.

A company I have used and can recommend is Roberts Camera in Indianapolis (I live an hour away). Their new prices are the same as B&H (also excellent) and they seem to have an extensive selection. It was really nice to actually hold my A7III before I bought it - something mail order can't do as easily. (B&H and Adorama have good return policies, I should note.) I recently bought my Tamron 17-28 from Roberts, even though I was on the wait list at B&H. Roberts had it sooner!

Good luck and wishing you no further scams!

 

[bdbits]

I'd second the recommendations for both Greentoe and lensrentals.com.

I often buy used, but next time I buy new, I am likely going to give Greentoe a shot.

As for lensrentals.com, owner Roger Cicala writes the blog. He posts from time to time over at fredmiranda.com and seems like a good guy to me. The blog is very informative, with lots of info on lenses, and is fascinating at times especially the history stuff he has written. Worth a read. Anyway, they thoroughly inspect, clean, and if necessary repair the gear when they get it back, and from the blog they have a pretty good direct relationship with Sony. I've not yet used used them but expect to at some point.

I've also bought from members here and at FM, and rarely on ebay. As long as you use some caution, stick with people who post to the groups, and follow the recommendations about using a payment method that protects you as a buyer (e.g. PayPal but not friends & family!), it can be a great way to get used gear.

 

[Richard Crowe]

FINALIZED GEAR PLANS

After hemming and hawing regarding my photo equipment plans… I have finally decided on a course of action. Here are my plans for future photo gear…

I am selling my Canon 7D2 and 6D2 along with the EF 100mm f/2.8 (non-L) Macro and the 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS ii lenses which is all the Canon gear that I have left…

I should realize somewhere in the area of $3,200 or so for the remains of my Canon gear

I presently shoot with the Sony A6500 and A6400 in Tandem. I was disappointed with the features of the A6600 (replacement for the A6500) and decided to sell the A6500 and I bought a mint open-box Sony A7iii for $1,800, which was paid for with funds from previous Canon sales.

I should get around $850 or so for the A6500 plus MC-11 adapter, Small Rig video cage, L-bracket and a couple of batteries and charger. This should come close to paying for a Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens which I plan to use on my A7iii.

I plan to shoot the A7iii in tandem with the A6400 because of the great Eye-AF and Animal Eye-AF of both these cameras. I will primarily use the A7iii with the Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens and use the A6400 with my Rokinon 12mm f/2.8 lens when I need a wider shot than the 28mm on the A7iii and with my 70-200mm f/4 G OSS lens when I need more reach.

I have a Sony 50mm f/1.8 OSS and a 30mm Sigma f/1.4 lens which I will use on my A6400 if I need to carry just the single A6400 camera…

I don’t plan to replace the 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS lens and will rent a Sony version for the few times that I need that focal length.

 

[Biro]

FINALIZED GEAR PLANS

After hemming and hawing regarding my photo equipment plans… I have finally decided on a course of action. Here are my plans for future photo gear…

I am selling my Canon 7D2 and 6D2 along with the EF 100mm f/2.8 (non-L) Macro and the 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS ii lenses which is all the Canon gear that I have left…

I should realize somewhere in the area of $3,200 or so for the remains of my Canon gear

I presently shoot with the Sony A6500 and A6400 in Tandem. I was disappointed with the features of the A6600 (replacement for the A6500) and decided to sell the A6500 and I bought a mint open-box Sony A7iii for $1,800, which was paid for with funds from previous Canon sales.

I should get around $850 or so for the A6500 plus MC-11 adapter, Small Rig video cage, L-bracket and a couple of batteries and charger. This should come close to paying for a Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens which I plan to use on my A7iii.

I plan to shoot the A7iii in tandem with the A6400 because of the great Eye-AF and Animal Eye-AF of both these cameras. I will primarily use the A7iii with the Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens and use the A6400 with my Rokinon 12mm f/2.8 lens when I need a wider shot than the 28mm on the A7iii and with my 70-200mm f/4 G OSS lens when I need more reach.

I have a Sony 50mm f/1.8 OSS and a 30mm Sigma f/1.4 lens which I will use on my A6400 if I need to carry just the single A6400 camera…

I don’t plan to replace the 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS lens and will rent a Sony version for the few times that I need that focal length.

Richard, I think you'll enjoy the A7III with the Tamron 28-75 f/2.8. I own that combination myself.

 

[Drd1135]

I pulled the trigger on a used Sony A7iii camera from Hawaii camera for $1700, shipping included. They are supplying a six month warranty.

I was going to go cheap and get a Sony A7Rii camera but, I really like the AF capabilities of the newer Sony cameras. I also like the limited touch screen operation of the A7iii. I know that I would never be totally happy with the A7Rii and would always be casting an envious eye on the A7iii. The A7iii and my Sony 85mm f/1.8 should make a great portrait combination.

I did exactly the opposite and got the A7Rii. AF has never really been a problem for me as I don't really shoot action. I also considered the A7iii. I'll have to follow your posts so I can regret my decision faster.

 

[Richard Crowe]

The sale of the used A7iii fell through because they rented the camera that I had bought. However, I did find an open box A7iii for just a little more. I have not really wrung the camera out yet because I have to update the firmware to version 3.0 which provides full time Eye AF and Animal Eye AF.
For me, updating the Sony firmware is like getting a tooth pulled. I try to put it off as long as possible.
I need to update the firmware because I do shoot a lot of action, especially my dogs...

ILCE-6400    FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS    74mm    f/5.6    1/1000s    ISO 4000

I have found that I enjoy using the A7iii because my old eyes can see the shooting parameters in te viewfinder better. I also like the battery at the side of the camera instead of the bottom like the APSC cameras I own (A6500 which I am replacing with the A7iii and my A6400 which I will keep).
My 24-70mm f/4 Vario Tessar seems to provide better IQ on the A7iii than i did on the A6400 or A6500.

 

[Ad Dieleman]

My 24-70mm f/4 Vario Tessar seems to provide better IQ on the A7iii than i did on the A6400 or A6500.

That's my experience as well with this lens, comparing it on the A7Rm2 vs. NEX-6.

 

[Richard Crowe]

Well, I held my breath and updated the firmware for my A7iii to 3.01 and it works just great. When I received the camera, firmware was 1.00. The new 3.01 firmware gives me full time Eye-AF as well as Animal Eye-AF...

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

I found my USB cable and got brave this morning too. Successfully downloaded the update and updated the camera.
Wow, that was exciting. Heartbeat is returning to normal. Why is doing this so stressfull?

 

[Richard Crowe]

Up dating Canon camera firmware is far less stressful to me than doing it on a Sony. With the Canon, I simply download the new firmware version to an SD card, put the card in the camera and the camera can update itself!

I now need to update the A6500 firmware and I have heard that the 18-55mm kit lens firmware also has an update due... Crossing my fingers, I will do that within the next few days as soon as I recover from the stress of updating my A7iii...

But, my! The new firmware of the A7iii really rocks!

 

[AlwaysOnAuto]

I got brave again and updated my A7ii just now. Sure took a lot longer than the A73's update, or so it seemed to me.

How do you update a lens?

 

[Richard Crowe]

As far as I know, you look on the Sony site for the lens and see if there is a new firmware update available - I have not done this yet. Then you download the software just as you would for a camera and update the firmware just like you would a camera firmware...

 

[bdbits]

Richard has it right - mount the lens, attach the camera vs USB, then run the updater. It will walk you through it. I've never had a problem with it. I use Windows though, I assume Mac is similar.