Used Lens Buying Guide

Used Lens Buying Guide

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Introduction

Being a professional photographer is an expensive career choice. Most of the great gear seems to always defy most beginners, and sometimes even the professional’s budget. But buying brand new equipment may not be the best bet, especially considering there is so much good second hand equipment floating around in the market. In this buying guide, we will give some pointers that will help you get a used lens for a good price and to make sure you are not buying a dud.

Purpose of the Guide

Buying fresh equipment is not always the best choice. Used lenses can cost up to 30% less than the shelf price, and that is money that can be saved for some other project, promotion or equipment, especially if you are just starting out or planning to switch systems. This guide will give you pointers on how to choose a good used lens for yourself.

Feature Guidelines

Scrutinize the Optics

Particulate Matter and Fungus

Shining a light source (bulb/ torch) into the lens will bring up any imperfections. Dust specks and small scratches should cause little worry, as they hardly impact image quality. Do check the front and rear elements thoroughly, and if you do find them the price should reflect it.

Fungus, on the other hand, is quite different. Once in the lens, it is difficult to get rid off and can damage the lens coating. The best course of action would be to avoid fungus affected lenses altogether.

Lens Centering

Badly centered lenses tend to perform better at one side than the other. Shooting a brick wall or a stretched piece of fabric where there is a lot of detail allow you to determine the centering of the lenses. The picture should be equally sharp off the side of the center on both sides. If you find it is plain soft when it shouldn’t be, it can mean there may be a serious centering defect in the lens. Only an authorized dealer can rectify this issue, and even then there is no guarantee.

Check the body and mechanisms

Dents and scratches

Just by looking at the lens you can find out how it was handled. Minor scratches and cosmetic damage is not important. Some loss of rubber and paint may happen, but they rarely affect image quality. Go to the screws holding the lens together and see if they have been tampered. This may indicate prior mechanical or electrical problems, and unless handled by an authorized service center, may also point to bad centering.

Dents mean that the lens has been dropped or sustained some major impact. There may be optical damage that one should thoroughly examine.

Cross-threaded filters

Cross threading can affect both plastic and metal filter threads, and is a problem if you use filters. Scrutinize filter threads before buying the lens, and if they are damaged, make sure it reflects in the price.

Aperture Blades

Mount the lens onto your camera. Close down the depth of field and use the depth of field preview if required. Check if oil marks are present on the blades. Do the blades move freely? Do not be concerned with perfect symmetry. Those can rarely be spotted even on expensive lenses and most of the time has little bearing on image quality.

Focus and Zoom Rings

Depending on the amount of usage, the zoom ring can be expected to offer some resistance, however it should never be wobbly or completely loose. If it turns easily then the lens may have seen heavy usage. Check for zoom creep if that is the case, but if you don’t find any, the lens is good.

Both focus and zoom rings should be smooth, and any roughness may indicate dust and sand particles inside that may lead to further corrosion. The lens should be able to go through the whole scale on both the rings. If any of the rings have a dent then it may disturb smoothness and precision.

Autofocus

Although the autofocus operation speed may vary depending on the camera/lens used, its movement should always be smooth. Examine if its accurate (within AF fine tune scale) and locks on to the subject well in both single and continuous focus modes. Also look into both minimum focus distance and the infinity focus. Check if the AF goes through the scale at an expected pace. It may be faster than you had expected, but it shouldn’t be too much slower. Pro-level zoom lenses, especially those incorporating the AF-S motors, are blazingly fast, like the 16-35mm, 14-24mm, 24-70mm, 70-200mm class and onwards. Lenses by Canon are generally very fast too, including their prime lenses.

Bring your laptop along

Getting your laptop along will aide you in noticing any imperfections and defects as you take photographs. It can help you spot AF inaccuracy and centering defects.

Buy from a trusted source

Be cautious of where you go about procuring your lens. Look for user reviews from buyers. This should provide you with the clues you need to see if the dealer can be trusted. Identify the person you are buying from, including his full name and address. Ask about the return policy. We at Unique Photo always verify used cameras to assure they all are far from all major defects mentioned within this guide, and guarantee all used equipment performs as expected.

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Top 5 Manufacturers

Canon

Canon DSLR lenses unquestionably wins the race with its advanced features and technological expertise. Most Canon camera lenses boast of amazing quality and speed. The beauty is that most of these lenses are not that steeply-priced. However, the top-end Canon lenses could be a tad heavy on your wallet.

Nikon

Nikon offers the closest competition to Canon in terms of features and technology are the Nikon camera lenses. When it comes to Canon vs Nikon lenses, there is only a fine line that separates the two in matters of quality.

Zeiss

Those who want reasonably good quality lenses without spending too much could opt for any of the ground-breaking Zeiss lenses. Without compromising on performance and features, Zeiss lenses are not too expensive and ensure that you stay up-to-date with the ever-changing world of professional photography.

Olympus

The next best lenses available in the market belong to the Olympus brand. They have a durable build, can operate efficiently in diverse environmental conditions, and even function smoothly in low light scenarios.

Sigma

The most innovative feature of Sigma lenses is that they are compatible across a wide variety of camera brands. They are manufactured especially to work well with the demands of diverse camera manufacturers.

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Terminology

Aperture Blades:
The leaves that can be seen inside the lens that open and close the aperture.
Focus Ring:
A movable ring around the lens that controls the focal length of the lens.
Zoom Ring:
A movable ring around the lens that controls the zoom of the lens.

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Still have questions or need more information on used lenses or any used product? Contact us so we can help!

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Fairfield

123 US Hwy 46 (West)
Fairfield, NJ, USA 07004
(973) 377-2007

Philadelphia

28 South 2nd Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
(215) 608-2222

[email protected]
© 2025 Unique Photo All Rights Reserved.