I Am Renting A Nikon D500 & Tamron 16-300mm Lens From “LensRentals”.

by Anura Guruge

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I have to check out the Nikon D500. I owe it to myself. If I don’t (knowing myself as well as I do) I will have lingering qualms that I might have missed an opportunity.

If it is as good as what everybody claims, and excels at AutoFocus, it might be the best ‘long-term’ (let’s define that as 2-year) ‘big camera’ for I. But I need to be convinced.

Yes, I could cheat. I could order a D500 (with say the kit lens) from Amazon and return it, within 30-days, if I am not convinced that it as good as ‘they claim’ or if it does not work out for I. But I don’t want to do that. Having rented a Fuji X-T1, last month, for our trip to Acadia National Park, I am 100% sold on the notion. With a rental I get to play around, experiment with settings and put it through its paces … and then send it back. I took 1,000 pictures with that rented X-T1. That is what I plan to do with the Nikon. Then if I decide I am going to get one — I get to start AGAIN with a brand new camera, ALBEIT now much more familiar with its workings.

So that is the rationale.

With the X-T1 I did not have to rent any lenses because I already had compatible Fuji lenses for my Fuji X-E2s. Not so when it comes to Nikon.

And lenses are going to be an issue. One of the reasons I am ditching Fuji (and the process started yesterday) is that the lenses are not only expensive but do not warrant such premium pricing. In comparison Nikon glass is cheap! I do not like to juggle lenses during a ‘shoot’. That is why I am trying out the Tamron 16-300 f/3.5-4. That range (extensive as it is) will cover most of what I want 85% of the time. And yes I know that Sigma and Nikon also make variants. I will do more research as to whether Sigma is SHARPER than the Tamron — and yes, I have read that the Tamron, though v. good, is slightly ‘soft’ (and that will drive me nuts if that is the case).

I wanted to rent from Lumoid because we already had a rental history. Despite three pleadings they appear, inexplicably, reluctant to add the D500 to their range. Maybe it is too expensive. So I had to go with ‘LensRental‘ — who I know have been in the rental game for longer. They confirmed and accepted by order — without any hassle. But I am not renting until mid-month. So as was the case with Lumoid it is possible that they might still come back asking for more credentials (which, to be fair, is fair enough given the value of the items we are dealing with).

Yes, of course, I will share with you my experiences and pictures.

Stay tuned.

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by Anura Guruge