Looking to rent camera gear online? Borrowlenses.com is a great service…and they’ve got great people too.
A few weeks ago, Borrowlenses tweeted about a 60% coupon for their big lenses.
I’ve been watching their specials looking for an opportunity to rent the amazing Canon 500mm f/4 L IS USM lens that I’ve been lusting after for quite a while. The second I saw the tweet, I jumped over to Borrowlenses and rented this bad boy for less than $258.60 for 2 weeks (price included shipping and insurance). This lens would normally have run me $430 for 2 weeks not including shipping/insurance.
After I placed the order, I was quickly contacted by the service folks at Borrowlenses to let me know the order was processed and when I could expect to see the lens. I was told the lens would show up Jan 21…and sure enough it did. Nothing like efficiency!
When the lens arrived, it was packed quite well as you can see in the photos below. The Canon 500mm lens comes in its own case and that case was packed snugly into a wrapping of foam within the box.
Here’s a few images of the un-boxing of the 500mm….apologies for the image quality and my feet/legs in image #2…I suck at product photography. 
And here’s a few photos of my setup….looks nice, yes?
The Canon 500mm is a great lens and worth every penny of it’s ~$6000 price tag. Even better when you can rent it for ~$250 for 2 weeks. The $250 was the best money I’ve ever spent when you consider the ratio of happiness to cost
If you’ve not been following my blog, you’ve been missing out on some of the wonderful shots I’ve been getting with this lens. Here are a few posts with photos taken with the Canon 500mm attached to my Canon 7D and sitting atop my Induro CT314 Tripod.
- Lesser Scaup – White Rock Lake, Dallas TX
- American White Pelican – White Rock Lake, Dallas TX
- Double-Crested Cormorant – White Rock Lake, Dallas TX
- Great Blue Heron – Bob Woodruff Park, Plano TX
- Egyptian Goose – Bob Woodruff Park, Plano TX
Sadly, the lens has to go back next week (Feb 3). I have a strong suspicion that this “cheap” rental of $250 is going to eventually turn into a $6000 purchase of a new 500mm lens (unless anyone out there wants to sell me a mint used copy cheaper).
Back to Borrowlenses…they are great people. The glass is in great shape although the lens paint has some scruff marks.
If you’re looking to rent camera gear or equipment online, you can’t go wrong with Borrowlenses.
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