Lens Rentals Canada Review
An Ultra Wide Angle Nikon 10-24 f/3.5-4.5G ED AF-S DX
Motivation
For the last year, I've been playing around with basically the same 3 lens in my bag, the Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens, the 35mm f/1.8 prime, and the 24-70 f/2.8 lens. I've got 2 other lens (50mm f/1.8, 28-300 f/3.5-5.6) but they're primary function is back up and they stay mostly at home.
The one lens I feel I've been missing out on has been an ultra wide angle. There have been many times when I wish I had such a lens to play with, especially in Yosemite. However, given that I would eventually go full frame, I wondered if it was wise to pony up for a wide angle lens geared for a cropped body (the Nikon 10-24 for $750) or one geared for a full framed body (the Nikon 14-24 for $2000) but would be next to useless on my Nikon D5100 because its field-of-view couldn't even match my 18-55.
I decided to rent a Nikon 10-24 and see how well it holds up. For a the fraction of the cost to buying it outright, I could rent it for a week and see how it went.
Finding a Rental Company
Unfortunately, the majority of people I know in real life shoot Canon so I just couldn't borrow it from a friend ... lol.
There are a few rental shops in Vancouver (e.g., Beau Photo, Camera Rentals Vancouver, FlashPoint, Leo's) but they didn't carry the lens I wanted. Major camera dealers out East also rent. Vistek and Henry's come to mind in particular. However, their prices are again generally higher than their online competitors. Furthermore, these stores will generally perform a credit hold on your credit card for the full retail value of the lens in case you don't return the item.
For online companies, there are Canada Lens Rentals, Lens Lenders, and Lens Rental Canada (LRC). Only the latter carries the Nikon 10-24. For my lens, they weren't as cheap as Henry's but I did have an acquaintance who shared her positive experience with them. After weighing my options, I went with LRC.
Ordering and Shipping Experience
Ordering was easy. Default shipping is Xpresspost. I didn't bother to get the damage waiver. One thing that surprised me was that they charged my credit card immediately; not when the order was shipped. My order was meant to be shipped in about two weeks. Not a big deal though.
My order was shipped on time. The tracking number they sent me was incorrect though. It was the return tracking number. However, a quick chat over their instant messaging system gave me the correct number. No harm done.
From my previous online research, LRC generally tries to ship things so that your rental items will arrive 1 day early. For me, the item did indeed arrive early :-)
The Item
Packaging Material
The lens was packed pretty securely in the box, with the lens sandwiched between two layers of foam, wrapped in bubble wrap.
Lens Cap and Rear Cap
There was no LRC branding on the lens or the hood but there were LRC stickers on the lens and rear caps. The stickers were on the inside though. From the outside, you wouldn't have known that this was a rented lens.
Trying the Lens Out
Field of View
Here's an example of how wide this lens' field-of-view is. This is the front office lobby of SAP Vancouver.
Olympic Cauldron
I'm glad the lens came one day early because on that exact night, the Olympic Cauldron was been lit at Jack Poole Plaza.
Lions
I also got this shot of the lions watching over the entrance to the Port of Vancouver.
To see the photos I've taken with this lens, check this link. There's several more I have in the queue that will be posted up over the next week or so.
Sending it Back
Return Package
It was a sad day when I had to send the item back. LRC makes it really easy to send back. I just had to take off the old shipping label and slap on the return one.
For the shipment back, it's considered to be a "product return" so although you get tracking as to where the package is, there's no formal ETA for the item. It was shipped back using Xpresspost though so it did get back to Owen Sound in 3 business days :-)
Overall Experience
So was the rental experience was great? It certainly was. I definitely loved the lens. Would I go out and buy it though? Probably not. I'm going to wait until I go full frame. If I need a wide angle lens (for example, for when I go on vacation), I'll just rent it again :D
My next rental item will likely be the Nikon D610. I just need to clear my backlog of photos to process. And LRC, if you're reading this, I would really appreciate if you could carry the Sony A7R for rent :-)