kai818•1mo ago

Vent: People who treat vintage lenses like they're made of gold

I had a guy come into my shop yesterday with a beat up 50mm f1.4 from the 70s. Haze, scratched front element, sticky aperture blades. He wanted $200 for it. I told him it's basically a paperweight and he got mad. Used to be you could find these for $20 at garage sales. Now everyone thinks their old glass is a treasure. Has anyone else seen this shift over the last 5 years or so?

2 comments

2 Comments

sanchez.mary1mo ago

Oh yeah, the "vintage lens tax" is real and it's ridiculous. I saw someone try to sell a Helios 44-2 with fungus so bad it looked like a tiny forest inside for $150 last week. Like buddy, that's not character, that's decay. The YouTube effect is real too, every influencer out there makes it sound like old glass is some magical portal to cinematic heaven. Your mileage may vary but I've bought perfectly good modern lenses for less than people want for these beat up relics.

noah_rivera571mo ago

I mean idk, is it really that deep? Like yeah some people definitely overprice junk lenses but it's not like we're talking about rare art here or something. I've seen way overpriced modern lenses too, people just get mad when it's vintage because of the hype. Maybe it's just me but if someone wants to pay $150 for a lens with a tiny forest inside, that's their problem not mine. Half the fun of vintage glass is finding the deals anyway, not buying the first one you see on eBay.