I got into photography at 14 as a freshman in high school. That meant that the only gear I could afford was used, and some of it was quite beat up. I still love finding a good used deal, and luckily, I can pay a bit more now now.

When looking at used lenses, there are two things I'm most concerned with: front and rear elements without serious dings or scratches and smooth focusing. I don't mind if the barrel shows a bit of wear, as it certainly will by the time I'm done with it.

Bodies are tougher to judge, since they're now full of electronics. I'll look them over more carefully for signs of hard use, and compare the asking price against that of a new, USA warranty model.

Recently some friends of mine that run a studio here in Kansas City decided to buy all new gear, and put all of the old Nikon stuff up for sale. That gave me the chance to add to my own collection. The SB-800 is such a versatile flash, with the SU4 and Commander/Remote capability, that I couldn't pass up grabbing another of those. I've long been a fan of the old 55 Macro lens I own, but they had a 105mm 2.8 model. That's been on my list too, as it will let me be a bit further back from the subject. And then I picked up a 50mm 1.8 lens for $75 as a fast, small lens to have.

They've still got a good selection of gear, most in great shape, including a couple of 17-55mm 2.8 and 70-200 2.8 VR lenses. If you're looking for something long and fast, and can live without autofocus, they've got an old 300mm f/2.8 with excellent optics and smooth focus for just $650. If you're interested, drop Doug Hesse an email at Doug@kdog.com (Black Dog Studios) and check what he's got left. And if you know of a nice used Nikkor 200-400 f/4 VR (drool), or Canon 10-22, let me know!