Calumet Photographic

So sad this place is no more. I had many good memories from taking many classes here. I wish all the staffs well.

Wow, I’m so sorry that this store closed, I just went by there today and the doors are shut! I used to go here all the time and it was right by my house. I’m sad.

I would have liked to give no start at all but that wasn’t an option.
I ordered a replacement lens for my Rebel T1i (18 – 55 mm) on Wednesday 03÷06÷14 with them for $ 200 that was supposed to come in early the following week despite it being nothing special. Actually, I was looking for an upgrade but wasn’t interested in the single focus lens I was offered. I was also interested in grtting a macro lens and decided to buy it at Calumet because I really wanted to try it out in the store rather then ordering online.
The customer service was awful. A big guy in a wheelchair was really condesending and couldn’t care less whether I understood anything. I repeatedly asked him to explain the details in more understandable terms. He wouldn’t or couldn’t and was very impatient. I decided to forget about buying the $ 500 macro lens here but order it from B&H instead.
By Thursday my replacement lens still wasn’t in, and by Saturday nobody answered the phone the website didn’t work. Then I learned that the store had closed. Having already paid for my lens and left my trade in, I started to panic and tried to contact the Chicago headquarters. They had closed, too, and filed for bankruptcy. Considering the poor evaluations I read on Unilocal later, I am only surprised they managed to survive for this long.
I am just glad I paid by credit card. My credit card company assured me that it did not matter what the circumstances as to why a product was not delivered, including bankruptcy, and that I would get a full refund. What a relief!

CLOSED! this was posted on FB today:
After 75 years of business it is with a heavy heart that we announce our immediate closing in the United States (our European stores will continue). It has been a joy to share our passion for photography with you all of these years. We’ll miss each other and we’ll miss all of our customers. Thank you for everything.

My experience here was so painful that two days later it was still bugging me, so I had to write a review. I went in with total intent to purchase but was turned off. If you go here avoid the large man in the wheelchair he knows nothing about photography or the hardware to be more specific. And will literally waste your time.
He tried to sell me a dx lens when I was specifically asking for an fx/​ex format. He insisted it was ex even though it said dx on the box in huge letters. His was after he had what sounded like a very slow and personal conversation on the phone. There was one other person who could of helped me but she ignored me. I decided to walk out at that point. Other camera shops work harder for my money.

Truly helpful staff! Thank you so much for being a professional camera store and a wonderful resource for knowledge.

Why is the service at this place so poor!?! The employees (not all, but a few) routinely act as if you’re a nuisance for asking if they have something in stock (which they usually don’t!)
Stopped by Samy’s Camera on Bryant this afternoon and they are significantly friendlier and have a great deal more in stock. They’re new in town. Hopefully they get Calumet to clean up their act a bit or at least provide a worthwhile alternative.

I’ve been here on several occasions. Both their rental and sales divisions have been super friendly and helpful. I’ve had to return items here before and didn’t have any hiccups whatsoever. The salespeople aren’t always the most knowledgable but not anything bad like say, Best Buy (see below). Their friendliness and accommodation more than makes up for it. I’ve decided to make this place my go-​to video/​photo supplier in the cases when I don’t have weeks in advance to order online. Prices are moderate but often have special sales, so it works out well.
*edit* to clarify my comment on the sales staff, I didn’t mean to suggest that they are ignorant or clueless. Quite the opposite. Camera gear can be pretty darn complicated when you get to the professional level gear they carry here and no one can have every detail of everything when you’re on the bleeding edge. To give some clarification, I was asking difficult questions about a camera that I couldn’t even find the answer to after an hour on the internet searching.
These folks are more than knowledgeable enough of their products to carry the day, otherwise I wouldn’t keep coming back.

It was a toss-​up between 2 or 3 stars. Honestly, most of the time I go there, they don’t have what I am looking for. And I’m not talking nothing fancy. Lens filters, light stands and other little things they should have plenty of. I also think the staff should be better trained. I bought a camera bag there and a few weeks later, the zipper broke. I returned the back but I had to go back twice because the replacement was not the same bag I had.
Now with Samy’s in town, I think Calumet has their back against the wall. If they don’t seriously improve, they’ll be out of business in a couple of years. It would be their own fault unfortunately…

Dunno why y’all hating — this is the best photo store San Francisco has, hands down. All of the times I’ve come in here to buy photo equipment or repair lenses, the employees have been nothing but friendly and incredibly helpful, and they really know their photo stuff.
Example: I got a Canon EOS T2i for my sixteenth birthday; about 3 months I cracked my 18−55mm lens after dropping the camera body down some stairs, and I brought it in to be looked at in case there was any chance of repair. The guy at the desk told me that it wasn’t worth repairing as starter kit lens tend to be of sub-​par quality, and gave me a better 17−70mm lens, absolutely free.
Def the place to come for all your quality photography needs.

Since the golden age of film has come and gone, we are lucky to have a few remaining stores who carry film processing equipment & other paraphenalia. I guess they’re not perfect. They’ve got parking, that’s pretty good.
The other day I had a conversation with an actual live person standing on the other side of the counter, about things that mattered to us both, while I was making my purchase. This does not happen on the internet people!!!
Glad Calumet is around.

I have to give Calumet one star but I’ll always come here for my camera equipment.
Calumet’s sales people are cold. I have only encountered one semi-​cheerful woman here and the others definitely seem as if they want to ignore me. Maybe it’s ’cause I look young (thanks to my Asian genes) and therefore can’t afford anything. I never go into a store I cannot afford because I don’t want to get stared down at. I have spent thousands here on lenses and a new body. I ESP dislike the hipster looking guy with glasses.
The prices are not great. Amazon definitely has the best deals, but do you really want your $ 1000+ item shipped to your doorstep, or do you want to pick it up a a store?
Come here only for what you need. I would not go in asking for advice. Call and ask to put what you need on hold. I try to get in and out asap and I never go in just to browse. So why do I keep coming here even with the poor customer service and high prices?
I cannot even imagine ordering expensive and delicate camera equipment online, having it pushed around and dropped numerous times before it gets to my door. And what if my purchase gets lost somewhere?! I would rather pay extra and endure the uncomfortable vibe to ensure I don’t go insane over waiting for a package and freaking out if the tracking info hadn’t been updated for one day.
So I suck it up and go to Calumet.