Any Reliable Camera Store in Perth, Australia?

[snapperz]

Hey Adam,

I will be down in Perth from 2nd Mar and 20th Mar.
Was wondering where to check out their camera gears too.
Should be staying around Hay Street area, is there any good store nearby?
Thanks for the info.

Hey what coincidence....I live in Hay St. at Criterion Hotel

 

[euhhue]

Hi Guys,

Thanks all for te replies.

My preferences were leaning towards nikon lenses.

I'm already in perth right now, lucky i checked in CS today. ok here's the deals that i get.

I was offered $630 for a 1st hand 50mm f/1.4G, $2220 for a 24-70mm f/2.8 and $3600 for D700. looks like a good deal... and all those with international warranty. but i think for nikon SG only lenses are applicable. and here's the deal. for all those mentioned above i will get a GST TAX Refund!!! which means i get further reduction!!! hahaha.. i think the GST here is 10%..you do the maths...How cool is that!

Anyways Have a good days ppl.. i'm off to FREO...

Hi Snapperz,
Can share where you got the 2.22K quote for the 24-70mm? Thanks!

 

[Francis247]

errr...what's PRA?:dunno:

Hi snapperz,

Just wondering where did you get the offer of $630 for a 1st hand 50mm f/1.4G, $2220 for a 24-70mm f/2.8 and $3600 for D700. Thanks. Will you still be there next week.

 

[Francis247]

Reporting live from Perth. Tried to make my way down to PRA but was too late. Anywhere else I can get good stuffs? ;p

 

[Francis247]

Just to compile all the addresses for easy reference.

PRA Imaging
63 Newcastle Street
PERTH
Western Australia 6000

Phone : 1800 444 677 / (08) 9225 4677
Fax : (08) 9225 4817

Opening Hours:
Mon-Fri: 8:30am – 6pm
Sat: 10am – 1pm

Link : http://www.praimaging.com.au/contact.asp

Team Digital
268 Lord Street,
East Perth
W.A 6000

p: (08) 9328 3377
f : (08) 9227 7137

Opening Hours : Monday to Friday 8:30-5:00 pm
Link : http://www.teamdigital.com.au/contact.php

Camera Electronic
230 Stirling Street Perth
Western Australia 6000

Ph: +61 8 9328-4405
Fx: +61 8 9227-6728

Opening Hours : 8:30am till 5:30 pm Monday to Friday and 10am till 1pm on Saturday
Link : http://www.cameraelectronic.com.au/location.php

Plaza Cameras
Shop 28 Plaza Arcade Perth

Phn: (08) 9325-4040
Fax: (08) 9221-3264

Opening Hours :
Mon-Thurs: 9:00am - 5:30pm
Friday: 9:00am - 9:00pm
Saturday: 10:00am - 4:30pm
Sunday: 12:00pm - 4:30pm

Link : http://www.plazacameras.com.au/contactus.htm

 

[wong9034]

Just got back from Sydney. Most of the reliable camera shops sell both Canons and Nikons at 1-to-1 AUD and SGD prices. The best thing of all, tourists get a 10% GST refund. This makes the cameras/lenses cheaper than Singapore.

 

[snapperz]

I pmed snapper and he replied it was from one of the shops in Hay street mall. FYI.

wahhh... hahaha... might as well ask me in here.. ;p

 

[coinfucious888]

GST Australia wide is 10%. To qualify for the GST you have to take the product out of the Country.

You will be required to produce your passport and an airline ticket showing you are leaving the country. You then pay for the goods minus the GST, catch here is that you cannot take your purchase straight away. The seller seals the product in a bag and gives you a receipt for your goods and you can only collect your purchase at the airport when you are physically leaving the country.

That is the norm, but having said that, I have known of a few cases where the buyer was allowed by the seller to take possession of goods purchased before leaving the country.

Cheers

 

[raghnall]

GST Australia wide is 10%. To qualify for the GST you have to take the product out of the Country.

You will be required to produce your passport and an airline ticket showing you are leaving the country. You then pay for the goods minus the GST, catch here is that you cannot take your purchase straight away. The seller seals the product in a bag and gives you a receipt for your goods and you can only collect your purchase at the airport when you are physically leaving the country.

That is the norm, but having said that, I have known of a few cases where the buyer was allowed by the seller to take possession of goods purchased before leaving the country.

Cheers

On the contrary, you do not have to produce your passport and airline ticket on purchase. You pay GST like everyone else does. What you need is to obtain a valid Tax Invoice from the shop. You can claim back the GST from the airport TRS counter, with your passport, boarding pass, tax invoice and the item as stated in the tax invoice. The GST claim will be refunded to your credit card, or I believe you can opt for other methods of payment.

One important thing to note is that the person's name that appears on the tax invoice must be the person that is making the GST refund.

For more info, refer to this link:
http://www.customs.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=4646

 

[Francis247]

very informative.

Like that got free shipping to airport??? and collect at the airport? sound vey convenient.

Don't think it works that way.

Three conditions for claiming back the rebate at TRS. You need to have over $300 of spending on a receipt, Buy goods no more than 30 days before departure and you need to produce the goods as proof of purchase at the TRS counter.

 

[Francis247]

Full account of my experience shopping for Photographic Gears in Perth.
May be a bit wordy...

It will be split into 2 parts (or posts) :-
1. Buying experience
2. Claim at TRS

My best experience is with PRA Imaging so far.

I started off by emailing PRA Imaging, Camera Electronic and Team Digital for the price of the following items

Nikon NX 2
Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G
Nikon SB-900
Nikon MB-D10

The following quotes were offered to me

PRA Imaging *can actually check their website for pricing, for items not available on website, just email them

Nikon SB-900 Speedlight $695.00
Nikon AFS 50mm f1.4G Lens $775.00
Nikon NX 2 $185.00

Camera Electronic

Nikon NX2 $219
Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G $799
Nikon SB-900 $899
Nikon MB-D10 $620

Team Digital

Nikon NX 2 $199.00 inc GST
Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G $561.00 inc GST
Nikon SB-900 $847.00 inc GST
Nikon MB-D10 $415.00 inc GST

Walked over to Plaza Cameras at Hay Street Mall to ask about the prices (near walking distance from my office)
Was told that there is a price increase and now the Nikon AF-S 50f1.4G is over $800, SB-900 around $899.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Experience with Team Digital

Clarify with Team Digital that the lens as quoted is really Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G because that is the best price ever... the reply came and said that it is Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G but they don't have stock at the moment. They will bring it in from Sydney and need 2 to 3 days. They want around $150 of deposit to bring in the lens.

There is a problem here... I seriously don't think that the Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G can be lower than $600, I am worried that they are confused with the Nikon AF 50mm f1.4D... Decided to give it a try BUT... their opening hours is Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 5:00pm and not open on weekends. I am on a working trip, so cannot leave early and they are not really very near. Need to take a bus to Lord Street to get to them.

Was thinking how to get there when the guy I was liaising with through email told me that they have a piece of the Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G lens with them, so I decided to head down that day for a look. I leave slightly early and rush down but only managed to reach there at 5:15pm. I saw that someone is still in the shop, so decided to walk in to ask if they really have that lens, at least have a look to confirm that it is really the Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G and not the D version. The shop is officially close at 5pm, the staff told me that they will lock up the lenses at 5pm every day, so there is no way for me to have a look.

Next day, decided to email the person I was liaising with to confirm about the lens but no reply... I was very busy with my work and I don't want to waste my trip down. The reply came around evening time telling me that he is not in office today and will only be back by tomorrow afternoon, he will help me to check if the lens is still available.

Around lunchtime, was thinking of making a trip down to the shop but was held up by meeting... Email that guy again and he told me that the lens was sold that morning... Really disappointed...

Experience with PRA Imaging

Went down one evening to have a look at the shop and start to enquire about the lenses. Apparently, PRA also don't hold a lot of lenses in their shop. They got their lenses from Nikon Australia and they don't really carry all the lenses listed in their website. If I am really interested in that lens, I can leave my name, contact and deposit. Estimate might take around 5-10 days and also depend if Nikon Australia has the lens. Left without buying a thing...

On the same day where I went to Team Digital and return empty-handed, decided to walk to PRA Imaging (around 800m to 1km walk from Team Digital, the good thing is that PRA closes at 6pm) to buy their Nikon SB-900. It is the cheapest that was quoted so far. Do a bit of research of the price in Singapore and Hong Kong, calculate my GST rebate, think that it is a reasonable buy because the exchange rate is in favour of SGD. The staffs are quite friendly to me also.

Gotten the Flash for AUD$695 inclusive of GST,
Price EX GST AUD$631.82,
GST AUD$63.18

I just asked them if I can claim back the GST, they just advice me the procedure. They asked if I am leaving Australia within 30 days, asked for any photo ID or identification so that they can prepare a proper invoice for GST rebate, they also asked for my address also and they printed an extra copy of the receipt for me just in case.

A few days later, after my disappointing experience with Team Digital, email PRA about the Nikon AF-S 50mm f1.4G, they got the lens in store. I rush down and they kept the lens for me. Inspected the lens and was really satisfied, the staff talked to me and asked me why is this lens so popular and so on...

Paid AUD$775 inclusive of GST for lens
Price EX GST AUD$704.54,
GST AUD$70.45

Give them my information and they printed the invoices for me. Happy with my purchase so far.

 

[adamadam]

I like PRA, I went there last week, and the week before, and the week before HAHA

Back in 2004, I wanted to buy lens, but by the time I finish work and get to their shop, they close. So I called them and they stayed open for me (about 15-20 mins).
Very friendly and helpful.

Team digital, have been ok, except when I was chasing around for 85L before the price rise, kept calling up and the person said they will check and call me back - they have NEVER called me back, and when I call them they say "sorry, haven't gotten around to checking for you yet, I'll check and call you back" or the person is out at lunch or something like that, make me unhappy.

I used to not like going to PRA because they are so friendly and helpful but the prices weren't that excellent compared to Singapore, so I know I will probably buy when I go to Singapore, and felt bad "using" their service and not buying from them... haha

 

[Francis247]

Claiming at TRS (airport)

The rules for claiming your GST refund for the Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) is really simple, just follow the instruction :

1. Spend $300 (GST inclusive) or more in the one store and get a single tax invoice
2. Buy goods no more than 30 days before departure
3. Wear or carry the goods on board the aircraft or ship and present them along with your original tax invoice, passport and international boarding pass to a Customs Officer at a TRS facility

But there is a catch... The TRS is located inside the departure area... That means you need to do a check-in and also check-in your luggage, then you can proceed into the departure area. If your flash or lens is in the check-in luggage, then that is too bad... Btw, the regulation for the luggage weight requirement is really strict in Australia... :sweat:

After the departure screening, the TRS counter is just on the Right Hand Side (can see the logo). Just produce your Passport, the receipt or invoices and also the items and that is good to go. They will transfer the rebate to your credit card. The credit card must be the same name as the tax invoices and passport, if not they won't help you to process... Happened to me that my credit card put only my initial, almost can't get through. Thankfully still got other credit card that has my full name.

The claim can take up to 15 minutes, the killer is the queuing time which depends on the situation, might take up to 30 minutes of queuing. There is only one staff at the counter at that time... :sweat: So try to go in early if you want to do your claim.