Price increases!

I know that the pound isn't as strong as it was twelve months ago but are the manufacturers sure about sticking on 20% price increases on some of their items when we are in a credit crunch situation?

The problem with this is that the second hand sales of currently manufactured items are also going up even when the present owners paid a lot less for them!

I'll give you an example; a well known second hand supplier who advertises in AP is offering a Canon 1D MK III second hand at £2499 - the same price I paid for mine eight months ago new!!

I suppose if you've stock-piled a load of equipment and not used it, now is the time to sell it on "fleebay".

But if you're looking to buy.....

Is that why you're selling the contents of your camera bag right now?
Don't get me started on the price rises, in the current climate you would think that they would be guarded about hiking the prices up by pennies let alone hundred pounds. But then again, photography is a niche market, like all hobbies (Apart from train spotting ) the hobbyists will pay through the nose for equipment for their hobby. Certainly in photography it attracts rich gits who can afford say the Eos 1, or the retired, or the pro. It's the expendable pound, I would also imaging that this would include the 'pink pound'.
Pros pass the costs of the must have 'D3' / Eos 1 onto clients, retired people take it out of the kid's inheritance (Dad please don't take up photography) and the rich gits just don't care, if prices go up too much they can always flog the Merc and use the Jag instead and let the wife use the TVR to run around in.

Mr or Mrs average can't afford it and the great divide gets bigger.

No-one likes to see price rises but I'm not sure you are appreciating the effect of exchange rate changes over the last year. If we take the Yen the rate has fallen from 209/£ this time last year to 128/£ this year. What does this mean in real terms? If Canon sold a camera for £1000 in Feb 2008 they received 209,000 yen. Selling a camera for the same price now only gives them 128,000 yen. Not many companies can afford a 40% drop in selling price - something has to give.

The real world situation is far more complex than my example but you can see that all importers to the UK are going to struggle to keep prices down. As the finance director of an importer myself I can have some sympathy with the necessity to put prices up.

I guess we all just have to struggle on with our outdated 2 year old technology for just a little longer.

Interesting point you make about the second hand market.

Colin - Spot on! It's not only just the Yen to Pound exchange rate but the Yen to Euro to Pound rates. Apparently this was the reason that Canon, for the second time this year has put its prices up as the Euro to Pound rate is so poor.

The point I was making is that some of the retailers/etailers must have stock they bouight at the old price but they seem to have unilaterally upped their prices. This has reflected on the second hand prices of current models (Julia - please note that the items I'm selling are not currently in production ). This has meant that a 28mm f1.8 lens I was looking at 2 months ago was £230 went up to £280 and the shop wasn't interested in negotiation!

Julia - My mercs 9 years old and was bought second hand and the wife's got an Escort!!

As I say, the retailers don't care as they are targetting a specialist market in whch the customers will pay the price if they really want an item. I use the analogy of the Merc and the EOS1 in jest, however, if the cap fits... I am not in the retired, ritch git or pro catagory and can't afford to buy the new EOS 5 or D700 (not sure which yet) but if I want either then I will find the way to finance the purchase. Either of the cameras is a finance application away because as a keen hobbyist I am prepared to pay the stupid money that they are asking. Which is what I'm saying, specialist market, people pay so retailers don't have to worry about price increases as there is always a ritch git, retired, pro or finance queen prepared to buy.
However, with cheap flights it would pay to go abroad just to make a purchase.
When I flew out of Stansted before Christmas Dixons were selling the D300 duty free for £200 less than the high street. That has to point the blame back at the government....

But surely those with the greatest gripe at the increases are those starting out in photography i.e. those with little or no equipment. For those that have a suite of kit behind them is there really a need to upgrade. Is the outlay always justified or are we only after an few extra Mpixels, new knobs and shiney buttons?

I can appreciate the benefits and thrill of new kit - but is there really the need to have the latest release as soon as it comes out? - especially if what you currently have delivers what youre after in terms of function and results.

Maybe, but oh, the joys (and trials) of being a gear freak!