London Camera Exchange
Very knowledgeable, always willing to help. They have alot of shops there prices are very competitive. I dont buy many new lenses i buy very good second hand items. In the last 3 years i have purchased a 70-200mm F2.8 L for £650 a 2x extender mark II for £230 and a 17-55mm 2.8 IS for £550 all in perfect condition boxed and had barely been used. Cleaned and professionally serviced previously by LCE and they are all still perfect never a problem. Their service is fantastic too I live in Cumbria and purchased the 17-55mm from Salisbury over the phone there description on the site was good but i rang for a visual description, it was also a friday i ordered it and they advised not to send it over the weekend as it could be sat in a warehouse etc they wanted to reduce the time it would be in the delivery services hands. They sent it first class recorded and arrived on the tuesday.
Cameraworld.co.uk
Great prices on all kit, although with my experience they can be good and poor, i ordered a tripod which they said they had in stock i waited 3 weeks and nothing, rang them up ..oh sorry sir we didnt have it in stock so canceled your order. No confirmation no nothing.
For New gear i usualy buy from
digitalrev.com
I got my first camera, A 350D which were in short supply when i got it. Arrived but it was a european version not British but still got the same warranty etc The delivery was very quick and also was very cheap. I also bort my 40D as soon as it came out from digital rev and saved £220. Got it for £640 which was very cheap, again a european box and instructions but i got sent an email with links to english manuals etc so i found the service to be great, although if you want english boxes i wouldn't go here.
Jessops
Are actually very good, I have to disagree. I bought a 10-22mm EF-s lens and 60mm lens and they matched the online prices from the cheapest venue online and picked it up from the shop that day. Not sure if they offer this anymore. But the 60mm EF-s was £330 brand new walked away from the shop and £550 for the 10-22mm EF-s.
That was 3 years ago, prices have risen significantly since tho. 12 months ago i was looking to buy a 5D II with a 24-70 2.8, decided i would wait. Looked again just after christmas and the 24-70 IS lens had risen from £879 to £999. since the recession hit things have gone up significantly and now the disaster that has recently hit Japan will surely rise prices further.
Tom Scott