When we exhibited at The Photography Show at the beginning of March, we were quite surprised at the number of people who were asking us about various equipment which we don't currently stock. It was clear that there is an appetite out there for people to hire photographic equipment which might be regarded as "extreme". Obviously we want to be able to keep our customers happy. So we've put our heads together and come up with this shopping lost. We're looking into financing issues and we hope to be able to make the majority of the items described below available for you to hire within the near future.
Do please let us know if you have a particular interest in any of these, or indeed if there's something you'd like to hire but which you think we might have omitted from consideration.
Sigma APO 200-500mm f/2.8 EX DG
Length: 726mm
Diameter: 236mm
Weight: 15.7kg
Availability: Good. Widely available from good photographic retailers.
Purchase price: £13,000 (New)
Estimated hire price: £600/week
Nikon AF-S 800mm f/5.6E FL ED VR
Length: 469mm
Diameter: 160mm
Weight: 4.6kg
Availability: Good. Widely available from good photographic retailers.
Purchase price: £14,000 (New)
Estimated hire price: £600/week
Canon TV 5200mm f/14 mirror lens
Length: 1890mm
Diameter: 600mm
Weight: 100kg without stand
Availability: Very restricted. We believe that only 3 were ever made and we haven't seen one for sale for several years.
Purchase price: US$55,000 (Used, eBay, 2008)
Estimated hire price: £1,500/week
Nikon Ai 1200-1700mm f/5.6-8 P ED IF
Length: 888mm
Diameter: 237mm
Weight: 16kg
Availability: Restricted. Only 15 units were manufactured in 1988-98 and we haven't seen one for sale for quite a while.
Purchase price: US$75,000 (New, Nikon, 1990)
Estimated hire price: £1,800/week
Nikon 2000mm f/11 C Reflex
Length: 598mm
Diameter: 262mm
Weight: 7.5kg
Availability: Moderate. Approximately 300 units were manufactured in 1971-77.
Purchase price: €66,000 (Mint-, auction, 2011)
Estimated hire price: £2,400/week
Canon EF 1200mm f/5.6 L USM
Length: 836mm
Diameter: 228mm
Weight: 16.5kg
Availability: Uncertain. Total production in 1993-2005 is rumoured to be less than 20 units. But B&H in New York have sold two in recent years.
Purchase price: US$120,000 (Used, B&H, 2009)
Estimated hire price: £3,000/week
Nikon Ai 6mm f/2.8 fisheye
Length: 171mm
Diameter: 236mm
Weight: 5.2kg
Availability: Reasonable. Approximately 1000 units manufactured, 1972-98.
Purchase price: £100,000 (Mint-, Grays of Westminster, 2013)
Estimated hire price: £4,000/week
Leica APO-Telyt-R 1600mm f/5.6
Length: 1200mm
Diameter: 420mm
Weight: 60kg
Availability: Difficult. There's only one and the owner certainly doesn't need to sell. But he might be getting bored with it by now.
Purchase price: HK$16,000,000 (New, Leica, 2012)
Estimated hire price: £50,000/week
Zeiss APO Sonar T* 1700mm f/4
A unique lens, specially commissioned by an anonymous client. Designed for medium format use: the picture shows it attached to a Hasselblad.
Length: not documented
Diameter: not documented
Weight: 256kg
Availability: Difficult. There's only one and the owner presumably doesn't need to sell. But he might be getting bored with it by now.
Purchase price: >€2,000,000 rumoured (Zeiss, 2006)
Estimated hire price: £50,000/week TBC
Length: not documented
Diameter: not documented
Weight: 256kg
Availability: Difficult. There's only one and the owner presumably doesn't need to sell. But he might be getting bored with it by now.
Purchase price: >€2,000,000 rumoured (Zeiss, 2006)
Estimated hire price: £50,000/week TBC
Lockheed KH-11 Kennan 57600mm f/24
Length: 13.2m
Diameter: 2.4m
Weight: 11.1 tonnes in launch configuration
Availability: Hopeful. NASA have two, built as spares but unused. Storage is costing a fortune and we hope they may be amenable to an offer.
Purchase price: Classified.
Estimated hire price: £60,000,000/week plus launch costs. Please note that enhanced background checks would be required for any client wishing to hire this item.
