70-200 f4 L USM: Is $300 a decent deal?

[zukanmu5]

Friend of my father's is trying to sell the said lens and was curious if I wanted to buy it for $300. I've been looking at 70-200s for a while and this seems like a decent opportunity, especially considering my microscopic budget. I don't think he's very firm at his price so I might try to fanangle 50 bucks down, is this a decent deal? I don't have any comparable lenses especially in terms of sharpness or versatility, shooting on an Eos R

[jrhoffman75]

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@zukanmu5 wrote:

Friend of my father's is trying to sell the said lens and was curious if I wanted to buy it for $300. I've been looking at 70-200s for a while and this seems like a decent opportunity, especially considering my microscopic budget. I don't think he's very firm at his price so I might try to fanangle 50 bucks down, is this a decent deal? I don't have any comparable lenses especially in terms of sharpness or versatility, shooting on an Eos R

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It seems to be a very good price (even if you have to add in the cost of the Canon EF-RF adapter) as long as there is nothing wrong with the lens. You can confirm for yourself by checking Keh and/or MPB.

[rs-eos]

John makes a good point. Assuming this is the EF version of that 70-200 lens, be sure to budget for an EF to RF adapter. And I strongly recommend sticking with Canon's own adapters vs third-party.

[justadude]

Have you looked over the lens, and tested it on your camera?

This is what I look for before buying a used lens...

* Marks and scratches. On the lens barrel, that's fine if they are just cosmetic, but you want to inspect the front and rear glass element for marks.

* Do the zoom and focus rings move smoothly? You want to avoid anything that is sticking in spots when you move them by hand, or doesn't move through the full range.

* Switches... do they operate properly? I've seen old lenses with stuck switches, and although it's rare, switches that are broken internally so it feels like nothing is clicking, the switch just slides back and forth with zero resistance.

Then test the lens on your camera...

* Does it focus like it is supposed to?

* Can it go through the full range of aperture settings?

* Does it zoom through the full range from 70 to 200mm?

* Does moving the switches work like they are supposed to?

* Make sure the camera is steady (on a tripod is best to avoid camera movement), and take a series of shots focusing on different objects, near, and then far.  Do this at a couple different apertures.  If I was testing this lens I would set it to f/4 and take a shot at 70mm, then 120mm, then 200mm.  Do this again at f/11.  Then see if the images on your SD card are in focus.

If everything looks good, I'd say that you are getting a really great deal!  The average price for a used one is around $600 USD.  If you buy the lens at the price you mentioned (or less), do the right thing and buy the guy a beer (or a coffee).