Michaele

You did not mention Sony by name. I will. I am an interested buyer of a Sony a7r Mk2 - a gray market model sold in the U.S.A. It comes without a U.S. warranty and maybe without an operating manual printed in English.The items I want sell for a discount of 20% and have a warranty by the seller only. As a wary buyer I called Sony and asked this question: Are all Sony a7r Mk2 cameras imported into the United States and sold as gray market cameras, the identical camera as those sold with the Sony U.S. warranty. The answer was YES.

B & H sells Sony FE lenses for the A series . They told me they occasionally sell gray market lenses without warranty - but it is identical to the same lens sold with a warranty.(I did not ask the price they want for gray market lenses, so the above stated 20% discount does not apply to what B&H may charge for their lenses.

So, the punch line is - is a 20% discount for expensive gear worth the "risk" buying a very reputable brand camera and lens without a warranty. Thanks for you article, well done. Zing

WALL

I am waiting for the movie.

Leon S Loc: Minnesota

Well Ed. As I read the comments to your thorough initial post, I find only one person who commented negatively to what you wrote. As I read the comments including mine, it seemed to me comments were intended in support to you. Personally I read your entire post and at the end thought you spent a lot of your time to clearly state facts for the benefit of many here. I encourage you to continue with your style and forget about asking for limits for posts. Leon

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

Well, folks, my "chains" are too rusty to pull! I am not a professional writer by any means. I come from Brooklyn and went to kinda "underprivileged" schools, English was not my FIRST language so I am fortunate enough no to be entirely illiterate. Most of my higher education was mostly technical in nature. I am far from a PAID technical or business writer. Those who are so preoccupied or obsessed with spelling, grammar and writing style might be better inclined to post on a literary forum. If I had no respect for the readers around here, I would not bother to share or help any of them!

I am well paid for my teaching activities and if I were being paid for my technical writing I would bring in a professional editor to tune up my articles. Take 'em or leave 'em as is!
Sorry gang!

Ed

Bobspez Loc: Southern NJ, USA

Now That is clear and concise!



:thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

Macronaut Loc: Redondo Beach,Ca.

Please do not refrain from posting articles like this in the future just because of a few. I find great value in these well thought out posts.

Thank you again for your time and energy :thumbup:

dickwilber Loc: Indiana (currently)

First, I must compliment you on an insightful piece. Though I’ve been involved in photography 70 years, owned a studio and a lab, worked in a camera store, have made a living photographing weddings, and events, and sports; reading your work I was able to glean new information, particularly concerning the construction of strobes. However, my “gleaning” might have been more fruitful, certainly easier, had there been more effort put into editing your treatise.

As a lifelong “Creative Speller”, I have much empathy for anyone struggling with the rules of English, and I could see that you made an effort – probably using a “spell check” program. That would explain why it took me several minutes to figure out the “... inadequate convention of the heat, generated my modeling lamps away ..”

Again, I do not want to take away from your effort here. Rather, what I want to point out to all posters is that your written words, just like your photos, need “post processing”. When you have finished your statement, reread everything you wrote, carefully and out loud, several times before you hit the “send” button! Ferret out those misspelled and respelled by spellchecker into wrong words, and delete anything that might be demeaning, or offensive, please. Wait! Stop! Read it one more time, carefully! And, if it’s more than a simple paragraph long, certainly anything as long and complex as Ed has created here, print it out, and read the hard copy, c-a-r-e-f-u-l-l-y!

I hope I haven’t beaten a dead horse here. And. Ed, I really did enjoy what you wrote.

Thank You. Dick Wilber

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

what is verbage?

The Villages Loc: The Villages, Florida

I would imagine that the majority of the Hogs are of the older variety (like myself). We are here to question and learn more about the hobby we all enjoy, some to a greater degree then others. If we misspell a word or don't make proper use of the king's english....then so be it! Lifes to _XXXX___ short.

digit-up Loc: Flushing, Michigan

I know that you will continue posting useful and interesting threads - simply because you hung in there and took care of a 24 year old cat. Don't let some of the UHH old cats worry you when they leave their marks, just herd them to the door and keep up your good work.

I value the voice of experience and appreciate your sharing[/quote]

ED did us the favor of sharing, and gave us HIS time and experirance, and though maybe a bit wordy, it was all a good effort. Ed and other "posters" though, should be aware that when you do us the favor of "puting yourself out there, you will allow yourself to be"open to a rude critique, now and then, by any number of "crass & insensiteve" hoggs. They are "out-there" and not in small numbers , but in small minds. I will continue to come to the hogg, as long as there are the EDs here, willing to say something and be scrutinized and maybe even crticized unmercilessly, regardless... Many thanks to ed.and all the other Ed-types out there, doing us all a great service. They make this forum worth-while.. Thanks Ed :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

For the sake of my own mental health, it's a good thing that I have a sense of humor! Laughter is good for the body and the soul. When something strikes one as “funny” and robust laughter occurs, the brain releases endorphins, some kind of chemical that makes one feel good- real good and perhaps helps us overcome stress, pain and even certain illnesses. No drugs- no booze- no pills!

This morning, having seen that this thread, ostensibly having to do with photographic equipment, is still bringing on commentary on my writing prowess, or obvious lack thereof, did, in fact, bring on quite a spell of laughter- I nearly hurt myself!

Well- I am quite the audiophile so I went to my CD collection and pulled out my soundtrack album of “My Fair Lady”. I placed the disk in the player and powered up my favorite Denon amp (designed in the U.S. but made in China and listened to Rex Harrison sing his inimitable rendition of “Why Can't the English Teach their Children How to Speak”! Gotta say- great surround sound- took me back to my teen years when I saved up enough money to take my girlfriend to the St. James Theater in New York City and enjoyed a live performance of My Fair Lady with Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews- the original Broadway cast! We were 6 rows from the stage and in center seats. Wow- that was an experience I will never forget!

Well then! Thanks for the tips guys, I shall take them under advisement. Perhaps when I retire I will take in a college course in technical English, trouble is, I ain't gonna retire anytime soon!

As we say up here in Canada, “Bon Chance”!

Ralloh Loc: Ohio

Simple answer for me. I have to be budget conscious. I always look at third party gear, except for cameras. I first look for any reviews. If it has a good amount of positive reviews, I consider it. I then look at the seller since I usually use Ebay. If they have a good rating, I will use them. With this simple formula I have never gone wrong.

Of course I am an enthusiast, or, hobbyist. If I were a professional, I would probably look for top quality.

And no, I did not read the whole article. My eyes went glassy after the first couple of paragraphs.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Although I am a stickler for proper grammar, spelling and punctuation also, I have been embarrassed on more than one occasion by errors introduced by spell checkers, even after proofing my post. I would assume that you might be as well, especially considering the misplaced period after "And" in your last sentence.

When presented with a gift, as Ed has bestowed on us with his post, the appropriate, polite and kind response is "thank you", rather than a critique of the wrapping. There was an initial disclaimer as to its length, and certainly no one is required to read the entirety if they feel it's too long - no comment required (or appreciated).

I'm a relatively new member of this forum, and the information gleaned here has been quite useful (for which I'm extremely thankful), but almost daily, there's a rude, sarcastic, picky, or simply unkind response to a well-intended post that does not contribute to a generous, helpful and polite discussion or sharing of information. We can disagree, but please exercise the same civility and respect that you (hopefully) exercise in your face-to-face interactions with others and that you expect in return.

(Dick, this rant on civility or lack thereof was not aimed at you...)

Chris

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

Chris! Thank you, sir!

digit-up Loc: Flushing, Michigan

In responce to "TRIX".......When presented with a gift, as Ed has bestowed on us with his post, the appropriate, polite and kind response is "thank you", rather than a critique of the wrapping. There was an initial disclaimer as to its length, and certainly no one is required to read the entirety if they feel it's too long - no comment required (or appreciated).

I'm a relatively new member of this forum, and the information gleaned here has been quite useful (for which I'm extremely thankful), but almost daily, there's a rude, sarcastic, picky, or

I'm with you!!! And a hardy "welcome to the hogg" More of and from, those like you, as opposed to some "OTHERS". We all benifit from Random acts of decency, and are brought down by intentional rude-ness!! Again, welcome to you, trix..RJM