Is it just me ...

[lilmsmaggie]

I've been monitoring used MF gear prices for the last month or so and have noticed that prices have been creeping up, especially on eBay.

I missed what appeared to be a sweet deal on a RZ67 PRO II w/ 120 back, WLF, & 110 2.8 that went for less than $800. Since then, I've seen offers for $1K and higher for the same kit or even less in terms of overall gear.

Has anyone else noticed this, or is it just me?

 

[Ektagraphic]

I noticed a huge jump in prices on Mamiya M645 since I just picked two them up.

 

[jonsparkes]

I noticed a little jump it prices on the Bronica ETRS/I here in the UK recently. I managed to grab one for £175 but many are going for much more.

 

[Mike1234]

It's like I've been saying all along... inflation caused by overprinting along with "perceived" market recovery will drive prices sky high. Our "buyers' market" is disappearing quickly.

 

[Pumal]

I got a Mamiya M645 about 2 months ago, with 4 lenses for US300 about 2 months ago. An RB6X7 Pro S with 5 lenses, an extension tube and 4 Backs for 500 bucks about 6 months ago. By the look of things; everything Film; is going up.

 

[MattKing]

It may be that the lead up to the Christmas season is temporarily increasing prices.

It would be worthwhile checking again during the depths of February.

Matt

 

[mtjade2007]

I am sure the Christmas season has something to do with it.

 

[lilmsmaggie]

Whatever it is, the prices are approaching and/or have exceeded the cost of a new RB67 PRO SD w/ WLF ($799) in some instances. I'm not saying everone wants a new RB67 SD but for around $1650 retail with no haggling you can put together a RB67 kit with a 127mm lens and film back.

I'm hoping the prices drop a bit myself. But maybe Christmas is the culprit.

 

[Mike1234]

...maybe Christmas is the culprit.

Nope... only partially so.

 

[rpsawin]

I have heard comments from two local pro stores that mf sales are up. Obviously that means mf film sales are up too. I think that's good news because if the trend continues I think that that retailers may service this segment of the market better than they have for the last 2-3 years...IMHO.

Best regards,

Bob

 

[Q.G.]

I see nothing of the sort.
(That's not just me being contrary. )

Prices fluctuate. Have done for a loooong time.
Some things go for a lot of money, then can be picked up for next to nothing, and then again people pay lots for it, next thing you know... etc.

I have been watching this for quite a while (have managed to pick up some things for next to nothing, yes) and don't see a consistent trend either up- or downwards. It appears to depend mostly on the whims of who happens to be in the market, buying. Get a few people who are prepared to pay a lot, and for a while things go for more money. When those people leave the market, things are cheaper again.
A similar phenomenon is created when sellers enter the market hoping their stuff is worth much more than the going rate. Prices then appear to go up. But though they will manage to sell some of their stuff, they generally don't, and disappear again.

Sales figures provided by shops should be treated with due care. In a diminishing market, the remaining buyers flock to the remaining shops. These shops will register an increased interest in whatever they are selling. But that is only (!) because overall that same interest in that type of goods is decreasing.


'Bottom line' however is that you shouldn't trust my view of the market. Just as little as any other "is it just me?" view of the market. It's hardly compelling evidence.

 

[Sirius Glass]

It may be that the lead up to the Christmas season is temporarily increasing prices.

It would be worthwhile checking again during the depths of February.

Matt

And what Q. G. said.

Steve

 

[johnnywalker]

Whatever it is, the prices are approaching and/or have exceeded the cost of a new RB67 PRO SD w/ WLF ($799) in some instances. I'm not saying everone wants a new RB67 SD but for around $1650 retail with no haggling you can put together a RB67 kit with a 127mm lens and film back.

I'm hoping the prices drop a bit myself. But maybe Christmas is the culprit.

Check this out. I bought this outfit and am very happy with it.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mamiya-RB-PRO-S...goryZ710QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[lilmsmaggie]

Well, I'll just have to hang in there as Matt suggests and see what happens after the new year. I just received my new KEH catalog today, so I'll dream for awhile. Maybe make believe I won the Lotto -- woohoo!

They say patience is a virtue. We shall see. We shall see.

 

[TJ Krusinski]

I think the price increase is due to a renewed interest in MF. I, and many others I know, have switched from digital to MF. I think this trend will continue for a long while (hopefully). It can only mean well for the film industry.

 

[Jesper]

When Nikon released the D200 there was a definite jump in price of used manual Nikkor lenses. Some lenses like the 85/1.4 seemed to vanish overnight and when one was available it was two or three times as expensive as before.
Sometimes a shift in technology can shift a market back again.

I am a compulsive price surfer, and I would say that there has been a definite increase in prices with cameras like Hasselblad in the last two years (european market). It is harder to tell in different brands since it is hard to observe a sufficiently large amount of sales (auction prices are safe prices to observe). Perhaps we have seen a period when pros have switched their old hasselblads for digital, making supply a little higher than demand, and today we find fewer of these.
But we also have the psychological side of the market. For several years the price of a camera like 501CM was sinking each month, so if it stayed the same for half a year it will seem like an increase.
However, I would say that in the market places that I keep track of Hasselblads have increased 10-15% in the last two years (it may have gone the other way in other places).
Enlargers thou are still getting cheaper.

But sometimes you see a price that makes you jump. Last saturday a Konica T3 with a normal lens went for over $300 at an auction (almost four times as much as an F4 fetched at the same auction).

 

[keithwms]

Well it's hardly a surprise that prices are inching up a bit now. There was a period in which a lot of folks were simply dumping MF film gear, either to try digital or to protect their initial investment (anticipating a complete flat-line of the market in the near future). After that nonsense faded, people started to realize that MF film gear does have solid and enduring value; and of course bargain hunters played their part too and bought up a lot of what was on the market. So right now we find ourselves in a situation that most of the MF gear has found a home and there just isn't as much on the market as there was a year or two ago. The slack in the supply-demand realtionship is gone. Hence the prices have recovered, as they should.

Anyway, to me, a particular piece of gear is worth the value of the photography it enables, no more, no less. That value is entirely separate from whatever the market price may be. A holga can be worth a million bucks and a leica M7 can be worth fifty cents, as far as I am concerned. The gear never was and never will be what determines the value of what we do.

 

[rwboyer]

The only trend that I have noticed in the US market is that the Contax 645 gear seems to be experiencing a jump in prices over a while now. These are bringing crazy money lately compared to a little while ago.

RB

 

[Mike1234]

And everyone scoffed when I said hyper-inflation would knock the fiscal wind out of us all.

 

[removed-user-1]

I know that RB67 gear is a little pricier now than when I bought my kit, but still very inexpensive compared to new, possibly 75% less expensive... I haven't done any real comparisons, but lens prices are in the low hundreds instead of the low-to-mid thousands.

 

[Mike1234]

Better buy now because the worst is yet to come. Conversely, if you can wait to sell, then do so. Buy now... sell later.

 

[Jesper]

One thing is certain - The supply is limited so whatever you think you might need in the future, better get it today... (As if I needed an excuse).
(Will the next post be about GAS perchance?)

 

[Pupfish]

Prices might be starting to come back up.

But if you're looking at eBay, remember that asking price is not necessarily selling price. The Advanced Search function for closed auctions is very useful here. Take a look at the many eBay Buy-It-Now auctions (the increased incidence of BIN resulted from the new fee structure for auctions). Notice how many are going unsold at the silly-season prices. Too, the rough economy has probably caused sellers who weren't allowing foreign bids to ease up on their prior restrictions. Many foreign closing bids ultimately fall through and the same items are relisted.

 

[Pupfish]

Limited supply for run of the mill MF film bodies and common length lenses? Horsefeathers! Pro wedding photographers dumped their gear en masse on eBay to go with 35mm DSLRs several years ago. There's been such a glut ever since that amateurs couldn't possibly exhaust all that rolling stock for the next 50 years. Maybe there's a been a run on a few of the choice and rare ultrawide lenses that get repurposed for digitally stitched panos-- there being a somewhat limited supply only until Canon (or Zeiss) brings out a decent non-distorting ultrawide prime. Or until Pentax launches the 645D and reintros their 35mm SMC-FA for similar or even less money than folks are presently hoarding used ones (sight unseen and without warranty).

 

[Jesper]

When they stop making something the supply becomes limited.
Large numbers perhaps but there won't be any new ones.