[Leica] decline in LUG membership

[gregj.lorenzo at shaw.ca (GREG LORENZO)]

>From KEH's Website"

""Like New Minus" 97-99% of original condition. Extremely slight wear that 
can only be seen upon very close inspection. Box and accessories not 
included."

Apparently B.D.'s "NIB F5's" from KEH arn't really "New" and don't actually 
include "the Box" or "other accessories". ...I'm sure though that Nikon USA 
would be delighted to repair any subsequent problems at full fee during the 
"warranty period".

Regards,

Greg

----- Original Message -----
From: "B. D. Colen" <bdcolen@earthlink.net>
Date: Thursday, August 12, 2004 2:10 pm
Subject: RE: [Leica] decline in LUG membership

> Try KEH - They have a couple of Like New- for $1269 - and I've found
> that their grading system is very conservative - meaning what they'd
> call 'good' is someone else's 'excellent.'
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: lug-bounces+bdcolen=earthlink.net@leica-users.org
> [lug-bounces+bdcolen=earthlink.net@leica-users.org] On Behalf Of
> Scott McLoughlin
> Sent: Thursday, August 12, 2004 3:28 PM
> To: Leica Users Group
> Subject: Re: [Leica] decline in LUG membership
> 
> 
> Where? I always wanted one of those :-)
> 
> Scott
> 
> B. D. Colen wrote:
> 
> >Speaking of upheavals - You can now find 'new in box' Nikon F5s 
> for 
> >about $1200. What does THAT tell you about the present and future 
> of 
> >film?
> >
> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: lug-bounces+bdcolen=earthlink.net@leica-users.org
> >[lug-bounces+bdcolen=earthlink.net@leica-users.org] On Behalf Of
> 
> >Thinkofcole@aol.com
> >Sent: Thursday, August 12, 2004 2:57 PM
> >To: lug@leica-users.org
> >Subject: [Leica] decline in LUG membership
> >
> >
> >
> >After a week-long business trip to New Jersey, a visit to  
> several 
> >camera stores and camera repair shops plus a visit to the  Second 
> >Sunday Camera Show in
> >Wayne, N.J., I am convinced that not only LUG  membership is affected
> >but 
> >almost every aspect of the camera business except  digital. Kodak's
> >forthcoming 
> >departure from several key film businesses should  make this 
> assessment>even 
> >more certain. 
> >  I found a Korean-owned camera store in Ft. Lee, NJ, and an
> >American-owned 
> >camera store in Palisades Park, NJ  both closed. A  big,
> >long-established 
> >American-owned camera store in Hackensack, NJ, is  moving to 
> Englewood,>NJ. Two 
> >Korean-owned camera repair shops are no longer  buying cameras for
> parts
> >because 
> >of big inventory and no demand. A big, long  established American-
> owned
> >camera stores in my new home of Asheville, North  Carolina, is 
> cutting>the size of 
> >its store in half. All of this suggests to me a  big upheaval in 
> sales.
> >  A local Walmart in Asheville no longer even offers one-hour
> >developing, 
> >probably because demand is too low. The main one-hour places in
> >Asheville now 
> >-- which often takes two hours --are the drug-store chains  and K-
> Mart.>{Of 
> >course, Walmart stores in other cities still offer one-hour  
> service.]>  Kodak's end of 120 format will affect Rolleiflex and 
> other 2x2 TTL
> >reflex 
> >cameras,  although there should be enough other brands around for a
> few
> >
> >years. Its end of 135 -- other than Kodachrome -- will affect all 
> 35mm 
> >cameras, although here again there should be other brands around 
> for a 
> >long while,
> >basically Fuji. Kodak's end of sheet film will affect Speed Graphic,
> >Crown 
> >Graffic, Linhof and other classic sheet-film cameras. 
> >  Like 8mm Bolex cameras, many classic cameras will no longer bring
> >premium 
> >prices anywhere because no film will soon be available without a 
> lot of
> >
> >trouble looking for it.
> >  As for Leica, Nikon and a few other special situations, the vast
> >majority 
> >of the users are only the ones already in the market -- the
> >professionals, 
> >the collectors, the wealthy and a few handfuls of guys and gals  that
> >absolutely 
> >love to own and use the best there is.
> >  On one hand, many camera dealers in some cities appear to be  
> willing>to 
> >accept far less for older Leica cameras and lenses because they  are
> >dead [or 
> >almost dead] stock. On the other hand, many Leica dealers are  still
> >very 
> >active, suggesting that the market is still there. At the Second
> Sunday
> >Camera 
> >Show, I saw a suit-case-full of used Leicas and Leica copies for  
> sale>and when I 
> >tried to get a look, a major buyer said that he had already  bought
> them
> >all 
> >for a big Manhattan store. 
> >   What does it all mean? To me it means that except for digital  and
> >except 
> >for a handful of major cities --like New York -- the camera business
> is
> >slow, 
> >very slow and in lots of places, no longer what it used to be. 
> >   As for professional photographers, my daughter  in 
> Minneapolis, who 
> >occasionally models for local photographer friends,  told me that one
> >professional 
> >photographer friend there has  lost business with at least one 
> customer>because 
> >the customer has been  buying stock photographs from a local company
> for
> >far 
> >less money rather  than pay heavily for a whole crew to provide 
> special>stuff. 
> >  Unfortunately for buyers, except in the bigger cities, where prices
> >are 
> >more reasonable, private sellers are looking for double or triple
> >current  
> >values and it will take at least a year or two for the word to 
> trickle>down --  if 
> >then -- that the market has shrunk considerably.  For sellers, I
> believe
> >they 
> >will have to study carefully whether to stock up on this or that 
> model.>I  
> >hope I haven't offended anyone in what I've said. --bob  cole
> >_______________________________________________
> >Leica Users Group.
> >See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
> >
> >_______________________________________________
> >Leica Users Group.
> >See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
> >  
> >
> 
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> 
> _______________________________________________
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>