Bring the production plan and finance together
An upgrade can involve more than a camera body: lenses, lighting, sound and other equipment may all be part of the project. Sorbus helps you describe that package clearly and explore relevant lenders from our extensive panel of 150+ lenders. We focus on lenders whose criteria may fit the business and equipment, rather than assume the whole panel serves every production purchase.
You have a broker to discuss the quote, the purchase timing and the cash you want to retain for production costs. We can help explain which items need separate consideration and how different deposits, terms and ownership arrangements affect the commitment. Lender acceptance of each item still needs confirming, but you do not have to work through those questions alone.
A production package is several asset types
A cinema camera body, a broadcast multi-camera chain and a lighting rig age differently and are bought for different reasons. ARRI, for instance, presents digital cine cameras such as the ALEXA family as camera systems, and sells lighting as a separate portfolio of LED panels, Fresnels, daylight and tungsten fixtures, ballasts and accessories used on film sets, in studios, theatres and at events.
Funders tend to think about each category on its own terms: how long it stays useful, whether there is a second-hand market, how easily it can be identified. Present the purchase in those categories rather than as one package price.
- Cinema camera bodies
- High-value, serial-numbered, technology moves on. Consider how long the body will stay in demand for your work.
- Broadcast and live multi-camera
- Systems of cameras, CCUs, vision mixing and comms. Often installed in a studio or OB setting; components interlock.
- Lighting
- Fixtures, control and power. Check output, colour consistency, condition and firmware support.
- Lenses, sound and accessories
- Compatibility and support can differ from the camera body. Identify each lens, sound item and accessory separately.
Used kit: provenance, mounts and condition
For a second-hand or ex-rental purchase, collect the seller invoice chain and serial numbers, check for existing finance, and ask what service and inspection evidence is available for camera bodies. For lenses, confirm the mount and any conversions; an incompatible lens can add adaptation or replacement costs.
Whether a lender will fund a specific used item, and what evidence it wants, is lender-specific. We ask before any proposal goes in; we do not assume used kit is acceptable.
- Serial numbers matching invoice and the physical item
- Operating or recording hours where available, and service or inspection reports for camera bodies
- Lens mount, any adaptation, and glass condition
- Confirmation of no outstanding finance on the item
Software and subscriptions are not the same as hardware
Editing, grading, playout and camera control software is often licensed or subscribed rather than owned. A licence may be tied to a user, a seat or a period, and may not be transferable. Itemise software separately on the quote and check the licence terms. Your broker can ask whether a lender will consider it; it should not be assumed that software is included in the amount financed.
Client contracts are context, not guaranteed income
A series commission, a rental-house relationship or a retained corporate client helps explain why the kit is needed now. It does not guarantee future work, and lenders generally assess the business’s ability to make payments from its overall position. Prepare a view of how repayments are met between productions, and how the kit is used when it is not on your own jobs (for example, dry hire).
This is business finance, not consumer camera credit
Retail camera finance aimed at individuals is a different product. This guide is for limited companies, partnerships and sole traders buying kit for commercial production, rental or broadcast work. Sorbus works with a selected panel of lenders, not the whole market.
Hire purchase or lease: what changes for this kind of kit
With hire purchase, the business hires the equipment from the funder and title only passes once every contractual payment, and any option-to-purchase fee, has been paid. Until then the funder owns it.
A finance lease is a rental agreement. Ownership does not transfer automatically at the end; what happens next, including any secondary rental, return or sale arrangements, depends on the specific agreement. Ask the broker to explain the end-of-term clause before you commit.
Which structure suits you depends on how long you expect to use the equipment, how quickly the technology moves on, and how your accountant wants it treated. We do not give accounting, VAT or tax advice; ask your accountant before relying on any treatment.
What happens after you enquire
- 1
Enquiry
You tell us about the equipment and the business. This is not an application and no lender sees it.
- 2
Discussion and evidence review
A broker talks it through with you and reviews the quote, accounts and any used-equipment evidence.
- 3
Lender proposal, only if suitable
If it looks suitable, and with your agreement, we approach lenders from our selected panel (not the whole market). Any decision is the lender’s, subject to status, affordability and its criteria.
Sorbus Finance is a broker, not a lender. We do not quote rates, deposits or terms on this page, and an enquiry is not approval.