Here is what the Craigslist ad says: Photo / Camera copy stand. Has an 18" x 16" wood base with a 2-foot, adjustable height post. We do not know the make or model of this stand but it is in very good usable condition. I'm meeting him this afternoon. I may just take a photo and post it here for advice. He's asking $45, but without knowing the make and model, I'm not sure if it is a good deal or not. (he says he's looked and didn't see any markings on it to indicate who manufactured it?) Should I offer less? I don't know much about these, other than brand-name copy stands cost a lot more than $45. This one may be home-made...?
Couple things to check: - the post should be vertical. Many stands for sale have angled posts, and these make focusing more difficult if you use the stand to focus and not just to hold the camera - does it have a focus adjustment. If not then you're limited to using AF on the camera, or you need to buy a separate focus rail It's a very good price if it really is usable. Post a pic and we will see if we can identify it.
Thanks for the tips, @rmpsrpms. I'm going to at least take a picture (so far, he hasn't been able to email me any pics) and post it here later today. Hopefully, he doesn't mind me not buying it right away.
If it has gears to adjust the height that are made of plastic, I would pass. The plastic gears are just not made to hold the weight of camera add-ons like a telephoto lens and/or bellows. The set-up can wobble when a picture is taken. I made the mistake of buying one that had plastic gears, and I ended up junking it. You get what you pay for! Chris
Could be anything really. Mine is about the same size, generic but very nice and solid. Paid about $20. One can get smaller cheaper ones for $10 all the way up to hundreds. I guess it will just be a judgement call, but go some searches on Ebay and Amazon to familiarize and get an idea before you see it.
@Dougmeister always bargin for less. Always he will have it with him and not wanna bring it back. Give him 32.00 cause that's all you have in your pocket.
@kkathyl0 ... ah... you're one of THOSE people I've tried selling to on Craigslist! (LOL. I might still try to talk him down... I just need to figure out if it is a high price, a fair price, or a really-really-really good price)
@Dougmeister never have shopped on craiglist, but if I did, I would bring plastic,drano and liquid latex just in case.
Others will know more, but it looks like something I'd want to bring home for sure. I wonder if those posts on the camera mount are supposed to support something other than a standard camera, or if they're for fine-tuning the camera position?
Well, looks like a large format, gear (?) mounted, I'd say the price is fair. Much nicer than my cheap one half the price. If it fits your need, I would buy it, but only you can decide that
The screws are to ensure a camera won't mount directly to it. I don't see anything at the rear of the vertical support for gearing, so this looks to be a sliding arrangement where the red knob is just a clamp on the tube. That means it will be of no assistance in focusing, so a focusing rail or helicoid will be a necessary addition. In these pics, the relationship between the mounting plate (with the 4 screws mentioned above) and the vertical support bothers me. If that vertical support is not exactly perpendicular to the base, and if the mounting plate and vertical support are not exactly parallel, your camera will not be square to the coin. Given the miniscule depth of field available in this type of photography, getting camera and subject perfectly square to each other is of paramount importance. A copystand which will not hold the camera square to the base is a dealbreaker; you will drive yourself nuts trying to tilt the coin to be square to the lens. It could just be the pics, but that plate sure doesn't look square to the rest of the assembly.
I have one almost exactly like it. The 4 outer pins are for alignment to the bracket that fits the post. You should be able to remove the upper bracket, flip it around, and screw down the other end, and the screws will align it to the lower bracket. I've used it a couple times, but have always thought it was a little weird. As SuperDave says, the vertical adjust is just a slider, so not much use for fine focusing. You will need to focus with your lens, which has the disadvantage of making your shots all different magnifications. Every time the lens focuses, it changes magnification a little (or a lot). Every shot is different. Or you could buy a focus rail.
