Not just for the pros: BorrowLenses.com

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Photography is my hobby. (Well, and blogging, but that isn't what this is about!)

I love photography; and while friends have asked if I'd thought about going pro, I don't think I'm even close to good enough, and I'm happy taking photos for fun and for lunch. (I'm always looking for willing subjects! I often shoot photos for lunch and/or coffee!)

Even though I'm “just” a hobbyist, I have quite a bit of time and money invested in this hobby, and because I can't write off everything I purchase, I have to spend my fun money very carefully… when I'm considering spending several hundred dollars on a new lens, I need to know that it's going to be worth it, and that I'm really making the right choice for me and for what I do.

Enter BorrowLenses.com

I'd long thought that it was for pros; a wedding photographer who wanted occasional access to a fisheye, or a portrait photographer who wants to do some underwater shots and needs a casing for their $3000 camera body. I never really thought of it as something for me, and then I tried it!

Last year, when we went to Seattle for our anniversary, I decided to rent a wide angle lens. I could get it for the 3 days I needed for about $30, and pick it up locally, so I didn't even have to deal with shipping. After that trip, I was hooked. I can get access to high quality lenses, when I want them, without having to spend the outrageous amount of money to buy it new. (I can also rent to try them out, and decide what I'll spend my next precious dollars on… it's how I knew I wanted a 100mm macro when I won that GC from Adorama earlier this year!)

By spending a little bit now, I can better spend the larger amounts further down the road. It's a win-win!

So when we started planning our Disneyland trip, I knew that I wanted to rent something fun again… I was torn between the same wide angle I had last year, and something novel, like a fisheye, so I got both!

Specifically, I got the Tamron 10-24 and the Peleng 8mm fisheye.

I had a couple of hours by myself with these awesome lenses, as well as with the fam, at Disneyland a couple of weeks ago… check out these shots I got:

And BTW, if you aren't into photography, you can always rent More Cowbell…

Disclosure: I received one of my two lens rentals from BorrowLenses.com for free. All opinions and images are my own, and I received no further compensation for this post, and I always love an excuse to show off more images!