Rental House: noun, slang for photo/video rental supply company. Should be your first resource for any kind of gear questions or needs.
Rental houses provide a vital industry service: specialized equipment at affordable prices and knowledge to operate it. Many rental houses have knowledgeable staff that can help you narrow down and refine your equipment order and introduce you to new eq or techniques you aren’t familiar with. They are usually enmeshed in the local industry network and can connect you with other vendors for your production needs, like crew, studios, locations, RVs and what not.
A lot of photo equipment is too expensive or too specialized for photographers to purchase on their own. Renting gives you flexibility to use different equipment for different clients or jobs. Rental-houses provide a wide-range of equipment to photographers and productions for a fraction of the ownership cost, storage and maintence.
The best rental house is the one you build a relationship with. If you are in a major market, there will be lots of options. You can narrow it down by picking one that has your preferred equipment, by location, or by recommendation. I recommend using one that is easiest for you, usually that means their location is convenient for you. Trust me, it sucks to waste time returning a lens on the other side of town when there are closer options. The more you are a repeat customer, the more they’ll help you out with discounts, priority service, sourcing hard-to-find eq and other customer service functions.
When first starting an order, just email your gear list to the rental house. Be sure to include the specific dates and times you will be picking up and returning the eq. They’ll send you an estimate and all of the paperwork you need to fill out. If you are looking for a particular piece of gear you may want to call ahead to confirm they carry it. Some rental houses have a complete gear list on their website, most have only a partial list. Just because you don’t see it listed doesn’t mean they don’t have it.
After you confirm the estimate, they’ll send you an invoice. Some orders require an initial deposit, others don’t. If you aren’t picking up the equipment yourself, let them know who it will be.
Show up for the pickup and review the list to make sure everything is there. You can also review the eq to make it is all in working order. Sometimes, small items are forgotten or even big ones, or eq needs repair and they hadn’t noticed. If you need to modify your order, you can add, subtract or swap items during pickup.
When packing the gear for return, refer to the list to make sure you have everything. Try to organize it all in same way you received it. They will appreciate that. Sometimes, this isn’t possible. Drop off the gear. Make sure you are returning everything. They will send the final invoice to whoever is paying. You won’t pay for anything on the spot.
Rental houses usually all require the same paperwork to be filled out ahead of your first rental:
The initial paperwork can be annoying, but once you’re in the system, it’s usually as simple as emailing them a list to get started. Using the same rental house every time will cut down on any paperwork friction, as your info will be saved in their system. COIs do expire, so you will have to update your COI every year or so.
While many rental houses now carry both photo and film equipment, there is distinction between the two.