Originally posted by dcshooter Seriously, I'd be willing to snag one here for you and forward it on. $230 is about £146. Import duty to UK starts at £135, and if you left the lens off, it would be well under that value. I could sell the lens here and forward you the funds. You'd only be on the hook for import VAT. Drop me a PM if interested.
A tempting offer, I might have to have a serious think about that
---------- Post added 17-11-14 at 11:20 ----------
Originally posted by CWRailman Sorry to put it to you this way but you have not provided sufficient information for anyone to assist you in making an informed non-partisan decision.
You say you have the original Q. What lens or lenses do you currently have with that? Are you getting the most out of your current configuration? Have you pushed it to it’s limits? How do you know? Remember that just buying a better camera does not make you a better photographer.
What type of photography do you enjoy doing the most? Bird or long range nature shots, wide landscape shots, portrait shots, head shots, out door shots, indoor shots, street shots, architecture shots, products shots or what? This will help determine what equipment is best suited to your needs.
Is the Q your only camera?
Where do you expect to go within the realm of photography? While I like the Q series, and have purchased five of them in the past five months, if you have aspirations of moving deeper into photography then your available funds may be better directed at getting a used DSLR with a 18-55 kit lens which will give you the reasonable wide angle you are looking for as well as a better quality image.
IMHO I would not waste money on the Q-S1 as there is no appreciable difference between it and the Q7. It only exists because camera manufactures have taken a page from the women’s garment industry manual which insists that to maintain profitability they need to produce a new garment/model every year no matter how insignificant the changes may be and then use advertising and peer pressure to assure that the consumer feels compelled to upgrade. (Add one additional cup holder to the inside of your cars, offer it in two new colors and call it a new model.)
While the 08 has been reported to be an excellent lens, many people are getting really exceptional results as shown in the forum by using the 02 lens. You might be best suited by purchasing a Q7 with the 02 lens. The Q7 will give you better IQ than your current Q and you may find that is all you need to get a significant improvement or open new options in your photographic endeavors. The Q7 is currently available on Ebay for $240. BTW while I purchased my K-5 and K-5IIs from B&H in New York, I have purchased all 5 of the Q series from sellers on Ebay and not had one problem with any of them.
Ironically, in the days of film the rule of thumb was, when working with limited funds, purchase the best piece of glass you can and put it on the cheapest body. That was why so many of the Pentax K-1000 were sold as body only to photographers who bought expensive high quality lenses. Today the sensor in the camera is of primary importance so the rule has changed to have the best sensor/body you can afford because the best glass on the cheapest body will not produce the same results as the kit lens glass on a good sensor.
Well I have the 01,02,03 & 06, although I mainly use the 06 and 03, I don't use the 01 often as I am not a fan of the 50mm focal range or the 02 as its just not wide enough for my taste. Getting a Q7/S-1 fixes that problem somewhat.
I mainly do street photography (Wandering around London on a lunch time) but I really need a wider lens to complement the 06, so with the Q7/S1 I can have 24mm with the 02, or get the 08 lens and I can have 21mm! There is advantages to getting either!
I am not one of these people who craves high resolution, one of my favourite cameras is my Olympus E-1, with it's huge 5 megapixel sensor
My Q is the camera that I take everywhere, it always sits at the bottom of my bag with the lenses and I don't even notice the weight!
I have to ask, why did you buy 5 Q's?
Dan