What do you MOST regret buying?

[Dante_Stella]

Dante,

If it is any compensation to you: I've re-read your reviews of the Bellair more than once, not because I have ever had any interest in owning or shooting one, but because I find them to be small masterpieces of between-the-lines veiled regret and polite damning with faint praise.

🙂 Subtle? You should have seen the strongly-worded note I sent Lomography when I returned it. Written on a non-folded note card in broad-point royal blue washable ink. Also probably illegible except the word disappointed.

But really, there is nothing like having a camera shoot off a Vivitar 283 right in your face twice (and in a dark environment) because tilting the camera tripped the flash contacts. That, and fat-rolling every roll of film because the tensioning mechanism was just a piece of poly foam. I did get a passable roll of film out of it eventually!

Dante

 

[lawrence]

Generally I like everything Nikon that I've bought but three things I couldn't get on with:

• F100. Too many buttons, LCDs etc. Prefer my F4 and FM2. This sort of interface works fine for digital cameras but I prefer dials and knobs for film.
• 50mm f1.8 AF-D Nikon. A horrible piece of plastic. The least tactile photographic item I have ever used. Noisy and slow as well.
• Nikon 35-70mm f/3.3-4.5 AI-S. Nicer to hold than the 50mm AF-D but appalling IQ with far too much distortion for such a limited zoom. I have the old 28-85mm f3.5-4.5 AF and it's a beautiful lens although rather bulky.

 

[lawrence]

Nikon D3 - a huge heavy expensive camera that for me was no better than a D700

But then again, there are few digis better than a D700...

 

[nikon_sam]

I finally figured out which cameras I didn't like...or better...we didn't get along.
The Aires 35IIIC & Aires 35IIIL...
Both are solid, well built bodies but I just couldn't fit with them nor did I like the image they produced...maybe it was just the ones I had but never the less I wouldn't spend any more money on these again...

 

[j.scooter]

X-Pro1. Can't imagine it is made by the same company that made the GX680, G690 or G617.

Same...

Plus I bought it right at the release date AND sold a lot of gear that enjoyed because I drank the Koolaid. Then Fuji dropped their prices and killed the used market.:bang::bang::bang:

Won't be the first out of the gate like that again...

 

[BillBingham2]

Mamiya 645. A friend of my father was to get a deal in a trip to Japan and ended up spending more that a new one with US warranty would have cost locally. Had fun tweaking a Vivitar grip back about 60 degrees with my father. I did learn that if I send someone off to buy something to lock in a top stop, heck I was 16 at the time so perhaps it was a cheap lesson.

Kicking myself as I could have paid for a Nikon SP and a lot of glass for what I paid, if I had only known. A FTn and a plain prism F would have saved me a lot of buying and selling later on too.

B2

 

[Oscuro]

Panasonic GX1. Loved the little GF1. HATE the GX1. Crappiest Jpgs I've ever seen. (I'd rather drink snot than work with RAW.)

 

[Robert Lai]

Russian stuff:
FED 1 with flakey chrome. It wouldn't focus with any other lens than its own, due to its unique lens register distance. It got sold.

FED 2 with shutters that capped. I finally got them adjusted to where they didn't taper. However, it would have required a full teardown, degrease, relube, etc., which I wasn't going to tackle. It got sold.

Jupiter 9 - worked fine at infinity. The closer you focused, the worse off the focusing inaccuracy became. I sold this off with full disclosure.

However, for some perverse reason I find the new Lomo Jupiter 3 fascinating. I guess I'll never learn.

 

[x-ray]

The diamond engagement ring for my EX wife.

BBEP oil stock

As far as photography a new M9

 

[Darthfeeble]

Try any of the smaller Epson Stylus Pro models. With nearly no color management/calibration with our Macs, we very accurately produce on 7900 7890 and 3880 models. No regrets.

Had an R1900 which was the worst, currently a Canon Pro100 and it's better. I need to learn profiles and the like.

 

[Larry Cloetta]

1983 Renault Alliance and all the lenses I own longer than 75mm.

The infamous Renault Appliance. I feel your pain.

 

[Livesteamer]

A Nikkor 50mm f1.4 Tokyo. I really wanted it even though it was in rough shape. Paid too much and paid more for Focal Point to service it. I've learned with e bay to be very patient and wait for the right lens. I recently won a lovely, late model Nikkor 50mm f1.4 with original hood for a good price. Both of these lens's are LTM. Joe

 

[Oscuro]

The infamous Renault Appliance. I feel your pain.

Handled like a breadbox. Takes talent to drive one of those at 100 kph.

 

[zuiko85]

Leica M4-2
Turns out I'm just not the RF sort. I also got too excited about how pristine it was, paid too much, and shortly had to spend another $200 to sort out slow speed problems. Have been able to unload a CV 21 f4 and 90 Elmar but the body and remaining CV 35 f2.5 PII will have to be given away for no more than 1/2 of what I paid and probably even less than that.

 

[Dan]

First regret over that particular camera I've ever heard expressed.

Nikon D700

Great camera but just too big and HEAVY. Far happier now with my X-Pro1

 

[Oscuro]

Leica M4-2 Turns out I'm just not the RF sort. I also got too excited about how pristine it was, paid too much, and shortly had to spend another $200 to sort out slow speed problems. Have been able to unload a CV 21 f4 and 90 Elmar but the body and remaining CV 35 f2.5 PII will have to be given away for no more than 1/2 of what I paid and probably even less than that.

Ugh.

The 21/4 is a really good lens. Superb and a fraction of the cost of the Leitz offering.

Too bad about the 4-2 and the 35/2.5

 

[kentchung]

Nikon D70... was a great camera, but the problem was me having to return a Nikkor 28/1.4 to buy it.... Wish I still have that lens.

 

[maigo]

Fed 3b that scratched my glasses to heck. Turned out after the test roll to have a hole in the shutter. Taking up valuable space in my junk/needs repair box.
I'm so bad a throwing things out... Too bad it isn't a TLR otherwise I'd turn it into a flowerpot.

 

[Whateverist]

Every FED I ever owned. I guess I'm good at picking out the lemons. FEDs just die on me after hardly working a few weeks. All my other FSU gear works fine.

As for a specific item, I have a Braun Universal Viewfinder that is functionally equivalent to peeking through a crack in the wall.

 

[jamin-b]

Leica SB-58 flash - great flash for Leica digital, that I got at a good price, but have never used beyond testing how it works with bounce / fill flash (which is great)...