Originally posted by Stringmike In their defence, I'd like to add that preparing an overseas package requires a lot more time and paperwork than just shipping within the USA. I sell stuff on eBay and although I will ship overseas it is a real hassle.
I find the easiest and most reliable the US Postal Services International Priority Mail, but this requires a trip to the Post Office and the usual wait in line. Shipping with UPS or FedEx is less hassle but usually more expensive.
Mike
I just checked a small flash diffuser usng B&H's calculator.
$4.95 to ship to California
$25.55 to ship to my part of Canada
$40.60 (plus duties and VAT) to ship to Germany.
I then checked a similar item from Adorama.
Free shipping within USA, which is nominally an improvement over B&H
$33.05 to my part of Canada
$39.55 to Germany.
All this on a very small item costing less than $40.00.
I'm pretty sure these guys are making a pretty huge profit off the damned foreigners with their onerous shipping charges.