Idaho Camera

Bought new camera. Took the time I asked for and showed me how to use the camera I was interested in without over selling it. Nice that you can go back in anytime and problem solve with them; or call in or email questions. Salesperson was knowledgable.

While we didn’t have the best experience, Idaho Camera definitely made up for it.
After leaving the negative review I was soon after contacted via Unilocal inviting me to call a manager and talk about the issue.
I’m incredibly impressed by the effort made to identify and correct a bad situation. This is the type of exemplary service that I expected at my visit.
Thanks, Idaho Camera! I’ll be back and will happily spend my money with you.

Terrible place to bring your camera for ANY repairs. They can’t perform a simple cleaning without taking what appeared to be a brillo pad to my Canon EOS-​1-​D. I drove 2 hours because this is the only camera place in Boise. I paid over $ 100 for the cleaning and got back a wrapped up camera because they don’t want to be responsible for your camera bag. I had to drive 2 hours back to show the manager the damage to the focusing screen to be told that the employee who cleans the camera denies the damage. Terrific. I pay $ 40 for a focusing screen to have to drive back AGAIN to pick it up and have it put on. I have about 15 hours of drive time on this. I called the owner of the store who is off sight, and he was useless. Useless? Well, here is your Unilocal review because you wouldn’t do what was right in the first place — hire HONEST employees who know about cleaning cameras and ones that don’t lie when an error is made. A $ 40 error that I paid for. Your camera store is ok, but you can certainly get better prices from B&H photo on line (which BTW would have sold me the focusing screen for $ 32.95 with free shipping) and through AMAZON. Both have much better customer service and I am sure will satisfy a customer at all times. Good luck with your store. You might be the only game in town, but I won’t be back and I hope just ONE person reads this and stays away.

One of my young children got ahold of my camera (gasp!) and messed with my settings. I’m not camera-​literate so I struggled in figuring out how to reset it. I was expecting to be either dismissed, judged, and/​or charged for walking through the door and asking for help. Instead, I was greeted warmly and quickly assisted by the manager, Charlie Constantinidis. I was more than happy with my experience at the store!

WOW’d by their inventory and knowledge of different camera’s suited for my needs. This is my second purchase from them. For me, I needed class time and extra help. They did just that. I will be back again for my early Christmas shopping. Huge thanks to their staff.

Worst service ever… sent a my camera to be looked at for possible repair. The people in the store were clueless as to what the prob might be so it had to be sent to their shop to be checked out and a quote. Received a phone call with the quote which was too much (as much to repair as it’s worth) so we said no thanks we will be in town to pick it up on Saturday. Apparently even though they told us this it must not have been the case! My other half shows up today to get it and then gets the run around because my camera isn’t there. And there is no way it can be there today. Also the worker refused to give her the name of the store manager. Basically they feel it is necessary to steal my equipment…(very much how it feels at this point refusing to return it)…after spending quite a bit of money with this business over the years it will never happen again. I used to think paying a lot more to help a local business was good but not Idaho camera… I will also be referring my experience with any and all other review sites/​social media that I can…

As a photographer, I have been to many camera stores in AZ, NY, and now I go to Idaho Camera since I… live here now lol
I can honestly say that Idaho Camera is hands down one of the best that I have been too…(Adorama is my favorite, but thats in NY) here though ID Camera is top of the line as far as customer service goes. I used to frequent camera shops in Phoenix and Scottsdale and I don’t know why, but in SOOOOOOO many camera shops, the employees are ALWAYS RUDE!!! ALWAYS!!! in upstate NY… just as bad! The guys and girls that work there think they are better than everyone because they work in one… or they think they are photography Gods because they work in camera shops.
Ok, I’m not a photography God, but I know a thing or two about photography. Being talked down to by employees in some of these shops is BEYOND degrading! Especially when you so much about your craft and the things you don’t…well, you go to them for help and whatever else.
In Idaho Camera though… they NEVER talk down to you or make you feel stupid or like you aren’t important. Im telling you, they go out of their way to help you and to make sure that you are satisfied! I love their stores!
They are a little pricey, but most camera shops are.
Aside from that, you will love them no matter what. They all know they stuff, if they are unsure of something, they will find out!
Awesome store, awesome people! Never a bad experience in there!

Time and time again I am reminded how Idaho Camera can be the best/​worst camera equipment store in Idaho. For a quick fix, they will have the basics for all digital and film needs but be cautious, the knowledge and supply for medium and large format cameras is less than adequate. I will admit there are a few employes who know there way around the film world but you’d be lucky if you caught them at one of the locations. Film processing prices are fair enough but if you shoot anything but 35 mm color negatives or black&white you will be out some cash (they can’t process most medium or large format films in color or b&w). I find that if you shoot medium format or large format film in color negative, slide film or black&white you’d be better off learning how to process those films yourself (speaking from experience).
When it comes to repairs, Idaho Camera can do the little stuff, nothing too complicated. If the repair gets too in-​depth they will return the camera with little to no explanation as to what is actually wrong with it or what they found. I have received a few medium format camera back (Mamiya 645 and RB 67 pro) with no information on what was wrong with them only that there wasn’t a source for parts. So for a free bench fee and inspection I and Idaho Camera wasted a week (or more) with no progress. When I picked up my 645 I asked repeatedly what they found but was told they didn’t have a source for parts, which I understood, but the sales associate couldn’t tell me what was wrong with the camera beyond what I already knew.
So in the end, if you need the bare minimum for your camera needs, across the board, film or digital, Idaho Camera is your place. If you are willing to pay the price that doesn’t reflect the current camera market, Idaho Camera is your place. Its a sad state for Boise and surrounding areas but we will all be better off buying our camera goods online, learning to process our own film and sending out to Portland or Seattle for our «more technical» repairs. I have lived and worked in Boise since 2001 with both film and digital photography. Over the years I relied on Idaho Camera for camera advice, technical support and supplies but the time has finally come to accept that Idaho Camera is a lost cause.

5÷23÷14 :
Earlier this week I was contacted directly by phone by the owner of idaho camera. He expressed his concerns with my recent dissatisfaction and offered many amends to help resolve the situation. We made plans to personally go to the lab with him and try to trouble shoot some of the things mentioned.
I’m extremely appreciative of this level of service that’s being taken. This is what I expect. In town shops really need to embrace this as it’s one of their only competing edges in today’s world. In the end it’s never about the mistakes made, it’s about how they’re handled.

Just bought the new 70D with the help and guidance of consultant Del and manager Charlie. They spent over half an hour each answering my questions and even giving me a walk through on my new baby. What a great staff at the Orchard store!

Good people all being said. Prices compare with Amazon in both directions so figure what convenience and community mean to you in your budget for new gear. The staff is knowledgeable on a wide variety of aspects in regards to photography and I think that cannot be understated. It is also important to note this location offers a range of optics from cameras and binoculars to microscopes and telescopes as well as film processing. Definitely a great business to have in the area!