3-2-1 Contax
December 3, 2011 7:36 PM Subscribe
Is there any kind of market for used Contax SLR equipment?
I have a Contax Aria, and Carl Zeiss lenses, a 28mm f/2.8 wide angle, a 45mm f/2.8 pancake, and an 80-200 f/4 zoom. I was kind of holding out hope someone would make a full-frame SLR body for old lens mounts, but I'm tired of waiting. If I can get $300-500USD for the lot, I'll sell 'em, but if I can't, the glass is too gorgeous to give up. Can I sell the lot for that kind of money? Would I do better selling them on Craig's List or Ebay, or is there someplace else where selling old Contax kit is a sure thing?
I have a Contax Aria, and Carl Zeiss lenses, a 28mm f/2.8 wide angle, a 45mm f/2.8 pancake, and an 80-200 f/4 zoom. I was kind of holding out hope someone would make a full-frame SLR body for old lens mounts, but I'm tired of waiting. If I can get $300-500USD for the lot, I'll sell 'em, but if I can't, the glass is too gorgeous to give up. Can I sell the lot for that kind of money? Would I do better selling them on Craig's List or Ebay, or is there someplace else where selling old Contax kit is a sure thing?
Don't sell to KEH is you want to make money, that's just crazy talk. The make their margin buying low and selling high. You will certainly get better money through ebay or craigslist of what have you.
With camera like the Sony Nex5N, some of the Ricohs etc, there is now a market that can use Contax lenses by way of an adaptor. Indeed, before resigning yourself to no full-frame I would urge to check out the Sony, you might well be surprised by the quality. I don't have one myself, but make no mistake the picture quality is pretty terrific.
To answer your question, though *some* (and only some) Contax bodies are the new fixed-gear bicycles for a certain photography set, the lenses are not in general fetching amounts anywhere near that high. Thatbeing said, a cursory search of ebay "buy-it-now" prices suggests that if those lenses are the zeiss, diastagon, Tessar, or Vario lenses you will comfortably reach if not surpass that target.
If you decide to go down that route, sell them separately, not as a package, and list them to end on a non-friday weeknight.
posted by smoke at 11:41 PM on December 3, 2011
With camera like the Sony Nex5N, some of the Ricohs etc, there is now a market that can use Contax lenses by way of an adaptor. Indeed, before resigning yourself to no full-frame I would urge to check out the Sony, you might well be surprised by the quality. I don't have one myself, but make no mistake the picture quality is pretty terrific.
To answer your question, though *some* (and only some) Contax bodies are the new fixed-gear bicycles for a certain photography set, the lenses are not in general fetching amounts anywhere near that high. Thatbeing said, a cursory search of ebay "buy-it-now" prices suggests that if those lenses are the zeiss, diastagon, Tessar, or Vario lenses you will comfortably reach if not surpass that target.
If you decide to go down that route, sell them separately, not as a package, and list them to end on a non-friday weeknight.
posted by smoke at 11:41 PM on December 3, 2011
As Smoke says, you can use Contax lenses on modern SLRs. I've found adapters for Canon and Nikon cameras, including the full-frame ones. I have personally used some old M42 lenses on my Canon 5D.
If you did want to sell, I think you probably could make that kind of money off them. Here in the UK, you should be able to get somewhere in the region of £100-£200 per lens, and £100 for the camera. I would definitely try eBay, unless you know of a camera forum with a good quality sales page.
posted by Magnakai at 2:28 AM on December 4, 2011
If you did want to sell, I think you probably could make that kind of money off them. Here in the UK, you should be able to get somewhere in the region of £100-£200 per lens, and £100 for the camera. I would definitely try eBay, unless you know of a camera forum with a good quality sales page.
posted by Magnakai at 2:28 AM on December 4, 2011
If you are interested in selling the glass (with or without the body), do let me know. I use my Canon 5D for video, and would love some Zeiss lenses to go with. The all-manual requirements (and loss of autofocus) of an adapter are what hold most people back, but for video I'm used to it anyway.
posted by shinynewnick at 7:41 PM on December 4, 2011
posted by shinynewnick at 7:41 PM on December 4, 2011
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Have you tried selling to KEH?
posted by jrchaplin at 8:00 PM on December 3, 2011 [1 favorite]