[jawats]

Sorry to moan, just a bit, but...

My lovely mother bought me a gift certificate for 42nd Street Photo in New York for Christmas. I used some of it to buy a stout Vanguard tripod with tilt / pan head (perfect for my astrophotography yen) and extra ball head for when I mount the Skyguider to it (once the negative temps go away in June or so). However, now I have a decent amount of money remaining on the gift certificate, and I cannot find anything I want to buy.

Unfortunately, the Pentax (and Sigma and etc.) offerings there are either way outside of my price range (e.g., Sigma 150-500 5-6.3) or duplicates of what I have already. I am also struggling a bit because the things I might consider seem to be vastly overpriced as compared to other sellers. Some of the interests I have are:

Sigma 20mm 1.8 EX DG: 42nd Street - $599; Amazon - $320; Ebay - $504
Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 EX-DC HSM: 42nd Street - $579; Amazon - $399; B&H - $399
Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 EX DC OS HSM: 42nd Street - $529; Amazon - $278; B&H - $369
Sigma 70mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro: 42nd Street - $419; eBay - $300; B&H - $329

Some of these are used prices because it appears that what 42nd Street is selling has been superseded.

When I dealt with 42nd St. for the tripod, they had good service and good communication, as well as fast shipping. So, overall the experience was good. But it seems like they are not a Pentax-friendly shop (due to limited selection), and they are quite overpriced (though that may be the NYC market).

So, anyway - thanks for listening! Suggestions are always welcome - I may even buy one of the more expensive lenses which overlaps what I have, then re-sell it to be able to use the funds.

[blind-bat]

42nd Street Photo is like those old pre-internet electronics/photography equipment stores from the 80’s that expect you to have done your homework and haggle for a price. Places like them use to dare you to walk in armed with pricing before they would negotiate.

[jawats]

42nd Street Photo is like those old pre-internet electronics/photography equipment stores from the 80’s that expect you to have done your homework and haggle for a price. Places like them use to dare you to walk in armed with pricing before they would negotiate.

This is good to know. So, when I call, go armed with good prices, and bargain for what I can get...

Stop at the saloon first, have a whiskey, then go to...