Super excited and decided to share. The other day I managed to win an ebay auction on a Nikkor 105MM f/2.8 G ED IF AF-S VR Micro!
The 105MM is rumored to be one of the best current Macro and portrait lenses if you look around online and read some reviews. Per Ken Rockwell there are some minor focus breathing issues but for the cost this cannot be beat. The option to solve the breathing issues is the 70-180MM Macro which is at a much greater cost.
I am very excited to finally have a great lens to really get into macro work as well as some of the portraits that I have scheduled to complete soon. I think this lens is going to be a great addition to my collection and provide me with some photography options that I have not had previously.
The lens typically goes for about $934 but if you watch amazon.com and ebay.com then you can win some auctions for the lens brand new or slightly used at a much lower price. I know purchasing on ebay and buying used lenses always seems to concern us but I did get my wide angle on ebay and it was very used! The lens is a Nikkor 12-24MM f/4G ED-IF AF-S DX Zoom and as you can see from the link this typically averages in cost from 1,100 to 1,200 and I managed to purchase the lens for half that. This lens is probably my favorite lens and has a lot of wear on the body. The glass and function though is amazing! For the cost savings that I have managed to get from purchasing on ebay I will continue this until I get burned.
Once the lens is here (another 5-10 business days) I will be sure to start posting images and my review of the lens.
If there are other places that you purchase lenses at a discount or other lenses that are your favorites let me know. I would like to hear about them and rent one to try it out. I can always learn more from other individuals and continue to improve based on your feedback.