HI


I am coming over to HK for a short trip. Any good place to buy photographic equipment?

Depends what kind of equipment you're looking for. Are you looking for point and shoot? SLR? Medium Format? Lenses? New? Used?

For the most part, if you're from North America, it's cheaper to buy new camera equipment from B&H photo (in New York or online).

That being said, just don't go to the tourist-traps with the big Canon/Nikon/Sony/Pentax/Olympus signs plastered all over the place.

from what he said, if your lense has a HK serial -- you need to send back to HK for repair/etc (whilst still under warranty).  so, for the nominal price difference, he ended up buying nothing.

Yes, for warranty repairs, you need to send it to the country you bought it from. Furthermore, HK shops sell HK and grey market products. That is, you can buy the same camera, but one can be an direct import to HK while the other may have been imported from another country. Both cameras will be legit and the grey market item is always the cheaper of the 2, however, if you need to send it in for warranty, the grey market camera will be a hassle if you even CAN send it in.

I am looking to buy DSLR or micro four third camera . perhaps even secondhand leica lens.

I was always told Hong KOng is cheap for camera etc. understand dont go to the
usual tourist area. So I thought of asking locals where to buy.

Whenever I'm in HK I go check out Tin Cheung Camera (Shop 5 Friends' House, 6B Carnarvon Road, TST). They have both new and used items and I've had the best prices from them. They also carry a lot more specialty items than other stores.

The other two shops I regularly go to for pricing are Man Shing Camera and Wing Shing Camera. They're both in Mong Kok and have the same owner. However, since they have different sales people, you may be able to bargain better at one than the other. As far as I can remember, they only sell new equipment.

For second-hand gear, go to the Champagne Court building (Kimberly Road and Carnarvon Road, TST). The ground floor is packed with second-hand camera stores. As with most things in HK, remember that you can bargain

There are other shops that are good too, but the above are the ones that I would feel confident recommending. However, remember my note regarding grey market, and T1an's note about warranty. Finally, check http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ to compare prices.

Happy shooting!

Tin Cheung no longer at that address..
They have moved across the street.. in K-11, up on the 3rd floor.
guess they have earned enough to move to a much nicer showroom.

Thx for the correction! Gotta remember that when I'm there in March!

I'd suggest you head out to Sham Shui Po. They have a good shop right on the corner of Golden Computer Arcade. Right opposite the MTR exit. Forgot the name but it is a chain with shops in mk and elsewhere. Shop has a yellow sign. Fair prices and you can ask for items with our without worldwide warranty. Also keep walking straight and around the Golden Computer Arcade and you'll find a couple of more camera shops with good stuff. Stay far, far away from the blinking no price tag rip-off joints in TST!!!

Good to know. If anybody knows of any other good places for second-hand gear, please post!

Specifically if you know any place with good deals on Nikon gear or medium format.

really depends on where you are from and what do you want?

Where I am from, I find the basic stuff is cheaper to buy at home these days. If I want the latest model, something high end, I find HK prices are better than I can get at home.

This is the key issue, what is a good deal for one Bro may be too expensive for someone else based on what you can get at home.

I have bought a lot of camera / electronic equipment over the years from a couple of shops in Mong Kok. There is an entire street dedicated to electronics. Your hotel concierge will know the street, it's next to the Ladies Market. Best advice I can give you though, know EXACTLY what you want and how much you can buy it for back home AND do NOT buy anything you have not already priced at home... even if it's a "new model"... if you haven't priced it at home, don't buy it. It's your "insurance policy" regardless where you buy from to ensure you don't pay too much.

I didn't search around too much, but most of the prices in mongkok are pretty competitive.  Canon L series glass and 5d's were priced fairly well for asia.  For some reason, the 5d's are a bit cheaper in KL, but lenses cheaper in HK.