Wanted: Prescience for the future values of camera and lenses

[E. von Hoegh]

All of my gear will appreciate at a rate to please the most avaricious of misers. The rest? Meh.

 

[benjiboy]

Ultimately all our equipment will end up in the landfill, so enjoy using it while you can David, it's current value is it gives us pleasure, stop worrying about it's future value,

 

[David Lyga]

Benjiboy, few can argue with reason and...raison d'etre! You speak prudently, albeit frighteningly. - David Lyga

 

[E. von Hoegh]

Actually there's no knowing what will happen to the value - and this also depends on how one defines "value" - the really clean $20 Nikkormat I bought recently has, for me, very high value at a price that wouldn't get you through a week's visits to charbucks. For me, it's not just that they make pictures although that's a big part of it. The high quality mechanical camera is somewhat like the railroad watch in that they are things which will never be made again in any significant quantity. So aside from the engineering and craftsmanship that went into producing them, they are truly relics of a bygone time.

 

[David Lyga]

That is how I feel, von Hoegh. I am not embarrassed to say that I probably click my shutters more withOUT film than WITH. Hearing that precise clock work helps mitigate the dryness of digital 'perfection' age. One can 'feel' the engineering and labor that went into it. Is that so foolish?

Yes, expecially Nikon bodies under the professional level are giveaways today because the lenses are worth far more. I do wish that I had an alternative for the normal Nikon lens which has a value now of multiple times the value of that Nikkormat. I know that Russia made one but they, also, are tough to get. Compare that to the prices of cheap M42 mount normals and you know what I mean. They are a dime a dozen. - David Lyga

 

[E. von Hoegh]

That is how I feel, von Hoegh. I am not embarrassed to say that I probably click my shutters more withOUT film than WITH. Hearing that precise clock work helps mitigate the dryness of digital 'perfection' age. One can 'feel' the engineering and labor that went into it. Is that so foolish?

Yes, expecially Nikon bodies under the professional level are giveaways today because the lenses are worth far more. I do wish that I had an alternative for the normal Nikon lens which has a value now of multiple times the value of that Nikkormat. I know that Russia made one but they, also, are tough to get. Compare that to the prices of cheap M42 mount normals and you know what I mean. They are a dime a dozen. - David Lyga

I recently bought a 28/3.5 Nikkor-H for $40, shipped, in very very nice user condition. With a little patience you can find similar deals. The 50/2 Nikkor-H goes cheaply, the 105s are sometimes available under $100, there are still bargains to be had. And you don't need a lens for every body, you just need a working set.

 

[David Lyga]

Yes, I find normal Nikons (of any vintage) difficult to get under about $25, even if somewhat battered. I guess I am spoiled because I get Minolta MD for $5! and M42 for LESS! Even Canon FD for $5 sometimes! - David Lyga

 

[E. von Hoegh]

Yes, I find normal Nikons (of any vintage) difficult to get under about $25, even if somewhat battered. I guess I am spoiled because I get Minolta MD for $5! and M42 for LESS! Even Canon FD for $5 sometimes! - David Lyga

I bought recently a Yashica Tl Super for $2.15, with the Yashinon DX 50/2. I got a Nikkormat FTN with a 50/2 Nikkor H, in decent shape, for free a few years ago. Minolta for $5? OK, but there's a reason pros used mainly Nikon.

Nikons once went for a fair size fraction of the cost of a new car - Nikon F, FTN finder, 50/1.2, for $460-someting in 1972 (I have the original bill of sale); a new small car then was $2000~. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

 

[darinwc]

Just like in other antiques and collectables, only the things that are valuable today will be valuable tomorrow. That minolta x370 will never be more valuable than a leica m3.

That said, the declining state of film and film users will slowly devalue 99% of film cameras. Zeiss and leica will likely fluctuate depending on collectors whim.

The re-use of lenses will likely keep the prices high unless the market gets saturated with digital lenses.