Did this lens get ran over?

How on earth do lenses get into such bad condition?

Look at these photos! I feel sorry for the lens.

strange, its normally like that after posting and delivery - not before

"Item Specifics

Condition:
Used "

i think that's a bit of an understatement... hood looks completely smashed... if that doesn't happen to be the front end of the lens itself. for the $15 bid on it, i'de make a nice orniment, but i doubt it's in such a great condition..

All I see is a lens which has been used. If the images it produces are good, that's all that matters in the end...

its an FD mount which means its quite old. I'm sure the owner(s) got great use out of it

it looks a little wonky to me, does it shoot around corners?

I hope insurance is included in the postage costs lol

Man that lens looks screwed up! But like Steve said, atleast you can see its being used

What would you say after you saw my Toyota VX-R Land Cruiser after a day at the desert haha.. its a tool, I bought it to give me a good time,whether lens or car or haircut.

yup, that baby is broken, unless the picture happens to be from an UWA zoom... check it yourself if you doubt me, but the shaft is crooked after the focus ring but before the red line. unless you like vignetting and soft middle and one side (sharper on other side), then you should forget about that butchered lens...

At least you can see whay you're getting. Lord but that's one sick looking lens, the edge of the front element tubing looks beaten in, and to be honest the whole thing looks bent - in more than one direction....

I wonder what his reserve is? I'd be grateful for anything for that train wreck, but the seller needs to reassess his postage or no one will bid any higher.

It looks like an exceptionally well used lens. Many photographers don't pay attention to protecting the exterior lens barrel but do protect the optics. Just because there is alot of paint worn off and the hood is bent doesn't mean that it won't give good images. I have a friend that works for a newspaper that looks like this but he can get great shots with it.

The proof is in the results but he is going to take a beating because of the exterior condition.

seanm wrote:
How on earth do lenses get into such bad condition?

Look at these photos! I feel sorry for the lens.

A lens gets that way by being used, and used a lot.

And used in a manner by someone that is far more concerned about getting an image than keeping the pristine nature of the lenses' façade .

It is not uncommon for those that use this sort of lens several times a week, busting some beat for an image, to end up with lenses that look like this.

They are big, they are heavy, and they get beat up a lot more than a small lens that you can more easily protect.

As an aside, it is highly likely the lens elements themselves are in pretty good conditions, and it may even function perfectly.

Note that it is an FD lens, and will not fit an EOS camera directly.

Enjoy! Lon

May have been a rental at one time or the other.

Has an inbuilt angle for those tough 'corners'.

LOL! Some of my lenses and camera bodies look like that.

Equipment do get banged up when you use them. Especially for something as big and cumbersome as a 500mm f/4.5. It probably own't fit in a backpack nor do you want to carry it in a backpack with a bunch of other equipment as it simply weighs too much and you're likely to fall on your back.

Gotta remember that these lenses are used by ppl who only need to sell 20 - 30 pictures taken by this lens and it's all paid for. And if the lens get banged up in the process, then it's part of normal wear & tear. The emphasis is on getting shots with the lens, not with protecting the beauty of the tool.

Of course, some ppl have the means to buy this lens as a hobby and tend to cover it up under layers of $$$ protective covers until they need to whip it out to show the world how big their tool is. I would feel bad for such a fine tool that doesn't get used as it was designed to but as a symbol of social status.