Larry, The camera store situation is pretty grim in Chicago. I doubt that you will find a 16-50 zoom for sale. Central Camera is an old time camera store on Wabash, under the 'elevated train' tracks. It's just big enough for a single aisle down the middle with display cases on either side and merchandise packed to the ceiling. (If you're looking for some old 6x7 miscellaneous stuff, they've got it.) Helix Camera is a mile or so west of Downtown. They were operators of 11-12 stores in the area but closed all but their 6 story headquarters building. Now, 35mm stuff is consolidated into about 1/4 the space it was. They seem to rent movie lighting, etc. to the crews filming in Chicago. It was an OK place but with little Pentax gear. Calumet Photo got me one of the first K-10's around here. They are an old name, but growing recently. They opened an outlet near me in the suburbs and they have other outlets in other major cities. The outlet near me has no Pentax gear, catering to Nikon/Canon shooters with lots of floor displays of big printers and lighting. They don't do 35mm film development at all! This is why I shop mail order. Regards, Bob S.
On Sat, Apr 10, 2010 at 9:17 AM, Christine Aguila <[email protected]> wrote: > The 3 major camera stores in Chicago are Helix, Calumet Photo, and Central > Camera. I was in Central Camera (Wabash Ave) last week looking for the > Pentax 540 flash, and they didn't have it. I asked about the K7, and they > didn't have any more in stock and stated that they didn't know if they were > going to order more. I was in Calumet Photo on Cherry st (Goose > Island--Division & Elston) to buy some photo paper and noticed the store > doesn't even have pentax stuff in showcases--though I have bought quite a > bit of pentax equipment there over the last two years--and the manager, John > is really nice. I quite dislike Helix; I find some of the staff rude and > arrogant, though if I really needed something, I would give them a try. I > don't know what they have been recently carrying in pentax gear. > > I mostly shop at Central Camera and Calumet Photo, but I would never say > you'd get great Pentax deals at these two shops unless there is some kind of > sale, which I don't often see. > > Call these stores when you get into town and ask if they carry the 16-50 at > the price you're looking for. Cheers, Christine > > > > > ----- Original Message ----- From: "Larry Colen" <[email protected]> > To: "Pentax-Discuss Mail List" <[email protected]> > Sent: Friday, April 09, 2010 4:24 PM > Subject: Chicago questions: > > >> First question: >> Are there any camera shops in Chicago that carry a good selection of >> pentax gear? >> >> I've found the 16-50 locally for $799, which considering its reputation >> for being decentered may be worth the extra, plus sales tax of getting it >> mail order. >> However, if there's a shop in Chicago that has it for a good price, maybe >> it'd be worthwhile to get it there. >> >> I'd be a bit more confident buying a DA35 mail order, but it'd be nice to >> see one in person. >> >> Second question: >> Would anyone be up to splitting a hotel room? Money not spent on hotel >> could be spent on camera gear. I've got a friend I can crash with, but she >> lives way north of downtown and I'd spend way too much time on the train. >> >> -- >> PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List >> [email protected] >> http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net >> to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and >> follow the directions. >> > > > > -- > PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List > [email protected] > http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net > to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and > follow the directions. > -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
