i am directing this question to hobbyists purely. how do you justified spending the money on the gears and accessories? i always think that i do not make a living from it like a pro, so it is not justified to spend so much on it.

to all hobbyist, what makes you splash on L series lens for example, and whatnot.. it is not an investment but splurge because you will not be able to earn $$ back from it..

so are you purely a tech junkie or someone who trully loves photography who can go on with just 18-55 and 70-200mm kit lens ?

http://photographylife.com/top-photography...stakes-to-avoid
Have a read on this.

you make money already up to you how you want to spend.

if no money, please don't spend on lenses and ended up eating grass for months to come.

Same goes to those mid life crisis uncles who bought a Nissan GTR and hardly drive above 160.

Cheers and chill.............

Know your limits

Off topic.. 70-200 is definitely not a kit lens..

A 70-200 is a kit lens, if you buy it as part of a kit

back to topic:

Hobbyists spend their money on a hobby. A hobby by definition is an activity that is done for fun. So, if a person's idea of fun is buying a big lens and go shoot crap with it, then his/her reasons are just that: they want to have fun. If they have fun with that lens, their purchase is justified.

But if you buy a piece of expensive equipment and you DON'T have fun with it due to worrying about the cost, then the purchase may not be so worth it.

Maybe we can call it ROF: Return On Fun?

How much ROF have you had with your equipment?

Sorry, the above may not have answered the TS punya question.

Last year a Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 only rm6300, now is selling rm6950. Seller said is due to currency issue. Good excuse by them. So this extra rm600 hold me back

If you keep on shooting, sooner or later you will want better lens to replace your kit lens.
There is always cheaper lens available, no need to go for expensive lenses.
I personally like Sigma and Samyang lens, very decent and affordable.

How hobbyists buy gear depends what's going on their mind.

Some buy to improve situations/convenience like buying another flash gun or a travel light graphite tripod.

Some would buy really wide apertures and maybe even FF to deal with lowlight because they hate setting up lighting or using flash.

Some are just collectors and drool on their collection of Canon L, Zeiss, Leica lens collection.

Some are just addicts and suffer from GAS.

And some are just darn rich and use a Canon 5Dmk3 for travel. Or a Canon 1dx just to make sure they don't miss a shot of their children running in a park.

I hv the bad habit of buying something n regret it immediately after paying the price

So this became my phobia and now i procrastinate when i want to buy something

Analyze

Survey

Sleep over it for months

Delayed gratification

List down whether it is "need" or "want"

Thats me

My more expensive hobby is traveling

Photography is the collateral damage

I used to rush n buy 2 cameras in two different occasions before my traveling

Err... Wait... Actually 4 times

If you can afford it and enjoy using good gears or feels good, then why not?

I think that investing in higher end gear actually is a better choice compared to cheaper ones. Easier to sell as 2nd hand since they hold their value well compared to entry level gears, more durable and performs better.

Again, only if you can afford and feel happy with the purchase.

lenses are best, you can buy and sell off with decent value.

can't say the same for cars and computer stuff (tech stuff in general) and stuff like travel and dining, that one you can't even sell off for money.

Good lens will hold its value even for 10 years and only makes you lost 1 or 2k when you want to sell it.

People never complain when they lost like 1k by trading in their smart phones every few years

depend on you, if you afford the gears, and you think that's worth, nth wrong, you spend the $$, as a reward u get the satisfaction,

jz dun be like this can already


for me, i still happy with my Tamron 17-50mm after so many years (5 years if not mistaken).

i love your answer

very true though. it's quite an expensive hobby, and we definitely wont see a ROI unless we shoot professionally. you made ur own money, its up to you how to spend it.

i wont be surprised if there are pros out there using low end DSLRs with kit lens. n there a definitely those out there with premium glass and flagship DSLRs but only use them once a month during family outings etc.

Sometime shooting commercially also won't see ROI, unless you are very lucky to be able to charge good rates, or your gear last long enough, or you don't refresh your gear that frequent.

This post has been edited by Maniac: Oct 18 2014, 10:48 AM

In Chinese:

工欲善其事，必先利其器

I means, if you want to be good at something, you must first have a sharp tool.

So, whether you are hobbyist or pro, having a better tools do gives you the advantage.

This post has been edited by hidden830726: Oct 18 2014, 03:58 PM

its like, you need to eat, going to this hotel spend rm80 for a steak worth it or not. or you can spend rm20 at kopitiam economy westernfood stall.

the value is up to you, many ppl have megatrazillion of own point of view. all will end up contradicting each other.

if you treat it as hobby, its the journey that make it a hobby, not the ending.

Skill make blunt tool sharper then sharpest knife. XD JK JK