Terminus & Cinder: What’s Changing
What’s happening?
Terminus Production Support is now under new ownership and has merged with Cinder Lighting & Grip.
Terminus’s full photography inventory is now available alongside Cinder's extensive catalog of motion lighting & grip equipment. The production support side has also been folded into Cinder’s larger production supplies inventory.
This allows customers to continue renting photography equipment with the same practical, knowledgeable support Terminus is known for, while also gaining access to Cinder’s larger team, expanded logistics, deeper inventory, and stronger operational support behind the scenes.
Who is Cinder?
We are a community-based rental house in South Atlanta dedicated to helping everyone from large commercial projects to low-budget indie creators with a story to share.
Cinder started off as just two student filmmakers with a vision that rental houses should be accurate, responsive, and easy to work with. The business evolved organically over 10 years from a two-car garage full of gear into the 20,000-square-foot operation that is Cinder today.
We may have grown, but our values stayed the same. We believe in strong customer service throughout the entire process while providing well-maintained gear to each and every person we work with.
What is going to happen to Terminus?
The equipment rentals have officially been moved to Cinder’s warehouse. Photography rentals will now be handled from:
295 Margaret St SE Unit 1
Atlanta, GA 30315
The photography inventory, client support, and order handling that Terminus clients are used to will continue through Cinder’s photo department.
With the operation moving out of the Allene Ave location, the Terminus Studio will close on May 15th.
Will Jamaal still be involved?
Of course!
Jamaal McKnight will continue leading the photo department at Cinder, where he will oversee the photo inventory and help ensure all photo rentals through Cinder are executed properly.
With more than 10 years of experience working first with Morel Studio Support and then Terminus Production Support, Jamaal will still be focused on making sure photo rentals are done right in Atlanta.
Can I still call and email the same way I always have?
Yes!
You can still call the same phone number and email the same address you are used to.
Phone: (404) 664-6948
Email: orders@terminusatl.com
What is changing about business hours?
For photography rentals, we are now separating office hours from warehousing and delivery hours.
Office Hours
Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:30 PM
This is the best time to reach Jamaal and the rental agents to build orders, make changes, ask questions, confirm details, and handle time-sensitive communication before the shoot day begins.
Warehousing and Delivery Hours
Monday – Friday, 7:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Weekend pickups and drop-offs by appointment only
Order planning, changes, and confirmations should happen during office hours. Pickups, deliveries, returns, and other warehouse logistics can still happen earlier, later, or over the weekend when arranged in advance.
What if I need help after hours?
There is now a 24/7 after-hours / emergency line.
If you have an emergency, like needing more gear or troubleshooting/replacing something that’s broken, someone can be reached at any time. Calling the main phone number and following the prompts will connect you with our after-hours contact for that day.
If you are placing a new order or making additions through the emergency line, additional charges may apply. If the issue is with our gear on an active rental, emergency support is provided at no additional cost.
What’s changing on pricing?
Photography gear pricing remains the same.
Some other categories are actually getting cheaper. Prices on most expendables are going down because Cinder purchases expendables in larger volume than Terminus has in the past, and gets more access to bulk discounts from our vendors. Most grip gear will also see a price drop now that the combined inventory gives us more availability to work with.
Are Schmidli backdrops still available?
Yes. Schmidli backdrops are still part of the offering, same as usual.
What gets better as a result of this change?
Terminus built its reputation through reliable service, accurate orders, flexible support, and long-standing client relationships. The goal of this transition is to preserve that experience while adding more inventory, maintenance support, and operational capacity behind it.
Cinder brings a larger team, more trucks, dedicated departments, and a broader warehouse operation. Quoting, warehouse preps, repairs, and inventory tracking are now supported by a more detailed and high-tech internal system. This gives photography clients the same service and photo knowledge Terminus was known for, now backed by more hands and minds to solve problems and prep orders, more logistics capacity, more inventory support, and a larger equipment network.
Being a larger company, this change also gives the photography department more resources for maintaining existing equipment and investing in new gear over time.
Are there changes to Terminus’s delivery policy?
Yes, but free delivery is still available.
Photography gear orders totaling over $1,000 qualify for free delivery and pickup within the Atlanta perimeter, as long as it happens during normal warehousing hours.
Our default delivery and pickup offering is curbside/loading dock delivery, where our driver will get the gear to your location, unload it from the truck, and hand it off to your crew or representative.
Additional charges may apply for longer distances, off-hours service, or load-ins and load-outs that require more time and labor from our driver than a curbside drop-off or pickup.
When placing your order, please share any details about your logistics needs and we’ll get that priced out.
We’re Excited for What’s Next
Our goal with this transition is to maintain a dedicated photo department led by the same person Terminus clients already know, while giving that department more support behind the scenes.
At Cinder, we’re excited to support the clients who have trusted Terminus so far with their rentals, connect with more of Atlanta’s photo community, and continue building a photo department that is accurate, responsive, well-stocked, and easy to work with.
