Mint
This one is simple. Mint is perfect. There cannot be mint+. If there is any flaw, however slight, it's not mint.
New
Many people use new and mint interchangeably. New means it has never been sold retail. We have seen items that are new, that have been handled enough before being sold that they are no longer mint.
Mint- (Near mint and LN-)
Mint - is very close to being mint. There are only one or two small flaws that you will really have to look for to see.
Exc+ (Excellent plus)
Will show a few signs of wear, but is still a pretty nice camera (or lens, or whatever). Chrome cameras may have a few light bright marks, black cameras will have very limited brassing.
Exc (Excellent)
At this state, there will be definite signs of wear. There will be signs of use, but not abuse. Expect some bright marks on chrome cameras, moderate brassing on black ones.
Exc- (Excellent minus)
This is where cameras start looking a little ratty. There will be signs of heavy use, even some abuse. Expect heavy bright marks on chrome, fairly heavy brassing on black enamel. There may even be a little brassing on chrome.
VG+ (Very Good plus), VG (Very Good), VG- (Very Good minus), Good, Fair, Poor
Back in the early days of camera collecting, when many of the collectibles of today were still new on dealers shelves, or even still dreams in some designers mind, a camera that was in good condition, really was in good condition. Now a camera listed in good condition is most likely to be an eyesore.Over the years we have experienced condition inflation. Like monetary inflation devalues your dollar (or yen, peso,, mark, whatever), or grade inflation in schools devalues the "A" you might receive, so has condition inflation devalued what constitutes a "good" camera. The only grade shown here that truly represents what you're getting is poor. All of these grades represent various shades of ugly.
