Hi i'm david, 20 and i think i have GAS

There are more expensive hobbies than photography:

1. Wife collecting (and divorcing the previous acquisition)

2. Kid collecting (and their educational expenses)

3. Antique car collecting

4. Competitive car racing

3a. Competitive sailing

6. Plain sailing

Enough?

I had this awhile back and the only cure for me was to walk away from the forums... seriously. I believe being around fellow gear fanatics drives the desire for more - not the need. After spending minimal time on the forums recently I purchased a 5D MKIII , 24-70 MKII and I am eyeing the 70-200 MKII. I told myself that would be it but damn that 85LII is one sexy lens.

Unplug the internet. Now. Go shoot something.

notastockpikr wrote in post #16144170
BTW, from your SIG, you don't have GAS. When you buy three of the Canon superteles and drop >$25k, then you have Gears Acquisition Syndrome.

Who says you need to burn $25K? Everyone can suffer from GAS not just the filthy rich forum members.

example: I don't do macro photography and lets say I bought an L macro lens "just because" it has a nice red ring and I read somewhere that it's sharp and my psyche tells me I need to cover this field of photography.. this is GAS, but yeah going back to your superteles, I may need to cover the 800mm range in photography too.

eth3rton wrote in post #16144460
I had this awhile back and the only cure for me was to walk away from the forums... seriously. I believe being around fellow gear fanatics drives the desire for more - not the need. After spending minimal time on the forums recently I purchased a 5D MKIII , 24-70 MKII and I am eyeing the 70-200 MKII. I told myself that would be it but damn that 85LII is one sexy lens.

Unplug the internet. Now. Go shoot something.

Not before you "add to cart" that sexy 85L.

eth3rton wrote in post #16144460
I had this awhile back and the only cure for me was to walk away from the forums... seriously. I believe being around fellow gear fanatics drives the desire for more - not the need. After spending minimal time on the forums recently I purchased a 5D MKIII , 24-70 MKII and I am eyeing the 70-200 MKII. I told myself that would be it but damn that 85LII is one sexy lens.

Unplug the internet. Now. Go shoot something.

I agree. It's reading these forums that makes me feel like I don't have everything I need to fulfill my photography ambitions. But I just can't stop.

I have 5 cameras coming in on Friday, a M, 2 land cameras and 2 film ones, along with a battery grip.

That's on top of the 4 digital I have already and around 14 film ones.

That my friend is GAS!

and I've only been into photography 14 months

i admit that i have GAS too.

buy second hand might be your solution

davidfarina wrote in post #16144108
Not a joke i spent grands on equippment in the last 2 years. Is this something to worry about? :S

I enjoy photography so much i think sometimes im crazy haha

I know someones not just saying its the last lens, but now i have to put a limit. I think i will not buy another lens or camera once per year

What is the best way to get cured of that expensive disease?

If you have GAS, stop eating beans and don't leave the restroom.

TheLensGuy wrote in post #16144623
If you have GAS, stop eating beans and don't leave the restroom.

I have not noticed that I acquire gear at a lower rate if I have not eaten beans. OTOH, I have noticed that I do acquire more gear if I imbibe alcohol. Does that mean that alcohol causes GAS and eating beans does not

davidfarina wrote in post #16144108
I know someones not just saying its the last lens, but now i have to put a limit. I think i will not buy another lens or camera once per year

What is the best way to get cured of that expensive disease?

I dunno if limits would work. they might at first, but eventually you'll find reasons to break the rules. so here's what happened to me...

many years ago, when the 40d was the best crop camera out there, I had some money to blow. I ended up with a ton of "dream" lenses.... 85l, 70-200l, etc... somewhere around $15k of lenses. all purchased within months! I justified the purchases with saying that I didn't buy them--I was renting them for free. as you know, lenses depreciate little, and if you buy cheap enough, you can routinely sell for profit. anyway, $15k was in the closet.

one day, they were gone. stolen from my own house. (yeah, I know, they should have been insured by homeowner's insurance, but for complicated reasons they were not.)

I was a mess and was sure I would never be able to buy back the gear. I didn't even want to shoot pictures thinking it was pointless.

years later, I got a new gf. I also got a few raises along the way. I saw her take some pictures with a crappy point and shoot and thought I saw talent, so I bought her a new 7d + kit lens. well, she didn't like it and gave it back to me...... so I used it.

just the 7d + kit lens for more than a year. took tens of thousands of pictures. and I started getting better and better. eventually, I found situations where I just could not get the shot I wanted without a specific feature, in this case a bigger aperture. so I bought a 17-55 IS. took thousands more pictures and got better still. then i found more situations where the 17-55 IS would not suffice, ...2 years later, i got my 7d + 2 lenses...... and so on. and i got better still.

strangely........ the theft made me a far better photographer, and also cured my own GAS. it made me make the most out of my 18-135 kit lens. and it also made me think of the lenses as an artist's brushes, like tools. i did not prize them anymore like trophies or collectibles. i only bought a new lens when i knew i needed it, and already planned ahead of how i would use it. and i was rewarded by great pictures.

so... here's my solution for you:

1. pick one single lens.
2. shoot with it for months or a year. no other lens.
3. when you realize you've made the most out of that lens and just cannot get the right shots anymore, then pick one other lens.
4. repeat with the 2 lenses.

this will make you change your point of view. they're just tools then. and you'll get better pictures. i can tell you, my 7d+ 18-135 took far better pictures than i ever have with any of the previous lenses.

Wilt wrote in post #16144629
I have not noticed that I acquire gear at a lower rate if I have not eaten beans. OTOH, I have noticed that I do acquire more gear if I imbibe alcohol. Does that mean that alcohol causes GAS and eating beans does not

I don't think you got my joke. Granted, it may not have been funny to some people.

I think he got the joke perfectly. Because I do the same ! I tell you alcohol combined with these forums is a quick way to spend thousands especially given how easy it is to buy online. So I agree wih some of you, these forums are a bad influence especially with a few drinks.

marcosv wrote in post #16144261
If you have GAS, given your Sig, I would assume you have bought/sold a lot of lens.

Here's my (current) strategy for fighting GAS:
1. Come up with your basic kit requirements to limit the number/type of lens (mine is a kit of five L glass and two bodies).
2. Don't buy another lens until you have taken --- and post processed --- at least 1000 to 5000 shots per lens you already own.
3. If you don't use a lens or body enough in a six month to one year period, sell it (you will have to decide what level of usage this actually means).
4. Don't buy a very expensive lens until you have borrowed and used it at least twice, demonstrating in practice (not on paper) why you need it.
5. Invest in lighting instead of more glass. Master your lighting setup before buying more glass.
6. Supplement your lens collection by borrowing from your friends. (i.e., entice your friends to buy that great deal on a used 600L mk I so that you don't have to buy it and could just borrow it).

How do you think I ended up shooting medium format digital?

Hint: steps 1-6 dont really slow it down!

Wilt wrote in post #16144629
I have noticed that I do acquire more gear if I imbibe alcohol.

cdang wrote in post #16144711
I do the same ! I tell you alcohol combined with these forums is a quick way to spend thousands especially given how easy it is to buy online. So I agree wih some of you, these forums are a bad influence especially with a few drinks.

Photograholics Anonymous?

cdang wrote in post #16144711
I think he got the joke perfectly. Because I do the same ! I tell you alcohol combined with these forums is a quick way to spend thousands especially given how easy it is to buy online. So I agree wih some of you, these forums are a bad influence especially with a few drinks.

It's actually quite opposite for me (regarding the forums) because every time I come here and ask "should I buy this lens", I always get "you don't need it, be happy with what you have" instead.