What is the average individual income of members here?

For alot of "regular people" (approx a third of the lower 2 income bracket polls) that make somewhere between 0 and 50,000. I think an extra poll should have been made. Really the difference between part time/minimum wage (whatever that may be in your area), and a 40hr a week @ $30/hr...

under $20k (part time, unemployed, student, etc)
$20-40k
$40-60k

or something like that. But it looks like the majority make more then $50k (which is a bit surprising to me) so guess it doesn't really matter.

I've found the more my salary increases, the more photo gear I can afford, the less time I have to use my photo gear.

vicious cycle

Okay... so who's got enough disposable income for the 1Dx?

Do you know what many of us don't do $

You'll find the REAL artists in that $25,000 or under range.

Just kidding. (No class-warfare here. )

Graduate student TA-ship. I think I got it worse than any of you lot

Wow. I forgot about this thread. 2 years later... I haven't moved out of the income category I responded previously with in this poll. Inching my way up... but I'm at the low end of that category, so it's going to be a while unless I do something drastic. I guess I could always slide down.

I think I make one "big" purchase a year. Last year (2012) around this time, I got a 5D3. I almost made my big purchase for 2013... a used macbook - which I bought but sold out of buyer's remorse 4 weeks later... I just returned the Sigma 18-35 from buyer's remorse, as well.

Will I make a purchase this year? I don't know. On the topic on disposable income, it can accumulate. Perhaps I'll let my "disposable income" camera fund carry over into next year... or I can convert it into savings, not to be touched until we do get that house.

When did I get to be so responsible with money?

Last week it was 106,000. Last day of work was last friday. Now that I retired it has fallen to 56,000. I have a lot of adjusting to do. Not sure being "gainfully unemployed" has hit me yet. Guess there is no more buying and selling lenses without caution anymore.

But you've no mortgage payments by now, right?

Right. However, my wife requires a lot of care (pretty much bed ridden) and that takes up a lot of resources. I must say that the feeling of 22 years military and 20 years retail stress leaving my body is really nice! Only bill I have is vehicle payment (only a few left).

That's too bad about your wife. Best of luck there. I'm hoping I'm making the right decisions for my retirement now. I could have saved more in my twenties, but I didn't really start planning until I hit 30. At least I had a public employee contributory system that I paid into... I've got less then $30k in that account that I need to roll over. I really should find 2 more years of public service in order to vest and secure health care in my old age. Otherwise, it's all going to be privately funded through my 401k and whatever else I manage to save. My wife doesn't have much of an idea about savings at all, so she's got some learning to do in that area.

Thanks for thinking of the wife. I had no choice; had to retire. Wife came very ill. They could not figure out what was causing it. She is unable to efficient ly absorb nutrients through the digestive tract. Got down to 85 pounds. Had to take FMLA for a few months and although she is slowly getting better, she can not be left alone for any period of time. I promised her I would never put her in a home so I left my job to take care of her. Lucky for me that in 1970 when enlisting I listened to my Drill SGT and set up a stock plan contributing of 50.00 per month. Then forgot all about it. It built up pretty good! Got lucky again and lost very little when all the market went south. Also have military retirement and my wife has Civil Service ret and SS. My SS will start in 9 months. So between my stock, savings and retirements I am stable although not rich. Hope she will improve enough to travel (via Motorhome) the U.S. on a photo expedition.

Hmm. My mom had a friend who suddenly came down with something that took her weight way down... let me ask what it was. My mom was concerned when my wife dropped to 85, but my wife never felt sick from it - I think it was stress in her family that brought her weight down. Anyway... I remember my mom saying her friend sought medical advice and they narrowed it down to something very weird... so much so that when my mom mentioned it to my wife, we laughed it off. I'll ask what it was.

Where I come from asking about someone's income was considered somewhat tacky.

Tacky we are!