Would you buy second hand lenses?
I am hesitating between buying new lenses or used lenses. Some lenses can be very expensive (some Canon or Nikon 300mm f2.8 prime lenses cost £3,000) and I do not believe I can use them "daily" because they are too extreme (they can be used for photos of birds or airplanes mostly and they weigh a lot). So getting a lens at half price sounds interesting but I worry about the warranty...

I have never bought a used lens,because i worry about the condition of it and the damage by rough usage.Maybe i would buy a used lens from a friend that i know that he/she used the lens carefully

I would have to agree with Sophia. If it was on Ebay and you got it for next to nothing I guess I would do it. If you were buying used ones from a store with a warranty I guess that would be okay.

I think I would buy a used lens if the price was right and that it came with a warranty. Especially if it was a lens that wouldn't be used much. :)

I think I will finally buy some used lenses from camera stores (not online) so I can test them first. A lot of money can be saved that way :)

Olly what lenses are you going to buy?

There are many... but it will take years before I get all I want :eek:
For the moment, I am interested by lens like the 18-200 Nikon but it is about £550. For that price, I can get a nice big fridge. I know it has nothing to do with photography but it is still from the same budget and I want a bigger fridge LOL

As for used lenses, I am interested by the following list
Canon:
EF135mm f2.0 LUSM
EF300mm f2.8 L IS USM
EF200mm f1.8 L USM
Nikon:
AF-S VR 200mm F2
AF-S II 300mm F2.8
They all cost about £2,500 - 3,000 new so I can't afford them brand new (makes me think I should play lottery tonight!).
There are all prime lenses and I believe they should resist better than zoom lenses (less risky to get them "used").

I don't know about Nikon,but the Canon lenses that you choose are excellent!
If you are not going to buy these lenses at once,instead of used you could get many of them in low price in other countries.You travel a lot and it would be easy for you.
Dafni called me from Thailand and she found there the Canon EF-S 10-22mm for 420 euro and in Greece it costs 720 euro,if i had not buy the sigma 10-20mm she would buy the canon from Thailand :(

Prices like the ones she found in Thailand can be found on Ebay. I know people in France buying lenses from Hong Kong etc. Sometimes they get caught by the customs and have to pay the VAT, sometimes not. Also, you could have some trouble with the warranty...
I prefer to buy within the EU or maybe in the USA but the price has to be really low because I have to pay the VAT when I am back. In France they control photographers not only at the border. It can happen even in the city downtown as officially there is no border within the Schengen space.