[Majost]

Sheesh. Why is it so goddarn expensive?

I'm traveling to Paraguay in a few months to work on a book I'm writing, and I was hoping to do some semi-pro photography while I was there. I've dabbled in photography quite a bit, and while I'm not at the point where I would want to throw down a G or two for a full-fledged DSLR, I could definitely make good use of one for this trip.

So, I'm thinking, I'll rent one, insure it, and be done. Of course, as soon as I look around, I find that the cost of renting a midrange DSLR for one week is approximately one third to a full half of the purchase price. YIKES! (Eg. Renting a D70 with 1-2GB of cards, reader, & cables costs $450 at one place -- lenses and insurance are extra).

Dag. I really should get into this business; it looks like you could turn a pretty penny. It seems to be the same with camcorders and such, too. Do I really pony up the money for my own DSLR (I wouldn't mind...) or are there actually places that will rent them for reasonable amounts?

[Eugene]

Most people don't rent cameras long term. I rented a D100 when they first came out for a weekend @ $100/day. Since the rental department is closed on Sundays, I only ended up paying for Saturday, But that's what rentals of bodies are typically for, to try them out or as a temp replacement.

Lenses are the big thing though. Most photographers are thrilled to pay $100/day for a lens that costs $5000 to buy. And yes, it's very lucrative. Everyone gets what they want.

[Bryson]

The wear and tear and insurance costs on being in this kind of business (along with the fact that your kit has a very short shelf-life) means that the prices seem inflated, but in reality, that's pretty reasonable for the kind of costs the renters have.

[Majost]

Yeah, I s'pose. It just kinda seems silly when you rent a car for a fraction of its cost; but these things kill you. Car rentals for a 10,000 dollar car go for, like, 200 a week -- I was thinking that the risks (for the business) would be comparable to a car. Sure, I guess cameras are easier to make off with...

Well, glad to hear the prices I found weren't out of the ordinary. I guess I'll just grab a midline Pro-sumer DSLR that works with my Nikon 35mm lenses and be done with it.

[PKIDelirium]

I like the Nikon D50 or Canon Digital Rebel line.

[halo1982]

Yeah you can get a D70 or Digital Rebel for $600+ with the stock lenses.