Urgent: Used Canon 5D mk2 Buying Advice?

I'm considering buying an almost new 'Boxed' Canon 5D mk2 and 24-105mm F4 L lens in a private transaction which is advertised as being bought from one of the largest National photography retailers in only May of this year. The seller claims it's all perfect and he has the receipt and 10 months remaining warranty. He will sell it to me face to face and I can collect from his house. However it's so cheap and the circumstances so odd (he needs fast cash but wants to buy the same camera again as soon as he can afford it) that I'm a bit suspicious! He wants a third less than the price he paid for it just two months ago. Claims he's taken about 300 pictures, max.

What sort of things should I need to look at? Presumably obvious wear and tear indicative of its true age, but a 2 month old camera should look pretty mint. What about the documents, receipt, etc? Any serial numbers I should check or anything? Maybe it's just a good deal, but the seller seems very young, and... maybe I'm just being prejudiced..?

what do you all think??

first of all, DO NOT go to his house to buy it...choose a very public meeting place.

Thanks, I've already discussed that with him. He's willing to meet me at my work tonight, I think. I wanted to actually go to his house to size up his circumstances a bit more. Someone who can take a £1000 ($1500) hit in 2 months just on a whim must have more money than sense!

Check the bottom to make sure the serial number is still there and it matches the invoice.

efunc wrote in post #10548281
Thanks, I've already discussed that with him. He's willing to meet me at my work tonight, I think. I wanted to actually go to his house to size up his circumstances a bit more. Someone who can take a £1000 ($1500) hit in 2 months just on a whim must have more money than sense!

Ask him more questions about the camera, see if he is a "true" photographer. Has he sent you photos of the camera that convinces you he actually has one to sell?

If you go to his house. Have a family member or friend sit in the car outside, and have your cell phone ready to go dial or text incase something doesn't work out.

Don't go at night.... AND if you can avoid it, don't enter his home, stay out side.

It goes without saying, test the camera carefully. Bring a laptop to test the images on the large screen (if possible), check the shutter count via laptop software. Test the focus of the camera with a fast lens (f/2.8 or faster). shoot at slow shutter as well as fast shutter, vary the aperture as well as the ISO. Check for stuck pixels on the sensors (by zooming in on the laptop). check the movie mode/live view mode.

Good luck
-David

HaroldC3 wrote in post #10548368
Check the bottom to make sure the serial number is still there and it matches the invoice.

+1 yep

brilliant advice, thanks all for your help.

i kind of assume that if the warranty is valid any hardware issues (assuming I find any) are a bit moot?

Not necessarily. They could be indicative of some larger issues, and these issues may or may not be something that is a warranty issue. Generally, warranties cover manufacturer defects, and not wear and tear or user error. I second the public meeting space and even recommend having that meeting spot be outside a branch of your bank. This way you don't have to carry any cash on you until you've verified that things are okay.

dKweddings.net wrote in post #10548399
It goes without saying, test the camera carefully. Bring a laptop to test the images on the large screen (if possible), check the shutter count via laptop software. Test the focus of the camera with a fast lens (f/2.8 or faster). shoot at slow shutter as well as fast shutter, vary the aperture as well as the ISO. Check for stuck pixels on the sensors (by zooming in on the laptop). check the movie mode/live view mode.

Thanks for the suggestions. How do you check the shutter count? Will the EOS s/w I installed on my mac for the 450D do this or do I need to install specific 5D s/w?

I've never handles a 5D mk2 either so I'm not familiar with the functions, but I'll test as much as I can. Thanks.

Good luck and let us know how works out for you.

Thanks, but I'm beginning to believe this really is a scam. I've been calling him day and night for the past 2 days but just go straight through to voicemail. We've already spoken once and he said he'll get back to me about meeting, but that doesn't seem to happen. I got a text from him this morning saying he can't meet right now but will call me later, but nothing so far. If nothing else I'm just wondering how he expects this whole thing to play out. very odd! If he doesn't want to go ahead he could always just tell me it's been sold.

HE may not know how it is going to play out yet.

If he stole it, he needs a house to use where no one is home to claim is his house. This may not be available to him 24/7. Note, he probably has not given you "his" address, or even the general location "yeah, I live near Elm and Kentsworth"...

If he has not stolen it yet, he may still be waiting for for the time he can go and take it. He may have seen that one of his friends parents has bought that camera. Now that they are back from holiday, it is going to be harder to grab.

If he is just going to take your money, he has to string you along so that out of desperation, you will meet on his terms and at a moments notice. He may try to rush you that he "only has a few minutes" and "will be leaving out of town on business, and the next opportunity will be a month or so down the road".

While the above scenarios are certainly food for thought, it might be that the individual has a lot of other things going on in his life besides selling a camera. Be patient. If it works it works. If it doesn't, you haven't lost anything.

SCAM!! Run Away Fast!! Will people ever learn?

Meet up at a public place, like the police station? postal office? library? bank? somewhere and if he doesn't want to do it, time to move on.