Lens Rental

[battymum]

I have just purchased an Olympus EPL 2 and am hoping to have worked out how to use it by the time our trip comes around in September.

I am a total novice but I love the look of phtos taken with a UWA - but sadly it is not in my budget to buy.

I would like to rent one and have checked lensrental.com, I am happy with their price - but I am concerned about having something so valuable delivered to our resort (Pop Century) and they require a deposit if I were to do this anyway.

I can have it sent and held at the nearest Fed Ex office -Can anyone tell me where that would be and how I could get there without a car. This will be on a Saturday - we would be heading to Animal Kingdom that day .

 

[Gianna'sPapa]

You can do a search for locations at fedex.com. I tried to cut and paste the locations here, but it didn't work. It says there are 255 locations in the Lake Buena Vista area. Without a car, I can only assume that a cab would be the only way to get to a location. I don't know what the deposit vs cab fare difference would be, but the convenience would be worth it to me. The other option is having it delivered to your house just before you leave and schedule the return when you get back from the trip.

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

I don't know what the deposit is or where the fed ex office is.........but I would imagine that it is going to be more $$$ (for the deposit or the cab) then adding an extra day. Get it delivered home (the extra day rental). You can ship it BACK from the front desk at all the hotels. UPS / FED EX have regular pickups at the hotel.

 

[Shutterbug]

I don't know what the deposit is or where the fed ex office is.........but I would imagine that it is going to be more $$$ (for the deposit or the cab) then adding an extra day. Get it delivered home (the extra day rental). You can ship it BACK from the front desk at all the hotels. UPS / FED EX have regular pickups at the hotel.

The OP's profile says Sydney. Now if thats indeed Australia maybe thats why she wants it delivered to the hotel or fedex location because she cant have it delivered to her home.

Op, you could call the resort and ask them how they handle packages that come in for guests and see what they say.

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

Doh!

I missed that it was Sydney Australia. Sorry OP!

 

[mom2rtk]

I don't know if they handle fedex the same as regular USPS mail, but I shipped 2 boxes down before our trip last December. They were actually delivered to a central Disney postal center before being passed on to the resort. I was sort of disappointed that it took a few days for one of the boxes to make it to the resort. Perhaps it's different for fedex, but it's something to consider.

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

I don't know if they handle fedex the same as regular USPS mail, but I shipped 2 boxes down before our trip last December. They were actually delivered to a central Disney postal center before being passed on to the resort. I was sort of disappointed that it took a few days for one of the boxes to make it to the resort. Perhaps it's different for fedex, but it's something to consider.

Since the Disney Florist can be quite pricey, I ordered my wife's b-day flowers on our last trip from an online florist that sends flowers via Fed Ex. Even though I had the address specified for Kidani (where we were staying) but they wound up getting shipped to Jambo. I got the email that said they were signed for (from fed ex) and I had to call down and get them fetched from Jambo. So even if you pay for Saturday early delivery I doubt it's going to get into your hands until early afternoon at best. Being that you are going to be at Animal Kingdom that day, you probably won't have the Ultra Wide Angle for that day at the park.

 

[pjacobi]

II am a total novice but I love the look of phtos taken with a UWA

A lens rental can quickly solve the equipment issue, but you are unlikely to develop the photography skills needed to create good UWA photos during the rental period.


-Paul

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

A lens rental can quickly solve the equipment issue, but you are unlikely to develop the photography skills needed to create good UWA photos during the rental period.


-Paul

You've got from now until September to get familiar with your camera and learn what it can do.

Sure you won't be an expert with an UWA lens that you rent, but that doesn't mean you won't be able to get some good shots should you chose to rent it. A few years ago, I rented a 400mm F/2.8 for 10 days to shoot HS football. Did I get as MANY good shots as if I owned the lens for years, no of course not. But I had a BLAST doing it for those 10 days and I did get some keepers. If you want to try an UWA, go for it.

 

[mom2rtk]

You've got from now until September to get familiar with your camera and learn what it can do.

Sure you won't be an expert with an UWA lens that you rent, but that doesn't mean you won't be able to get some good shots should you chose to rent it. A few years ago, I rented a 400mm F/2.8 for 10 days to shoot HS football. Did I get as MANY good shots as if I owned the lens for years, no of course not. But I had a BLAST doing it for those 10 days and I did get some keepers. If you want to try an UWA, go for it.

I agree. If it's the only way to get your hands on the lens, give it a go. How will you ever get a chance to give it a try otherwise? Maybe you'll decide it's the greatest thing since sliced bread and will have to take it back home with you, hoping the US has no extradition treaty in place with Australia.......... Or maybe you'll decide it's not for you.

Will the shots be as advanced as if you had it for a year and practiced daily? Of course not. Will there be some keepers in there that make it worth the price? Probably. Have fun!

 

[battymum]

Yes I am in Sydney - and I cannot get it delivered here - paying the deposit is not a problem - but I am not willing to risk it sitting in bell services - Hiring one here is much more expensive.

We are heading to the USA for 3 weeks, taking in Disney, Universal a cruise and New York City - I would really like to use the UWA in these locations, I know I am not going to be perfect but it will be fun to give it a go.

To buy a lens would be close to $2000 but to hire one for the three weeks is only 200. I think I can get my $200 worth of fun/experience in three weeks. The closest fed ex I can see is at the Marriot -
My plan is to arrange for it to arrive on Friday, I will take a cab over there on Saturday and meet up with my family at Animal Kingdom.

 

[mom2rtk]

Is it in the cards to just find a camera shop in Orlando and buy one?

 

[PrincessInOz]

Yes I am in Sydney - and I cannot get it delivered here - paying the deposit is not a problem - but I am not willing to risk it sitting in bell services - Hiring one here is much more expensive.

We are heading to the USA for 3 weeks, taking in Disney, Universal a cruise and New York City - I would really like to use the UWA in these locations, I know I am not going to be perfect but it will be fun to give it a go.

To buy a lens would be close to $2000 but to hire one for the three weeks is only 200. I think I can get my $200 worth of fun/experience in three weeks. The closest fed ex I can see is at the Marriot -
My plan is to arrange for it to arrive on Friday, I will take a cab over there on Saturday and meet up with my family at Animal Kingdom.

Battymum - which UWA lens are you looking at and are you quoting Aussie pricing? If I were you, I'd see if I could beg, borrow or steal an UWA for a short period in Oz to play with and see if you do like the angles you can take with it. You'll need to adjust your shooting perspective a little bit to get a more interesting shot for the UWA. If you find you do like it, then I'd look at the US pricing and see if you could s-t-r-e-t-c-h your budget to pick one up.

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

Yes I am in Sydney - and I cannot get it delivered here - paying the deposit is not a problem - but I am not willing to risk it sitting in bell services - Hiring one here is much more expensive.

We are heading to the USA for 3 weeks, taking in Disney, Universal a cruise and New York City - I would really like to use the UWA in these locations, I know I am not going to be perfect but it will be fun to give it a go.

To buy a lens would be close to $2000 but to hire one for the three weeks is only 200. I think I can get my $200 worth of fun/experience in three weeks. The closest fed ex I can see is at the Marriot -
My plan is to arrange for it to arrive on Friday, I will take a cab over there on Saturday and meet up with my family at Animal Kingdom.

Don't worry about it being with bell services. There is a place in Orlando that rents out gear. I forget the name of the place. Google Orlando Lens rental and it should come up.

HAVE FUN!!!

 

[battymum]

Yes I am in Sydney Australia - so cant have it shipped here.

The budget has already been stretched to buy the camera and I am considering buying a 20mm Panasonic pancake - if I can find anywhere that has stock.
The one I would like to rent is a Panasonic 7-14 which retails in Aus for $1800 - I could probably get it for 1000 in US - but still beyond my budget, I am not ready for such an investment in this hobby yet. I cant even work the camera with the kit lens yet.

I am a novice - but I would like to experiment - with such interesting subjects. I just think there will be times when I think "I wish I had a UWA"

I think I will have it delivered to Fedex Kinko on Aposka Vineland road and take a cab to pick it up - I will meet my family at Animal Kingdom.

 

[boBQuincy]

I am looking at going from a Canon dSLR setup to a micro 4/3 setup and one of the key elements is a replacement for my Canon 10-22 lens. Panasonic's 7-14 looks really good but one thing to be aware of is the lens does not have a filter thread.

This means no polarizer (for saturated colors and reducing glare) and no neutral density(forget the long exposures for waterfalls). I feel Panasonic really missed out on this, the ability to use filters is a big point for me. Olympus' 9-18 (?) does take a filter although it is not as wide as the Panasonic and probably not built as well either.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I think I will have it delivered to Fedex Kinko on Aposka Vineland road and take a cab to pick it up - I will meet my family at Animal Kingdom.

I was at that Fedex on our last trip to copy some documents. At least I can say it seemed to be a very nice one!