Expensive gear or travel?

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Mr F Stop.

Mr F Stop.

Active member
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I, as a retired ex military guy have to balance the absolute necessity (that's what I tell the wife) of having the best gear with my travel budget. Before I settled here in the Stara Palannia mountains in Bulgaria I traveled and just used a bridge camera P600. I have some marvelous photos but most are poor quality. So in the end I got a DSLR and the bank balance has taken a spanking ever since. I still travel but now less now, and the photo's I get now are fewer but of course much better. I still think travel and getting inspiration from new locations is far more important than the latest mirror less tecno brilliant offering from the camera manufacturers. What say you?
 
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Ado Wolf said:
For me Photography was never about the gear (latest tech.), it's about the feelings and moments I experience while I am photographing, be it:
- experiencing new destinations (travel)
- freedom (entering deep forests)
- peace (being surrounded by nature and animals)..

it's not about the Photos.. it's the journey.
Click to expand...
Totally agree with all that. Editing is almost a disappointment!
 
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Experience the world, first and foremost - the emotions and feelings you gather on trips will never leave you, whether you have them on a digital file or not.
I also rarely buy gear new (with a couple exceptions) and take advantage of people "upgrading" to the newest and greatest to get gear at deep discounts - if you buy from wealthy amateurs, the gear is pristine, barely used and heavily discounted. I am so loving this wave of mirrorless upgrades - starting to see some really nice used F-mount opportunities pop-up!
 
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Hi Mr F Stop.

I would say do the research on what is the best for your needs and buy the absolute best you can afford, that`s what I do .. Does it mean buying the Newest latest model of this Lens or that Body ? Absolutely Not ! ! - does it mean exploring the "Used market" 100 percent YES

I got fed up with travelling here there and everywhere with sub standard gear taking the same sub standard photo`s because the gear I had simply didn`t make the grade, no matter how I sliced it up I was try to make the best of what I had but in the end the gear wasn`t up to the Job so it was time to invest in something that would .. I took a few less trips, swallowed hard, got the credit card out and a week later took delivery of a Nikon D500 - best move I ever made.. However knowing what I know now I would more than likely not have bought it brand new, I could have purchased a pristine Body with very little shutter count and that would have afforded me the option to buy better Glass, but its done and dusted and I have no regrets..

On the buying of Lenses ,well, that`s another story .. I`ve been shooting maybe 9 months, mostly landscape to begin with, but somehow stumbled into Bird photography and that`s when things started to go slightly south but in a nice way o_O

No matter how hard I tried I had to concede that there`s no way in hell I`m ever going to get a pin sharp photo of a small bird or a large one for that matter with a 105mm Lens (which was all I had at the time) unless I can sneak up to with a few feet, and as the saying goes "The rest is history" ...You being ex military will know all to well that having the "right gear for the job" is absolutely essential right ? its like your boss telling you to hold off 20 advancing enemy soldiers that are 1000 yards away yet giving you a 45mm hand gun to do the job - Guess the outcome .. Now had he given you an AK47 ? ?

Still at the end of the day it really does come down to having the right gear for the job - does that mean it has to come at a premium ? Definitely Not ! ! .. I have bought some very very nice used Lenses from reputable guys of eBay at a fraction of the cost .. One in particular a Sigma 100-400mm which I love and has gotten me some beautiful images ,if memory serves me I think I paid around £400, its a nice little work horse Lens for me, very light and easy to hand hold..

All of the above is simply my personal journey into photography albeit a very short one - does it make me any less happier that I haven`t got the latest model Lens, Body, Tripod, Bag, Laptop or whatever ? Absolutely Not .. would I like to have a 300mm or 500mm PF or maybe even a nice D850 ? Hell Yeah..

It always make me smile when some of us try to shy away from the fact that sometimes you need to say YES it is about the gear - you need to be honest and say NO I cannot get that shot I`m after simply because I don`t have the right tools for the job, there`s absolutely nothing wrong with that, its a natural progression to want to be better or get more satisfaction from the very thing that you are passionate about and if that comes at a cost, be it a small cost to you or a larger cost to someone else and it suits your bank balance then so be it..

The thing that gets me Laughing most is when some of the guys say things like (and PLEASE take anything I`m about to say with a huge HUGE pinch of salt its nothing more than a tongue in cheek Throw away comment) Oh its not about the gear its about the passion and being in the outdoors with friends and people you love etc etc then I see their last photo they posted of a Gin clear humming bird or rare Snake in some deep Amazonian rain forest taken with a D5 and prime tele lens and right below their signature you see something along the lines of - D4`s D5 D500 D850 Z6 and a Plethora of glass , then I think to myself "its not about the gear" YEAH RIGHT :LOL::LOL: that one always gets me ..


Again I`d like to say -anyone reading the above please take it for what it is, there is NO underhanded pop at any individual


@FB101 .. You have hit the nail right on the head when it comes to Used gear in pristine condition (y) it affords people like myself the chance to purchase gear that I could not buy at a premium price ...


Harry.G
 
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Your memories and the photos you take will be with you for the rest of your life and mean a lot to you. When you're gone the photos will almost certainly go in the trash because they won't mean much, if anything, to anyone else. If you have only limited funds go travel as much as you can. I have some great photographs I took 40 years ago that I haven't looked at in many, many years -- they're almost meaningless now.
 
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Harry.G said:
Hi Mr F Stop.

I would say do the research on what is the best for your needs and buy the absolute best you can afford, that`s what I do .. Does it mean buying the Newest latest model of this Lens or that Body ? Absolutely Not ! ! - does it mean exploring the "Used market" 100 percent YES

I got fed up with travelling here there and everywhere with sub standard gear taking the same sub standard photo`s because the gear I had simply didn`t make the grade, no matter how I sliced it up I was try to make the best of what I had but in the end the gear wasn`t up to the Job so it was time to invest in something that would .. I took a few less trips, swallowed hard, got the credit card out and a week later took delivery of a Nikon D500 - best move I ever made.. However knowing what I know now I would more than likely not have bought it brand new, I could have purchased a pristine Body with very little shutter count and that would have afforded me the option to buy better Glass, but its done and dusted and I have no regrets..

On the buying of Lenses ,well, that`s another story .. I`ve been shooting maybe 9 months, mostly landscape to begin with, but somehow stumbled into Bird photography and that`s when things started to go slightly south but in a nice way o_O

No matter how hard I tried I had to concede that there`s no way in hell I`m ever going to get a pin sharp photo of a small bird or a large one for that matter with a 105mm Lens (which was all I had at the time) unless I can sneak up to with a few feet, and as the saying goes "The rest is history" ...You being ex military will know all to well that having the "right gear for the job" is absolutely essential right ? its like your boss telling you to hold off 20 advancing enemy soldiers that are 1000 yards away yet giving you a 45mm hand gun to do the job - Guess the outcome .. Now had he given you an AK47 ? ?

Still at the end of the day it really does come down to having the right gear for the job - does that mean it has to come at a premium ? Definitely Not ! ! .. I have bought some very very nice used Lenses from reputable guys of eBay at a fraction of the cost .. One in particular a Sigma 100-400mm which I love and has gotten me some beautiful images ,if memory serves me I think I paid around £400, its a nice little work horse Lens for me, very light and easy to hand hold..

All of the above is simply my personal journey into photography albeit a very short one - does it make me any less happier that I haven`t got the latest model Lens, Body, Tripod, Bag, Laptop or whatever ? Absolutely Not .. would I like to have a 300mm or 500mm PF or maybe even a nice D850 ? Hell Yeah..

It always make me smile when some of us try to shy away from the fact that sometimes you need to say YES it is about the gear - you need to be honest and say NO I cannot get that shot I`m after simply because I don`t have the right tools for the job, there`s absolutely nothing wrong with that, its a natural progression to want to be better or get more satisfaction from the very thing that you are passionate about and if that comes at a cost, be it a small cost to you or a larger cost to someone else and it suits your bank balance then so be it..

The thing that gets me Laughing most is when some of the guys say things like (and PLEASE take anything I`m about to say with a huge HUGE pinch of salt its nothing more than a tongue in cheek Throw away comment) Oh its not about the gear its about the passion and being in the outdoors with friends and people you love etc etc then I see their last photo they posted of a Gin clear humming bird or rare Snake in some deep Amazonian rain forest taken with a D5 and prime tele lens and right below their signature you see something along the lines of - D4`s D5 D500 D850 Z6 and a Plethora of glass , then I think to myself "its not about the gear" YEAH RIGHT :LOL::LOL: that one always gets me ..


Again I`d like to say -anyone reading the above please take it for what it is, there is NO underhanded pop at any individual


@FB101 .. You have hit the nail right on the head when it comes to Used gear in pristine condition (y) it affords people like myself the chance to purchase gear that I could not buy at a premium price ...


Harry.G
Click to expand...
I had to check but I knew you a Brit. Great comments and I agree with them all. Me my self, I think I have the gear I need to do the job, all secondhand, the latest a 150-600 sigma lens which the guy had never taken out of his house! Oh yes. You like me are new to this level and I to look at some folks gear and dribble. But here's the thing. If you have a Nikon 960 (that's got a few looking) and a 800 F 2.8 there's no where to hide, no excuses, those photographs better be good.
 
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FB101 said:
Experience the world, first and foremost - the emotions and feelings you gather on trips will never leave you, whether you have them on a digital file or not.
I also rarely buy gear new (with a couple exceptions) and take advantage of people "upgrading" to the newest and greatest to get gear at deep discounts - if you buy from wealthy amateurs, the gear is pristine, barely used and heavily discounted. I am so loving this wave of mirrorless upgrades - starting to see some really nice used F-mount opportunities pop-up!
Click to expand...
Yes, like you I never buy new. There are is some great gear out there and lets face it at our level even a 5 or 6 year old camera is brilliant.
 
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Mr F Stop. said:
I, as a retired ex military guy have to balance the absolute necessity (that's what I tell the wife) of having the best gear with my travel budget. Before I settled here in the Stara Palannia mountains in Bulgaria I traveled and just used a bridge camera P600. I have some marvelous photos but most are poor quality. So in the end I got a DSLR and the bank balance has taken a spanking ever since. I still travel but now less now, and the photo's I get now are fewer but of course much better. I still think travel and getting inspiration from new locations is far more important than the latest mirror less tecno brilliant offering from the camera manufacturers. What say you?
Click to expand...
Since you already picked up a DSLR, I would say hang onto it and do your best to slowly rebuild your travel budget. Any modern DSLR can take fantastic photos if used properly AND the subjects are within good proximity. So in my opinion, there’s no need to continue to upgrade if it does not make financial sense. However, getting close to awesome subjects can be a lot easier if you travel to known and reliable wildlife locations. So that’s my wordy reply to give the simple answer... buy plane tickets, not [more] gear.
 
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