Overheard a guy at the repair shop say his Nikon F2 CLA cost more than the camera

He paid $180 for a full service on a beat-up F2 he got for $120, and it got me thinking how we often charge based on time invested not the camera's worth. Has anyone else run into customers balking at a repair price that's higher than what they paid for the gear?

2 comments

2 Comments

palmer.jana3d ago

Oh man that is such a classic situation. It really gets me when people don't get that the labor and skill is what costs money, not just the camera itself. I've seen it a bunch where someone pays like $50 for a old beat up Minolta or whatever and then gets mad when the shutter needs a rebuild for $150. They just don't realize that cleaning and adjusting that old mechanical stuff takes hours of careful work, and the parts are getting harder to find too. It's honestly kind of a bummer because you want to help folks keep their gear running but they see the price tag and think you're ripping them off. I feel for you having to deal with that attitude, it's a no win sometimes.

hugo_hayes3d ago

And that's the thing people forget, the camera body is just a shell really, the real value is in that person's knowhow and steady hands. It's like expecting a mechanic to swap an engine for free just because you brought the car in on a flatbed truck or something. The hard truth is that keeping old stuff alive takes time and skill and that cost doesn't go away just because the gear was cheap to buy.