Received by Christmas Bonus. Help me spend it...

citrinella wrote in post #2333512
If you don't _know_ what you need - do you really need anything ?

Mike.

This is more about getting opinions on what I could "use" rather than what I really "need". Since this is a hobby, I don't "need" anything else. But then I didn't "need" the other stuff I got either...

If I were you, I'd first and foremost, get a good tripod and head.

Outside of that, I'd probably invest in Phase One for raw processing. Its far superior to anything else I've tried. Its about twice the speed of CS2 (which I also have and use), has a better workflow, much better sharpening, and is usually sufficient by itself. I only use CS2 for the extra processing sometimes needed.

Give the rest to your wife for the general household's use. You've got a great outfit and don't seem to need anything else.

Give a third to savings, a third to wife and a third to yourself. You can still get yourself something nice and show her your appreciation as well for her understanding. Believe, I have the same situation. You will get another bonus some day.

Seriously, junk the tokina bottle end, get an ultra wiiiiide L on a 30d, and a300 f4 L. Anything over blow on something you don't need.

bildeb0rg wrote in post #2335780
Seriously, junk the tokina bottle end, get an ultra wiiiiide L on a 30d, and a300 f4 L. Anything over blow on something you don't need.

The Tokina is one of my best lenses, believe it or not. Not an "L" but darn close. And I don't quite understand your last sentence. I think it has something to do with buying cocaine though...

JNunn wrote in post #2334231
If I were you, I'd first and foremost, get a good tripod and head.

Ditto. Get some nice carbon fiber legs or something like. Boy did I get tired of hauling my old aluminium Bogen around.

Also, I do love my Acra-Swiss Ultimate Ballhead.

I'd say second body(30d) and spend the rest on the wife, you said you couldn't get away for a vacation but I'm sure you can take her out for a nice night out on the town. Make her feel special, simply for no reason at all.

Benandbobbi wrote in post #2336117
The Tokina is one of my best lenses, believe it or not. Not an "L" but darn close. And I don't quite understand your last sentence. I think it has something to do with buying cocaine though...

No, not "charlie", your the wrong side of the pond. Or already a user if you automatically make the association. The term "to blow" in England means to spend unwisely. be wastefull, not utilise to it's full potential. How did you get this bonus again???

How about saving some of the money and investing it. Depending on how old you are, that could end up becoming a lot more later. Not very fun, maybe.

Benandbobbi wrote in post #2333623
This is more about getting opinions on what I could "use" rather than what I really "need". Since this is a hobby, I don't "need" anything else. But then I didn't "need" the other stuff I got either...

Sorry, that wasn't really my point. Hope I can put it better

If there were something you should be considering - you would probably have wished you had it by now. What do you feel has been missing / inadequate when you have reached in your bag ? You're original post hinted at a tripod.

Does that make sense ?

Mike.

Should you decide to give the money to your Wife, not a bad idea, I would suggest that you consider buying her something nice a glittery at one of the local finer jewelery stores. Now considering that I am a jeweler this might be considered self serving, but I have observed that glitter gets better appreciation than cash in many cases.

Wayne

bildeb0rg wrote in post #2337567
No, not "charlie", your the wrong side of the pond. Or already a user if you automatically make the association. The term "to blow" in England means to spend unwisely. be wastefull, not utilise to it's full potential. How did you get this bonus again???

Before you attempt to chastise others for their presumed ignorance regarding geographically-based English language slang, you might want to give your posts a second look. That said, since it has already been submitted, let's take a look at this one together.
Your first "sentence" isn't really sentence at all, but I'll attempt to understand it, anyway. The word "your" is a possessive pronoun, my friend. I believe you meant to actually use the word, "you're" which is obviously a contraction of "you" and "are". Assuming this is correct, you also left off the word "on". So, what I believe you meant to say is that I was located on the "wrong" side of the Atlantic Ocean. This assumes there is a correct side upon which to be located, which of course we all know isn't really the case. Sadly, your next “sentence” isn't a sentence either. That's "0 for 2" there, mate. A sentence, regardless of which "side of the pond" you reside, needs at least a subject and verb to be complete and thusly retain a reasonable chance at being understood. So, let's move on to sentence number 3, which uncharacteristically is both a complete sentence and comprehendable. You did pretty well with that one, so let's move on. Unfortunately, your attempt in sentence 4 illustrates that you once again lost a little focus. We should always begin a sentence with a capital letter. Further, I wouldn't normally call attention to your misspellings, but in this case there are simply too many, too close together for me to ignore. The words you are searching for are "wasteful" rather than "wastefull", "utilize", rather than "utilise" and "its" rather than "it's". Technically, the word "it's" was not misspelled, but rather misused. The word "It's" is yet another contraction---of "it" and "is". The word "its" should only be used to show possession. So, where are we? That's right, "1-4" as we approach the last sentence. Well, mate, I didn't get the bonus "again". I only earned one bonus (singular) this year. Should I assume you meant to use the word, "anyway", rather than the word "again"? If that's really what you meant to say, then I can best answer it like this: I earned my bonus by assisting people achieve more with less--much like I'm attempting to do in this post, really.

I do sincerely appreciate your attempt to help me better understand some of those pesky differences we sometimes encounter while attempting to use a common language.

citrinella wrote in post #2338138
Sorry, that wasn't really my point. Hope I can put it better

If there were something you should be considering - you would probably have wished you had it by now. What do you feel has been missing / inadequate when you have reached in your bag ? You're original post hinted at a tripod.

Does that make sense ?

Mike.

Makes perfect sense. I think a 300mm 2.8 and a decent tripod would both be nice to have.

This has been such an interesting thread. Besides the basic suggestions, people are taking a step back and considering the gear and really asking about spending that kind of money. Very interesting. As I collect my gear, adding up to some serious equipment, I have to wonder if I need to scale back and enjoy what I have. Reading some of the gear lists here, a newbie may get the feeling we're all pros. But I have to say, I'm not quite a collector like Dante or Belmondo, but I think we can get caught up in expensive gear vs. useful gear.

SuzyView wrote in post #2338351
This has been such an interesting thread. Besides the basic suggestions, people are taking a step back and considering the gear and really asking about spending that kind of money. Very interesting. As I collect my gear, adding up to some serious equipment, I have to wonder if I need to scale back and enjoy what I have. Reading some of the gear lists here, a newbie may get the feeling we're all pros. But I have to say, I'm not quite a collector like Dante or Belmondo, but I think we can get caught up in expensive gear vs. useful gear.

Well said. That is certainly one of the main things I've learned through this post!