A calculated risk

I am a professional photojournalist about to be laid off, along with

7 other fellow photographers. The staff will go from 12 to 5, and

there will be an abundance of company supplied digital gear lying

around afterwards. My employer is offering to sell each of us our

photo kits at trade-in prices. I am thinking about purchasing the

gear and then flipping it on ebay as a way to boost my severance

package. Ethical? Who cares. My research into completed ebay

auctions says that my $2700 +/- investment could reasonably generate

sales of $4500 +/-, an $1800 +/- profit.

The risk is that the gear would not sell and I would be stuck with

gear that I am not interested in owning. I am getting out of the

business now while I am still young enough to pursue another career,

so I have no interest in any digital SLR gear. I own a Leica M kit

that will be my only photo gear. Simple is good.

The company offer is...

Heavily used but recently CPS serviced Canon 1D...$550

Lightly used 10D with grip...$350

Good cond. 16-35 2.8.....$650

Good cond. 70-200 2.8 IS...$900

Prices have yet to be agreed on for the 1.4x, 550ex and 420 ex.

Would you take the risk?

I'd be interested in the 16-35 F2.8 at that price

Pretty good offer. Go for it.

I am interested in the 1D and 70-200 2.8 IS, will pay or trade some M gear for it.

 

Gerry

I would easily say that you should go for it. Those are all things that keep their value and have been selling well on Ebay. An honest Ebay listing should get you a fair amount more for each item than you paid for it as each one of those items would still be a bargain at 1 1/2 the price you are paying.

 

I would happily make you an offer on a few of the items if you are interested but you might be better with Ebay.

I would definitely take it. And it's not 'unethical' either. The employer is making you a fair offer since you WERE terminated. Take it.

David - what is your new career? is it 100% for sure? did you enjoy shooting as a career? IF you are a skilled shooter, and you know about digital processing, and you enjoy shooting generally, then it sounds like you might want to consider staying the course and shooting for yourself until the other career is set.

 

perhaps...weddings? you could 'boost' your severance package even more if you keep the 10D, buy another 10D, keep the 16-35 and the 70-200 IS and have a good kit to start.

 

I don't encourage newbies to start w/ weddings, but if you know what you are doing, and aren't completely established in your new career, then maybe worth a thought. also, even if your new career is going fine, perhaps you might still want to stay shooting to keep your skills sharp. maybe not - just an option.

I don't think it's unethical either as the employer isn't trying to set any conditions on what you can do with the equipment after you buy it from them.

 

What I'd be concerned about though, is what kind of a price you might get on Ebay. Personally, if I saw an ad for heavily used photojournalist gear in an auction, or any professionally used photojournalist gear whether heavily used or not, I probably wouldn't even consider buying it, much less paying top dollar for it. Of course you have to include that detail in the auction if you're going to be honest.

Check Ebay and see what the stuff is going for. SLR camera equipment on Ebay is just about a sure thing. There won't even be much doubt about how much it goes for. You can usually predict the selling price within 10% by just watching similar items. Regularly sold items usually don't vary much in price at all. The only risk, as somebody mentioned, is if you don't a good established history as an Ebayer. But, if that's the case, you can start off with 5-10 low-dollar items and build up your feedback before selling the expensive stuff.

Thanks to all for the advice. For the record,I did not post the question to solicit offers on the gear. I have been a professional photojournalist since I was 19 and I am tired of working until 11pm every night, tired of working weekends and holidays, tired of having dinner with my family only 2 days a week, and tired of driving 40,000 miles a year. I am a very good photojournalist, but I am not good enough to get hired at the top tier newspapers that offer good pay and stability. Newspapers all over are facing huge problems of disappearing ad revenue and declining readership, and I am unwilling to gamble my future on an industry in such flux. Any other newspaper job would face the same issues. I am 36 and my plan B has always been to become an elementary school teacher. It is one of the few careers that has ever appealed to me. That and being a motorcycle road racer, but lets get real. I wouldn't look good in full race leathers. I didn't expect plan B to become plan A so soon, but life is unpredictable. So teach I will. I have done about 12 weddings in my career and I hated every single one of them. I have great respect for good wedding photographers, but I am not one. I am looking forward to a new career challenge, and I am looking forward to making photographs for myself again. Or not making photographs. My choice. And, a teachers pension is starting to look mighty good, as is summers off with my 4 year-old son. If I fail as a teacher, I can always re-enter the business, but it is time for a change.

Thanks again,

David

The only risk as I see it is that the gear either does not move on eBay or moves for less than you anticipate. That is: economic risk. You might try realistically rating the gear and using the online pricing engine somewhere like www.keh.com. That would give you a fall-back position and a pricing floor.

These prices are based on the average trade in figures from 2 pro shops in NJ, so I feel the values are accurate. Lets say a mint 16-35mm goes for $1200 on ebay, and I can only get $900 for mine, that is still a substantial profit. I recently saw a beater 1D at one of these shops selling for $1000. I do agree that the 70-200mm seems a bit high at $900, but I don't have to buy all the gear. I am already skipping the damaged 50mm 2.5 macro. I would be completely honest with the history of the gear and set low reserves. I guess any equipment I am stuck with I could trade in at the above mentioned shops for something useful, like a 4x5 field camera. Ah, 19th century technology good. I may be turning into a ludite. Cool.

My wife's a highschool teacher. It's a great experience, and I wish you the best, if that's what's going to happen. The gear is a great deal, and hey-- even if you only made $500 on it, that's $500 that you don't have now. As long as it's 100% functional and the lenses aren't scratched, I don't think there's a chance that you won't realize your investment.

They're all great deals, it's basically a no risk proposition. I've sold every one of those items on Ebay (with the exception of the 1D) in the last couple months and I think your numbers are accurate. You could even expect to make a profit on the 70-200mm f/2.8 IS, since I don't think they sell much under $1200 used. <P>

 

I would say buy every piece of gear that your employer will sell you, at those margins - ask for extra stuff, even! Don't worry about whether the items would sell or not, they will sell. The best way to ensure a sale and get a great price on Ebay is to do the following: <P>1. Write a long, detailed description of the item - be completely honest. <br>2. Take lots of very detailed photos (strobes and reflectors are great for this).<br> 3. Offer a money back guarantee if it's not as described.<br> 4. Start the auction at $1 with no reserve.<br> 5. Choose a one week auction, and pick a good starting/ending time, Friday afternoon's a good choice.<br> 6. Split up items, don't sell as a kit. Things like cameras and grips fetch more in total when sold separately. <p>

 

I've sold almost $20k worth of gear this way, and I've yet to have something sell below market value. Actually, most of my items go for top dollar, because it's more about driving up the number of people watching your auction than anything. All it takes is two people willing to bid to drive up the price, and when you have 40 or 50 people watching it (because the price started so low), you're almost guaranteed a high price.<P>

Think of this as your severence package/golden parachute. Good luck!<P>

Sheldon

offering options to ship to Europe really drives up the ebay price too. There seems to be less of a used market there, and most ebay sellers don't ship outside the US and Canada.

I sold off a lot of FD and older EOS gear on eBay before the holidays, all for top dollar. In addition to offering to ship worldwide (after all, the buyer pays and their is little extra to do other than filling out a customs form), offer a 2 week return on every item. The return policy is very attractive to buyers, and as long as the items condition is fairly described, the risk of having an item returned is very low. I'm happy to say that not a single item was returned in over 2 dozen eBay sales. Best of luck!