What to look for when you're buying a used camera
Before you run out the door to buy that used equipment, you might want to take a few minutes to read this page. You don't have to! You are an adult. But we hope that you do, because we'd like to help keep you from buying somebody else's problem if we can. The tips below are equally applicable to anything you buy from us, another store, eBay, or some random guy's kitchen table. Please get in touch if you think we've missed something!
BEFORE YOU GO BUY IT
READ UP ON THE CAMERA YOU ARE CONSIDERING.
The most important thing you can do is understand how the camera is supposed to look, feel, and work. If you know how a camera is supposed to operate, you will be able to tell if something is not working right. Click here to go to Michael Butkus' extremely useful instruction manual page. Youtube videos can be hit & miss, but you should consider watching a few to familiarize yourself with how the camera looks and sounds in operation.
BE SURE THAT FILM AND MEMORY CARDS ARE AVAILABLE.
If you are buying a film camera, make sure you can still buy film for it. Polaroid peel-apart and Spectra films are no longer made. Kodak instant film is no longer made. APS and 126 film are no longer made. If you are buying a digital camera, make sure you can source cards for it. Some early memory cards- like xD, Smartmedia, or Memory Sticks- are no longer made, and some early cameras require low-capacity SD cards that aren't available new. If the camera needs a weird memory card, be sure at least one is included. You will not enjoy tracking this stuff down.
RESEARCH PRICING.
It's simple enough to find a range of current market prices for the equipment you're considering with an eBay Advanced Search. Be sure to search for SOLD items only: you do not want asking prices, you want to know what people are actually paying. You'll see some pricing that's too high and some that's too low, but you should also notice a general trend that'll give you some idea of what to expect. Keep this in mind when looking at local pricing. Worth noting that Etsy is absolutely NOT a good source or pricing information.
BE AWARE OF WARRANTIES AND RETURN POLICIES.
Camera stores and eBay provide some form of buyer protection, but many private sellers do not. Be sure to ask a seller whether you are able to return equipment that proves to be faulty, and try to get it in writing. DO NOT PAY WARRANTY PRICES FOR AS-IS EQUIPMENT.
BRING BATTERIES, CARDS, FILM, AND A FLASHLIGHT.
If a film camera needs batteries, find out what they are and bring them along. Bring a roll of test film to make sure the camera can wind and rewind it. If a digital camera needs a memory card, bring a suitable memory card with you. A seller may provide these, but they may not, and you're better off having them with you.
WHEN YOU'RE THERE
CHECK THE OVERALL CONDITION.
Look over the equipment for deep scrapes, dents, deformation, or corrosion. Make sure there are no signs of impact or water damage. On a film camera, open up the battery compartment and check that the battery hasn't leaked: battery contacts should be clean and shiny, so if you find flaky, crystalline deposits or corrosion, don't buy that camera. On a digital camera, make sure the batteries are not swollen or damaged. On a lens, make sure the focus and aperture rings move well.
SAND IS BAD. RUST IS BAD.
If a camera or lens shows signs that it has had sand or water exposure, you should not buy that camera. Sand particles are coarse and rough, and they get everywhere, including internal mechanisms. Because it's practically incompressible, a single particle of sand in the wrong place can jam up an entire camera. Moisture is similar: if a camera has seen enough water to cause exposed metal components to rust or oxidize, there is likely more damage inside that you can't see.
CHECK BASIC FUNCTIONS.
Be sure that a camera turns on and fires. For a film camera, be sure that it advances and rewinds film. For a digital camera, be sure that it can read and write to a memory card. Be sure that the camera is not displaying any error codes or behaving unpredictably. Be sure that buttons and controls respond reliably.
CHECK THE SHUTTER.
It is most common for shutters to fail at higher speeds. With a film camera, here is how you check a shutter:
- Open the back
- Take off the lens
- Hold the camera up to a bright light and fire the shutter at its highest speeds while looking through the back.
You want to make sure that you can see light flash through the ENTIRE shutter opening as it fires. When shutters fail at high speed, some of the shutter will not let light through. If you only see light through part of the shutter, there is something wrong. This won't tell you if a shutter is operating perfectly, but it will let you know if it's definitely broken.
CHECK THE SENSOR.
On a digital camera, it's important to check sensor condition. If the camera has a removable lens, remove it. Place the camera in Manual mode and set the shutter speed to "B" or "Bulb." When you press the shutter button in this mode, the shutter will open; when you release the shutter, it will close. With the shutter open, take a look at the sensor. Dust is not a big deal- most used cameras could use a sensor cleaning, anyway- but if you notice anything that looks like a scratch or liquid residue, be cautious. Use your flashlight for a better look, but be very careful not to stick it (or anything) into the camera.
CHECK THE ELECTRICS.
A camera’s electrical systems should not be glitchy. LEDs and displays should operate smoothly. If LEDs are flickering or blinking, or if an LCD is not displaying all the information it should, the camera is not working right. If an LCD display has areas that look like they're flooded with black- often towards the edges or corners- that's a leaking LCD, and you should not buy that camera.
CHECK THE LENS' OPTICS.
Remember that flashlight you brought? Shine it through the lens. You will see some dust- that's normal- but pay attention to anything else unusual. Two common optical defects are fog and mildew. Fog manifests as a milky appearance or patterned shapes on the interior glass; mildew can look like spots with a "halo" or spreading web-like structures. Light haze and small amounts of fungus are not the end of the world, but they are flaws that may affect imaging, and will definitely affect the value of a lens. You'll have to judge whether what you're seeing is a dealbreaker, but we don't recommend buying lenses with anything other than very minor fog or mildew.
CHECK THE LENS' MECHANICAL FUNCTION.
A lens is a machine too! A defective lens can make a good camera into bad camera, so it's worth your time to inspect it.
- Focusing action should be smooth and regular, not too loose and not too tight. Aperture rings should have a nice, positive action. Avoid any lens where the focusing and aperture rings are hard to move or seem to be moving unusually.
- Along its length, a lens should have only very minor movement. To check this, rotate the focus ring to extend the barrel as far out of the front of the lens as it will go and, holding the lens at the rear, very gently try to wiggle the front. If the front feels like it's rocking or tilting more than a few millimetres, there may be something wrong with the lens.
- Be sure that the actual aperture blades inside the lens are clean and moving well. On some lenses, you'll need to hold an aperture stop-down lever on the back of the lens to show the aperture; on some, rotating the aperture ring alone may open and close the aperture. Check the lens instruction manual or ask us if you're not sure how to operate a specific lens.
If you're looking at an autofocus lens, make sure that the lens can reliably focus from close up to infinity several times. Motor sounds should be consistent, not grinding or strained. Be sure that images taken at infinity are in focus.
BE AWARE THAT CAMERAS SHOULD FEEL & SOUND NICE.
If a camera sounds shrill, crunchy, or scrapey, something is wrong. If parts are loose, gritty, or move irregularly, something is wrong. This is subjective, but remember that cameras are precision-made mass market devices, and they should feel & sound that way. Lenses too!
BE SURE THAT EVERYTHING YOU NEED IS INCLUDED.
It is difficult to find batteries and chargers for older digital cameras. Sometimes, these can cost more than the camera. Batteries and chargers are not accessories or extras for digital cameras, they are necessary parts of the camera.
AFTER YOU BUY IT
TEST IT.
Shoot and develop a roll of film with a film camera before doing anything else; take your digital camera out for a walk and test it under real-world conditions. Try your new lens on a shoot that you don't care too much about. Do this right away to shake out any obvious issues. With any equipment- used or new- things can go wrong, and you're better off knowing about it before you rely on the equipment for anything important.
WORTH KNOWING
REPAIRS ARE NOT CHEAP OR EASY.
Repairs are expensive & often impractical. If someone tells you that a camera “just needs a CLA,” you should ask yourself why the seller didn’t simply have the camera serviced before selling it. I will tell you why: it is because the repair costs more than the camera.
MOST FILM CAMERAS WILL NEED NEW LIGHT SEALS.
Light seals that help seal the back door of most film cameras are made of foam, which turns to either goo or powder over time; when you're inspecting a used film camera, you may notice that these seals are looking a bit rough. And if you do, you may subsequently notice light leaks on film shot with that camera. This is not a big deal: we can replace these for you, or you can replace them yourself if you feel like it. But unless the seals have been replaced before you buy the camera, you should consider replacement a part of the cost.
CAMERA TRADERS DOES NOT TEST OR WARRANTY CAMERAS FOR THIRD PARTIES.
If someone says that the equipment has been tested by us, it's possible! We test all sorts of equipment, some of which we don't end up buying. But we can't verify condition once equipment leaves our shop, and we don't warranty equipment not sold by us.
"FROM JAPAN" AND "USED BY A PROFESSIONAL" MEAN NOTHING.
It does not matter if a camera is from Japan. It does not matter if the person selling the camera was or is a professional. It doesn't matter if it worked perfectly 20 years ago and has been stored in a vault since then. The only thing that matters is how the equipment works now.
ASK US IF YOU ARE NOT SURE ABOUT SOMETHING.
If you’re looking at a camera and you want some advice, please don’t hesitate to ask us about it before you make the purchase. We have seen too many broken cameras, please let us help you not waste your money. Thank you.