Why You Should Sell Your Camera Equipment Online

We hear people often saying they are thinking about selling their camera gear. But why should you sell your camera equipment? It may seem like a silly question, but it's something we've all wondered at one time or another. When your camera is starting to show it's age, it's probably time to consider selling. Or if you find yourself needing more features than you currently have available, you might need an upgrade.

The most important thing to consider when asking yourself: "Why sell my camera equipment?"

The obvious answer to the question of "why sell my camera equipment?" is that it no longer fits your needs. As we grow as photographers and filmmakers, our skills and understanding develop as well. When starting out, we generally pick a camera that we can understand how to use. Or, hobbyists almost always choose a piece of gear with limited functions (and lower costs) to determine whether or not they are really interested in pursuing their passion. This is true for nearly every hobby. You wouldn't pick up a top-of-the-line telescope for thousands of dollars to use it once and discover you aren't much for star-gazing. You would start with something small and test the waters to see if you fully understand the hobby and have a serious desire to continue. If you're like us, you picked up a small consumer camera at some point and then pretty much the next day went out and bought a better camera with interchangeable lenses. So if your current camera gear is holding you back, it is probably time to upgrade. If you are looking to upgrade your camera, it only makes sense to sell your current setup. Then you'll have a good chunk of "down payment" for your next piece of gear.

The age of your gear

The other major factor for determining when is the right time to sell your gear is the camera's age. If you've had the camera equipment for more than five years, it's a safe bet that you are ready for something new. These days more than ever have seen the rate of technological advancements explode. That means camera gear is getting more advanced, more features, and cheaper prices practically every day. With this advancement and lowering of costs comes a balance of when to upgrade gear. In the days of old, you could simply keep a camera until it no longer functioned or broke. Not so much today. Cameras are built to last longer, while also working more efficiently. So there is no reason to stay stuck in the past with an old camera. In fact, at a certain point it actually becomes cheaper to upgrade to a new system when you factor in all the features that will come with your new camera. So if your old gear is so out of date, what do you do with it. I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this... Sell your camera gear! The fact of the matter is, so long as the camera gear still functions properly, there is a market for it. Even if the camera is old as dirt, there will be a buyer out there that is an up-and-comer learning the ropes that doesn't have a lot of money to spend on the latest and greatest camera. You can help a fellow photographer/filmmaker while also getting a couple bucks to put towards your next piece of gear.

A community dedicated to helping you grow

This is the heart of why Gear Focus was created. The idea that we all had to start somewhere and as a community we can all grow together. For every budding photographer or filmmaker is the first obstacle to overcome: attaining gear. Having a community of supportive, like-minded people is a great way to foster the growth of new photographers/filmmakers.

Enough "why," let's talk "how!"

So if you know that you want to sell your camera gear, the next step is to decide how. Now that we've discussed some of the reasons that selling your camera can be a good plan, let's review the options. There are multiple avenues you can take for selling your used camera gear. Their are brick & mortar camera stores that you can go to physically. There's a chance you can sell to someone you know that happens to be in the market. And then let's be honest, there's the behemoth which 99% of us are looking to use: online sales

Trying to sell camera gear in person

Even if this is only a small sliver of the camera sales market, it's worth exploring. If you take your used camera gear to a physical location, and the gear is in good shape, they will likely make you an offer. This is also assuming the gear is relevant to the camera store of course. But how much will this offer be? Well that varies wildly depending on the gear, the condition, the camera shop, the employee looking it over, and probably a hundred other things. The short answer is that they will likely offer you FAR less than it is truly worth. This is because they are only looking at reselling it to someone else at a profit. Therefore, they will try to get it for as cheap as possible to maximize their profits. (At a cost to you). Selling to a friend. This is a fantastic option! If you know someone who needs the gear. And that is the major drawback here. How often do you find yourself looking to sell at the exact time that someone you know is looking to buy? Practically never, we'd bet. Another possible issue with this idea is that even if you know someone looking to buy, if they're a friend you will likely want to cut them a deal on the camera equipment. That is very generous, but it will take money out of your pocket!

Selling your camera gear somewhere online

Online sales are the bulk majority of camera gear sales in this day and age. But even within the distinction of online sales, there are still several different methods for selling camera gear. There is the classic of eBay, there are camera stores that will let you send the gear in and will cut you a check, there are online classified sites like Craigslist. All of these options have several upsides and downsides. And then there is Gear Focus for selling used camera gear online. Selling on a site like eBay has one powerful advantage over a lot of the competition: everyone has heard of it before. You'd be hard pressed to find someone that hadn't bought something on eBay in the last decade. But with that huge reach comes a cost. You'll likely be paying over 10% of your sell price to eBay! That can add up to hundreds of dollars rather quickly. There is also the issue that eBay is just TOO big. And there is so much stuff available on the site that it is easy to get lost in a mountain of unrelated listings. There may be more buyers out there looking for your gear, but there are tenfold more sellers competing for those buyers. And often, those sellers aren't even related to what you are trying to sell.

Selling to an online camera shop

This method is possibly the worst in terms of convenience and monetary value. You will have to send your gear blindly into a camera shop, and then receive a quote for well below the value of your gear. This is even worse than most brick and mortar camera shops for trading in gear. You will have to send them the gear (often at your own expense.) And then you'll have to wait even longer until one of their employees can evaluate the gear. And after all that they will send you a quote for 70% OR LESS of the camera's value. You'll then have a decision to make: sell now or wait for them to send me back my gear. Plus then you'll run the risk of the gear being damaged in transit. These online camera shops rely on people not having the patience to get their gear back and just accept their lowball offer. These camera shops online work the same way as the brick and mortar shops: they offer far less than market value and try to resell your used camera equipment. So you can count on possibly half price for your camera gear for the "convenience" of just dropping your gear in the mail.

Classified sections online

Let's start with the major advantage of selling on a site like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace: they're free! Seems to good to be true! Well actually... A free online marketplace comes with it's own set of downsides as well. Even if it's free to post there, there are still costs to consider. First is the main issue to deal with: the scammers. These sites are rife with ne'er do gooders that are looking to rip you off. They cruise the classifieds looking for targets for their schemes. When a potential buyer inquires about your gear, the next problem is that you'll have to meet them face-to-face. You'll never know prior to meeting if they are a legitimate buyer or if they are a scammer. There are tons of horror stories out there of the dangers of trying to sell gear this way. (Always meet in a populated area during the day - we recommend police stations if you go this route) The other difficulty to overcome with this method is the limited reach. Since you will be selling to someone in person, you need to be able to meet them somewhere. Most people won't want to travel more than an hour or two for a piece of gear. And be honest, will you travel more than two hours yourself to sell? Would it be worth it at that point in gas and wear-and-tear on your vehicle for a four hour round trip? Likely not, so you are limited to selling only within a small radius of where you are located. (TIP: NEVER send gear or money through the mail via an online classified section - they will almost ALWAYS be scams!)

Gear Focus for selling used camera equipment online

Gear Focus offers the best possible combination of all these other methods for selling used camera gear. When you ask yourself "where to sell my camera?" the only answer is Gear Focus. Gear Focus is an online marketplace for buying and selling used camera gear. It is structured in a way like eBay and other online marketplace sites. It is different in that you will only pay a 3.5% seller fee after your gear has sold. That is about a third the cost you'll pay on eBay! Plus Gear Focus is dedicated solely to camera gear and equipment. You won't have to worry about potential buyers missing your listing as they wade through hundreds of unrelated listings! And since this is an online marketplace, you can open your buyer pool up to the whole world instead of limiting to just the immediate vicinity like if you sold through an online classified like Craigslist. You never have to worry about meeting a potential scammer (or worse!) in person when you use Gear Focus.

But wait, my current setup isn't that old!

Why should I sell my camera gear if it isn't that old and still holds up? Well if you aren't suffering from g.a.s. then you might not be ready to sell just yet. If you're like the creators of Gear Focus, however, you've seen the latest release and your mouth has been watering. No matter the reason, if you are looking for a new piece of gear, it just makes sense to sell your old one.

Other reasons to sell your gear

Another reason to consider selling your gear is the demand. A basic economic theory - supply & demand - is just as true in the camera world. If people are looking for your gear, especially if you aren't particularly attached to it, it might make monetary sense to sell. Occasionally there will be select pieces of gear that are harder to obtain for some reason. Maybe they were discontinued from the manufacturer. Or perhaps they are a little too expensive to purchase new, but the used market is going strong. Whatever the reason, if people are clamoring to buy your gear: listen to them! If the demand is there the money is there, which means you can get top dollar for your used camera equipment.

Ready to start selling?

If you're asking yourself "where to sell my camera?" the answer is pretty obvious. Gear Focus is the best online marketplace for buying and selling used camera gear. You'll find the lowest seller fees around along with the most helpful and friendly staff to help you on your way to selling your used camera equipment. When you are ready, head on over to Gear Focus and start listing your products. First time seller? Check out our listing tips page for helpful information. And also be sure to sign up for a personalized one-one-one seller training session for even MORE helpful information! As always, we'd like to hear from you! Let us know your reasons for selling your used camera gear and contact us with any questions you have on buying and selling used camera gear!