To Market, To Market, Jiggety Jig.

I 've just been browsing a website that sells reproduction uniforms from the American Civil war. Hats, jackets, trousers...that sort of thing. The prices are cheap - cheaper than you can get them in the local Civil War uniform stores - but I suspect that the Confederate ones are grey market...

I first encountered the various market colours when I watched " The Third Man" at the cinema. It was notable for the peculiar sounds coming out of both the zither and Orson Welles. It introduced the term Black Market - goods sold under the counter by people who had obtained them surreptitiously in the face of official disapproval. Good business - very few warranty disputes on a case of scotch or spare penicillin ( only one user - good for lots more infections...).

It was not until I came to work 6 years ago that I encountered Grey Market. These would appear to be things that sellers obtain by surreptitious means but that do not attract the censure of the law. They do attract the betting populace who exchange adequate warranty coverage for a lower initial price. As with any gambling venture, there are winners and losers.

Can you encounter Grey Market goods in regular stores? Apparently so, though I hasten to add that you won't get any from us. Every damn thing here seems to have enough paper orders, invoices, and receipts to clog the Panama canal. I suspect that with enough poking at the computer we could eventually find out who tightened the lens mount screws on every camera we sell, and what they had for breakfast. We've got more levels of accountability than the NKVD.

What other coloured markets are there? The Red Market is old Fed or Zorki cameras re-plated and engraved to simulate wartime Leicas. In the fussy parts of the world this is known as fraud but we're talking about the Russia and the Ukraine...

Green Market sounds pretty friendly and organic and all but it refers to the practice of exchanging fruit and vegetables for actual photographic gear. While this theoretically possible in Byron Bay, the amount of groceries that you need to bring in to purchase a Nikon D4 in a normal shop means that the deal hardly ever goes down. If livestock is involved it gets worse - you might swap a handful of Holstein heifers for a Hasselblad but only if the animals are in their original boxes with all the cables and batteries.

The Blue Market is a little-known network amongst police forces. It does a roaring trade in doughnuts and coffee.

The Yellow Market is not mentioned in polite society. The first rule of Yellow Market is there is no Yellow Market.

The Pink Market is lively and thriving, particularly in certain sections of Kings Cross. Not surprisingly there is a fair amount of photographic gear in use. The lighting could be better, mind, and some of the music is abominable...

I have yet to find out what the Purple, Puce, or Fuchsia Markets are but as soon as I do, I'll let you know.

PS: Contrary to what you might be told on the net, Canon Australia and Nikon Australia have a very good idea of whether your equipment deserves warranty repair or whether you will need to pay for it. THEY keep records too...