Comments on: I wish I’d known.

By: Stephen

Stephen — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 10:36:55 +0000

Any recommendations for renting? (shipping in Canada) Renting would be great option but from what I’ve seen, not available unless you live in a major Canadian city or willing to pay very high shipping costs.

By: AJ Coots

AJ Coots — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 04:18:59 +0000

Another great thing about renting is the rental guys usually really know their stuff and they can turn you on to great equipment that wouldn’t have occurred to you.
And then– because you haven’t tied up all your resources in buying– you have the $ to try a whole variety of equipment and explore! It’s a lot of fun and good for breaking out of creative ruts. I.e., you can rent that $2000.00 85/1.2 and go night shooting or take out a super macro lens for the weekend and shoot ants. It’s like having a whole arsenal at your disposal rather than just the one or two (or three or four) pieces of nice glass that your credit limit will allow at one go.

By: AJ Coots

AJ Coots — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 04:13:14 +0000

Hey David,
This is very well written and great advice. I love seeing you advocate this style of shooting. Would make a great chapter in your next book!

For a whole year before I bought my 5D, I shot with an Olympus SP-350 ( with manual settings ) and just rented a 5D whenever I needed it for a portrait session. I still have some favorite images in my portfolio that were shot experimenting with that little olympus camera and, to this day, I’m grateful for the year of waiting and what it taught me about what the equipment can do and what I can do myself.

By: Mark

Mark — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 19:29:48 +0000

Photography is not my business. It is hard for me to justify new equipment for marginal gains. Most of the stuff I buy now are accessory type stuff that I save up for. I also try to stay at least one generation behind. I don’t need the latest and greatest, I need to learn the craft part of the equipment.

By: Jason

Jason — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 15:34:41 +0000

Great post here. Lots of common sense, that unless said, may not occur to someone thinking of going into photography business. Along the same lines, I did a spreadsheet a while back that gives an idea of how to crunch the numbers, so to speak. Feel free to browse at your leisure:

http://www.canonblogger.com/2008/11/24/the-cost-of-doing-business/

By: JVL

JVL — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 14:21:13 +0000

I went trailing edge. Got a 1DMKII after my rebel XT (that’s a JUMP!) but it certainly wasn’t new – it was affordable and really helped me step up my game with all those great buttons on the outside instead of burried inside. It takes great, salable photos and does a bunch of other junk I’ve barely had the chance to test.

It also taught me where I want to go – I do better with large prints, portraits, I’m not much of a sports shooter (using a sports camera) – so maybe I do need (read: want) more resolution (or maybe some software like Genuine fractals will do the trick for a fraction of the cost).

Weigh your options, distinguish between want and need (really – do we NEED anything?) and find friends with better gear than you – then BORROW IT! Right now I’m that friend – and I’m fine with it – but it’s certainly cost me thousands more than it’ll cost you.

By: Weekend Perusing: Buy Some Art! | Your Photo Tips

Weekend Perusing: Buy Some Art! | Your Photo Tips — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 11:46:39 +0000

[...] at PixelatedImage Blog tells us all How Not To Be A MORON when it comes to running a photography business. I could have used some of that advice a few years [...]

By: Sean

Sean — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 03:39:51 +0000

Yet again a wonderful article.

I was tempted to buy a new lens (an expensive one) just for an upcoming and small job. It would take me about 10 jobs to get the money back on the investment if I bought it but I don’t have any future jobs lined up. But I still found myself trying to convince myself that I needed it! I’m sure it’s some kind of sickness.

Needless to say, I’m going to rent it instead.

By: Bob Davies

Bob Davies — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 01:03:52 +0000

Great advice David thanks
I’ve only recently started down this path, but I’ve already started to learn that it’s organisation that’ll grease the wheels and ensure the creativity can flow when IT wants to
Cheers
Bob

By: Serge Van Cauwenbergh

Serge Van Cauwenbergh — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 19:21:23 +0000

This article reminds me of your motto: gear is good, vision is better. Earlier this week I had the change of buying a used Hasselblad digital back for a considerable “low” price. After some thought and asking advice from a friend of mine, I decided not to buy the digital back because sometimes I’m still too much focused on gear while this digital back won’t make me a better photographer at once. So I should focus more on the development of my personal vision, using the gear I already have at this moment. And today I read your article and it’s very complementary to the decision I made.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts!