The Logic of L-itis


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dkw

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Hi there,
just sharing my thoughts about a deadly, blood sucking disease called L Lens-itis, (L-itis in short). As with most parasitic diseases, the infecting organism does not kill the host outright, but slowly drains him of life (or money). High risk behaviour which puts you at risk for contracting this disease including buying an EF mount DSLR, surfing CS, DPR or Fred Miranda. Symptoms include thinning wallet, blood shot eyes, rows of test shots for back-focus/sharpness, and aching neck from rock-heavy lens. This disease is extremely difficult to treat, but a large dose of Vitamin M helps tremendously in relieving symptoms.

Seriously, having started out strictly on 3rd party lenses, the L-bug has bitten, and bitten HARD! Personally, part of the psychology of buying the best glass is that it is easier to blame the equipment or poor pictures than to blame the photog (yourself!). I don't think that just by buying L-lenses that my photography will suddenly improve leaps and bounds (it hasn't), but at least psychologically I no longer feel that I'm being limited by my equipment. Not to say that 3rd party lenses aren't great, there are a number of real gems out there (Sigma 70-200/2.8 and Tamron 28-75/2.8 are 2 great examples, which I still own), but the build quality of an L-lens sitting in the hand quite blows you away!

OK, end of my pointless post, hope it was good for at least a few laughs. :) Maybe some fellow sufferers can commiserate with me......

Cheers,
 

u not alone, dude :bsmilie:
 

dkw said:
Hi there,
This disease is extremely difficult to treat, but a large dose of Vitamin M helps tremendously in relieving symptoms.
Cheers,

u're wrong my fren :nono: ... the study frm Harvard Medical School shows huge dosage of vitamin M does not relieve symptoms.. but instead aggravates the symptoms...

no vitamin M intake will slowly relieves this contagious disease :bsmilie:
 

My L vs non L collection is now 4 to 2. The third party lenses have been in a losing battle since my 17-40 arrived, its been non stop since then. The Ls are proving their worth, at least that's what I'd like to think considering what I've spent on them.

Oh, forgot I picked up my no. 5 L just a couple of hours back.... sigh, my biggest one too.
 

You need not spend too much money getting L lenses. There are many excellent L lenses which are available at reasonable prices. The 200/2.8L, 70-200/4L and the 28-70/2.8L are all affordable in the used market. I have absolutely no regrets buying these lenses, because I can see the improvement in image quality. There are many pictures I've taken with the 28-70L at f/2.8 which would not have been possible with my older 28-105 USM and the image quality is soooo much better wide open. So... if you are wise and spend carefully, you can end up with a great L lens collection at a reasonable price.
 

Good advice by sriram. Ebay is generally a place where a lot of folks look but there are other forums and market boards, mostly based in the US, where one can look for a good buy.

Here are some excellent places to look. Not all the stuff listed are dirt cheap but there are some gems (EF 50/1.0L for US$1500 for example)...

www.fredmiranda.com/forum (very active board, I purchased a large EF prime recently for a good deal)

www.photogon.com (solely a buy/sell board, not very active but good place to check out every once in a while)
 

dkw said:
Hi there,
just sharing my thoughts about a deadly, blood sucking disease called L Lens-itis, (L-itis in short). As with most parasitic diseases, the infecting organism does not kill the host outright, but slowly drains him of life (or money). High risk behaviour which puts you at risk for contracting this disease including buying an EF mount DSLR, surfing CS, DPR or Fred Miranda. Symptoms include thinning wallet, blood shot eyes, rows of test shots for back-focus/sharpness, and aching neck from rock-heavy lens. This disease is extremely difficult to treat, but a large dose of Vitamin M helps tremendously in relieving symptoms.

Seriously, having started out strictly on 3rd party lenses, the L-bug has bitten, and bitten HARD! Personally, part of the psychology of buying the best glass is that it is easier to blame the equipment or poor pictures than to blame the photog (yourself!). I don't think that just by buying L-lenses that my photography will suddenly improve leaps and bounds (it hasn't), but at least psychologically I no longer feel that I'm being limited by my equipment. Not to say that 3rd party lenses aren't great, there are a number of real gems out there (Sigma 70-200/2.8 and Tamron 28-75/2.8 are 2 great examples, which I still own), but the build quality of an L-lens sitting in the hand quite blows you away!

OK, end of my pointless post, hope it was good for at least a few laughs. :) Maybe some fellow sufferers can commiserate with me......

Cheers,
Looks like i'm not the only one!!! :bsmile:
 

majere2sg said:
I am infected, I just picked up another L today... Will be seeing the doctor soon to cure my infection... :sweat:
Wah u serious case sia...need immediate attention. Kekeke. ;p

What lens did u get? 600mm f4 L IS? :devil:
 

i think i had manage to get this virus under control due to the $ crisis i'm facing now :bsmilie:
 

only working adults or rich students are susceptible to this illness. :D
 

Nitrile said:
only working adults or rich students are susceptible to this illness. :D

How right you are, I've been meeting more and more of the latter category. And they talk as if they're the ones coming up with all this hard earned money to get their gear with. Amazing...
 

Terence said:
How right you are, I've been meeting more and more of the latter category. And they talk as if they're the ones coming up with all this hard earned money to get their gear with. Amazing...

Said latter category need to find some part time work at a minimum-wage $5 per hour job and realize how many hours it takes through simple mathematics to earn the easily four figure sum it takes to buy the cheapest L-lens.

It just a numbers game to them till they earn their own; how much can I squeeze out of daddy this month without getting into trouble?
 

r32 said:
Said latter category need to find some part time work at a minimum-wage $5 per hour job and realize how many hours it takes through simple mathematics to earn the easily four figure sum it takes to buy the cheapest L-lens.

It just a numbers game to them till they earn their own; how much can I squeeze out of daddy this month without getting into trouble?
Trust me, the kids nowadays can squeeze out quite a bit of $$$ juice from their doting parents. And this is not just limited to purchasing photographic equipments. So whats an L lens or two to them? ;p
 

majere2sg said:
:bigeyes:

That will not be just a infection but a terminal disease... :sweat:
Just a simple short telephoto f2 lens :p

From your description it appears to be the 135/2. How did you find this lens -especially wide open?
 

Terence said:
How right you are, I've been meeting more and more of the latter category. And they talk as if they're the ones coming up with all this hard earned money to get their gear with. Amazing...

I agree,
it is quite astonishing. I've been working for more than a decade and I'm buying used glass from students! Makes me worry if their parents may come after me..... ;)
 

Nitrile said:
only working adults or rich students are susceptible to this illness. :D

A bit of correction, bro...I would say "Rich" working adults or those who have no responsibility yet...:D
Imagine having a family to feed, house & cars to pay... :cry:
 

yeah.. L lens are addictive,

but i wouldn't mine selling some of my zooms for non-L primes really. if they can promise me the same or if not, better image quality, why not ?

one of the reasons i'd pay big money for L lens would be optical quality. i think that should be the primary reason why people buy lenses anyway, not for show but for quality. if you can find a lens that surpasses the quality of the L but is cheaper, go ahead and get it. you'll save a lot of money.

i mean yes with L lens there's weatherproofing and all that, but frankly speaking, how many people carry their lenses into extreme conditions ? like for me, i hardly ever leave singapore, so i probably don't really need any weatherproofing stuff (no point risking soaking my camera equipment in rain either)
 

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