Do you know what your cameras and lenses are worth?

[Roger Hicks]

Because I don't. It ranges from 'Less than I thought' to 'more than I thought' and often embraces 'quite a lot'.

But how much do I care? I'm not planning on selling them. Some people seem to follow prices with religious fervour. I do that only when I'm buying. How about you?

Cheers,

R.

 

[newspaperguy]

.
Personally Roger,

I'm afraid to think about it in view of my proud history of buying high and selling low.

No one and I mean - no one - wants to watch an old man cry.

PS - Darkroom fans should be sure to read your Frances' great printing paper discovery
in the newest edition of Shutterbug.

Man, I really miss having a darkroom.

 

[nobbylon]

Yes I do Roger. Although I never plan on selling anything, I have a rule now that I don't buy unless I sell something.
I also keep an updated list of my gear with minimum sell prices for my family just in case my number is called! I hate the thought of them selling it off cheap because it looks old fashioned!
regards john

 

[Bob Michaels]

Obviously not since when I post items for sale here on RFF, everything is bought within hours.

 

[Keith]

What they are actually worth in dollar value and what their worth is to me personally are two totally different things.

Some people keep spread sheets for this sort of thing ... I remember a thread discussing it some time ago. 🙄

 

[ChrisN]

"What is a cynic? A man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing." - Oscar Wilde.

However, I do have a list of significant items and their approximate replacement cost, updated annually, for the sake of my insurance.

 

[tunalegs]

Since I can't remember the entirety of my collection, I would have to say no. I don't know what it's all worth.

Probably more than it should be at this point though.

 

[Austerby]

Yes - some of it is proving to be a better investment than the stock market and is part of my overall wealth portfolio. That case of Noctiluxes I bought some years ago is maturing nicely.

(if only).

 

[btgc]

I think, all my photo stuff is worth next to nothing. These days I even had a thought - all I have is worth maybe [used?] low end DSLR with a [decent?] lens, rather even not with a flash, definitely not enough to convert to new X100 kit. So I'm relaxed about "end of world", "film is dead" and such threads - instead enjoying what I have and not worrying what I could have for it.

 

[Pfreddee]

Currently, not much. Oh, well.

With best regards,

Pfreddee(Stephen)

 

[menthel]

I do but my wife doesn't!

More seriously I do try to keep track of the value of what I have and use and then do sell at low realistic prices to pass along stuff to someone who will use it.

 

[Steve M.]

I liquidated recently, and will be down to just 2 or 3 cameras soon (yay). Been selling stuff for a couple of months now, and what I'm seeing is that this isn't exactly the best time to be selling! Some of the stuff sold for what I thought it should, while some of it sold for 20% to 40% less than I had figured. Top end Leica stuff still did pretty well, what little I had of it. I had a very nice Elmar 90 f4 that didn't even get to $90 yesterday on the auctions.

Apparently, like everything else, gear is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it, and no more. If anyone else is thinking of selling off their collection, be prepared for some surprises. Lots of my items required repeated listings and price drops. But I'm happy to have finally found and kept 2 or 3 strangely inexpensive cameras that have great IQ, so I'm happy.

 

[mwooten]

Kind of, sort of have a foggy notion of their market value. Not that I'm in the market to sell. Because most are toys. Meaning that they bring me enjoyment. I've never considered selling a toy. I might give a toy away.

 

[doolittle]

Not only do I not know how much they are worth, I have difficulty remembering what I paid for them. If I find an old receipt I am usually surprised how much I did pay.

However I think it is delusional to think of equipment having a realisible value when you are not selling them. They are only worth what a buyer is prepared to pay you, when you accept their offer. As I wrote in another thread, they are collectibles and not investments.

Of course if I am thinking of buying or selling a piece of equipment I will research the current prices to get some idea. However what people are asking for and what money is changing hands can be very different.

 

[Moriturii]

Yes I think I do, pretty much. Mostly because I am a poor ******* living on scraps so I have to make sure when I buy something it's within re-sell value. So yes, If I'd sell my cameras or lenses I'm sure I'd get at least what I payed for them. But then again I have;

3 cameras (one is up for sale)
2 lenses

So not much to keep track of.

 

[oftheherd]

No, I don't. But I should. I learned that about 20 years ago when we had a house fire. Considering, an amazing amount of photo gear survived. A list of items and prices should be kept in a lock box. Check with your insureance to see if you should be keeping acquisition cost, current value, or both. Also, keep on that list, things like furniture, kitchen dishes, pots and pans, and silverware. Furniture includes living room, bedrooms, dining room, den. If you insureance allows replacement costs (best), past or current value isn't as important, but should be kept nonetheless.

NOTE to self. Read your own posts from time to time.

 

[jesse1dog]

I think Steve M is right:
"like everything else, gear is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it, and no more"
- that's 'worth' on the open market.
Some items I have I just wouldn't want to part with - I've a camera that just suits me fine. As long as it continues to work I wouldn't be without it! Invaluable to me but about £40 on the open market.
jesse

 

[ray*j*gun]

Not all of it. I am always surprised at the prices in our classifieds. I keep promising myself that I will do a real market eval and write down the numbers but I always get distracted by the gear itself.

 

[thegman]

Prefer not to think about it too much. I've got too many cameras, worth too much, but nothing I want to sell.

 

[nobbylon]

It's not just owners who don't really know, judging by some of the low ball offers I get it's buyers too🙂