Reading mode: Light Dark

How many people buy the best equipment they can afford?

Go to last post
By the time your daughter is a sophomore in collage, your priority may be different.

A 1D class camera is big and heavy. Besides not being 1.6x, you may want to upgrade your lens to longer ones. Why not wait a month or two to see what the new 7D will be like.

BTW, most people can afford any one thing they like, but not everything they like. So, choose that one thing wisely.
 
Only my opinion, take it for what it is worth:

I would not take money out of my retirement to finance a camera when I was working and saving for retirement. Those dollars should be sacred! Makes me cringe when someone raids their retirement. And the tax penalties can be stiff for taking that money out early.

I am retired (doing so at age 54, now 65). All those hard years of saving paid off. I am still careful with my money, as a dollar saved is a dollar earned when you are retired. But now I can afford nicer equipment and if I want a new lens, like the 16-35 IS I bought last week, I just buy it (retirement should be fun).

I say save the money, use the heck out of the 7D, it is a good camera and gives good reach with your lens.

Dave
 
We have a digital picture frame in the living room churning through about a 1000 pictures from the last 35 years. I never hear "the image quality is not good enough".

what I hear is "look at her and how she climbed to the top of that swing at 3 years old. Or look at him in his first baseball uniform."

bottom line is memories are the person and the event. Not the IQ of the picture.

You and I want perfect IQ, and that is why we are willing to lug a big dSLR. But the average Joe is happy with his smart phone pix....because it is the memory that counts.

That is not to say that my family does not appreciate my pictures, but they appreciate that I captured an image to help the memory. Perfection does not matter as much as being there.

whvick
 
I personally wouldn't spend on the 1DX or even the 5D3 because you'd need the long lenses to shoot sports with either of those camera. A TC will rob you of light and f-stops. If you are itching to buy something new then buy the 1DMK4.

But, I would seriously consider hiring a pro or renting the equipment. Don' take this personally but whether you dip into a retirement account or even have to think about dipping into some money somewhere i.e. profits from a recent sale then that means you may not have indispensable income i.e write a check for $14K worth of equipment and not miss a beat.

BTW, I used to shoot my son's soccer games with a 70-300mm IS and a xti for both day and night games. The day pictures were very good but the night pictures were noisy as hell but to this day when I watch those, I still smile and the thought never crosses my mind that I wish I had this camera or that lens. The picture brings back memories and that means it achieved its purpose. Good luck! :-)
jhendrix said:
Maybe it sounds like a silly question.

As forum members, do you simply buy what you can afford or if you can afford more, do you settle for less?

My daughter is starting her sophomore year in high school next spring.

She plays soccer.

I'm trying to justify getting a 1DX by taking money out of my retirement savings.

I have a 7D. As the second half begins, always shooting around ISO 1600-3200 by the middle of the second half and 3200-6400 during the last 20 minutes. Using a Canon 70-200 2.8 v 2 with a 1.4 TC.

Are having her soccer memories preserved as images that look fantastic justifiable $$$ or is just OK good enough?

I can make a 7D ISO 3200 image look OK but that is about it. ISO 6400 is pretty much desperation. Sure you get something but not something to get excited about.

Anyone else been in this kind of situation?
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
Buying a 1Dx or not, especially the money will be from your retirement account is anyway a big decision for everyone. Maybe only buying real estate and automobiles are bigger.

My suggestion is you can rent a 1Dx to try, and you'd better rent a 5D3, too. To my knowledge, any FF cameras can improve the IQ under High ISO to another league. If the IQ of High ISO of 7D is Y, I guess 5D3 can make a 2Y and 1Dx will get 3Y. You will have 100% improvement between 5D3 and 7D and 50% improvement for 1Dx.

If you think it does improves and make you satisfy and feel justified for the cost, and if you can easily handle the weight, yes you need to upgrade, cause memories with families are priceless. Otherwise, you'd better go for 5D3, or buy the services from professionals.

Finally, I do suggest you try video. For sports, video is much better than stills.
 
whvick said:
We have a digital picture frame in the living room churning through about a 1000 pictures from the last 35 years. I never hear "the image quality is not good enough".

what I hear is "look at her and how she climbed to the top of that swing at 3 years old. Or look at him in his first baseball uniform."

bottom line is memories are the person and the event. Not the IQ of the picture.

You and I want perfect IQ, and that is why we are willing to lug a big dSLR. But the average Joe is happy with his smart phone pix....because it is the memory that counts.

That is not to say that my family does not appreciate my pictures, but they appreciate that I captured an image to help the memory. Perfection does not matter as much as being there.

whvick
Click to expand...
I totally agree. I was just looking over all of my travel pictures randomly in a Smugmug slideshow with family on the tv.

It was completely about the memories. I couldn't remember, or tell, which camera I was using, even though I am full frame now.

Raiding a retirement fund for more camera than you need, I just wouldn't do it. And you are looking at upgrading your lenses as well to get the reach.Either wait for the next 7D or go for a 5DIII. Even a 6D should be enough. You will not remember what camera you used 10 years from now, when you look at the pics, and when that $8K in the retirement fund has almost doubled.

Incidentally, I am now retiring comfortably, and I still bought a 6D last year, because it was plenty of camera for my needs.
 
stratobill said:
whvick said:
We have a digital picture frame in the living room churning through about a 1000 pictures from the last 35 years. I never hear "the image quality is not good enough".

what I hear is "look at her and how she climbed to the top of that swing at 3 years old. Or look at him in his first baseball uniform."

bottom line is memories are the person and the event. Not the IQ of the picture.

You and I want perfect IQ, and that is why we are willing to lug a big dSLR. But the average Joe is happy with his smart phone pix....because it is the memory that counts.

That is not to say that my family does not appreciate my pictures, but they appreciate that I captured an image to help the memory. Perfection does not matter as much as being there.

whvick
Click to expand...
I totally agree. I was just looking over all of my travel pictures randomly in a Smugmug slideshow with family on the tv.

It was completely about the memories. I couldn't remember, or tell, which camera I was using, even though I am full frame now.

Raiding a retirement fund for more camera than you need, I just wouldn't do it. And you are looking at upgrading your lenses as well to get the reach.Either wait for the next 7D or go for a 5DIII. Even a 6D should be enough. You will not remember what camera you used 10 years from now, when you look at the pics, and when that $8K in the retirement fund has almost doubled.

Incidentally, I am now retiring comfortably, and I still bought a 6D last year, because it was plenty of camera for my needs.
Click to expand...
i totally disagree, you probably have some memory issue! i remember photos that i have taken with my 5D and love them. i have taken some of my best shots with my 5D. i still have my 5D and won't part with it for any reason.

my idea is: if you are retired and have descent amount of money saved, why not a 1Dx, we are not going to get younger. i hate to regret some day why i didn't buy a 1Dx. of course, i am not suggesting to go overboard and break the bank ;-) you can't even get a descent used car for the price of a 1Dx. photography is my passion so why not a 1Dx, so i went ahead and got one without any regret and i love it. it complements my 1dmk4 perfectly. these 2 cameras get me out of the house and show me that i am part of the nature by going outdoors. now that i am retired, i have the opportunity to travel and create photos that i'll enjoy for the last of my life. enough said ;-)

cheerz.
 
rebel99 said:
stratobill said:
whvick said:
We have a digital picture frame in the living room churning through about a 1000 pictures from the last 35 years. I never hear "the image quality is not good enough".

what I hear is "look at her and how she climbed to the top of that swing at 3 years old. Or look at him in his first baseball uniform."

bottom line is memories are the person and the event. Not the IQ of the picture.

You and I want perfect IQ, and that is why we are willing to lug a big dSLR. But the average Joe is happy with his smart phone pix....because it is the memory that counts.

That is not to say that my family does not appreciate my pictures, but they appreciate that I captured an image to help the memory. Perfection does not matter as much as being there.

whvick
Click to expand...
I totally agree. I was just looking over all of my travel pictures randomly in a Smugmug slideshow with family on the tv.

It was completely about the memories. I couldn't remember, or tell, which camera I was using, even though I am full frame now.

Raiding a retirement fund for more camera than you need, I just wouldn't do it. And you are looking at upgrading your lenses as well to get the reach.Either wait for the next 7D or go for a 5DIII. Even a 6D should be enough. You will not remember what camera you used 10 years from now, when you look at the pics, and when that $8K in the retirement fund has almost doubled.

Incidentally, I am now retiring comfortably, and I still bought a 6D last year, because it was plenty of camera for my needs.
Click to expand...
i totally disagree, you probably have some memory issue! i remember photos that i have taken with my 5D and love them. i have taken some of my best shots with my 5D. i still have my 5D and won't part with it for any reason.

my idea is: if you are retired and have descent amount of money saved, why not a 1Dx, we are not going to get younger. i hate to regret some day why i didn't buy a 1Dx. of course, i am not suggesting to go overboard and break the bank ;-) you can't even get a descent used car for the price of a 1Dx. photography is my passion so why not a 1Dx, so i went ahead and got one without any regret and i love it. it complements my 1dmk4 perfectly. these 2 cameras get me out of the house and show me that i am part of the nature by going outdoors. now that i am retired, i have the opportunity to travel and create photos that i'll enjoy for the last of my life. enough said ;-)

cheerz.
Click to expand...
Nope, no money issues here, but the OP says he wants to raid his retirement fund, so he does have money issues.
 
stratobill said:
Nope, no money issues here, but the OP says he wants to raid his retirement fund, so he does have money issues.
Click to expand...
If he has to borrow from his retirement to pay for it, he can not afford it.

So whether people buy the best they can afford, doesn't come into play on his purchasing the 1D X. He simply can't afford it.
 
Nope I'm quite frugal in both cost and carry. I have a 6D, 50mm f1.4, 85mm 1.8, and the 200mm f2.8 II prime.

I can afford the entire line-up if I wanted...but I wouldn't be able to use it for what its worth. I can afford the entire line-up mostly because I don't go through life buying the best I can afford in everything I could buy. Waited for the right moment to buy my house, and didn't simply buy the best house I could afford ASAP, that right there could be the difference between negative equity and equity.

I'm in my mid 30's and in my non-retirement brokerage accounts on a single good day can 'earn' a 70-200 f2.8 IS II. Course on a bad day my losses can eclipse the cost of my entire camera system!

I've actually bought and sold gear a lot less recently cause there is a ton of steam lost in the camera industry and pre-owned sales. Everything used to be a free rental, now every choice you stick with it unless you want to waste a lot of time and money craigslisting. And time spent craigslisting for buying and selling gear is time wasted for actual investments. I used to craigslist a lot cause I could get such good deals, now they are slim pickings with lots of spam.

Now I can't even buy a mirrorless camera unless its already liquidated and firesold...its like a self-fulfilling prophecy where no one really wants to buy it until its already failed in the market place and is sold for ridiculously cheap.

By the time my kids play sports I will be able to afford the best sports camera...but by that time that might just be a cheap Sony E-mount mirrorless...who knows?

There are plenty of sports now that I'm sure an A6000 + 70-200 f4 G would 'suffice', so how good will the A10k be 4 years down the road?
 
Last edited:
TTMartin said:
TTMartin said:
Nope, no money issues here, but the OP says he wants to raid his retirement fund, so he does have money issues.
Click to expand...
If he has to borrow from his retirement to pay for it, he can not afford it.

So whether people buy the best they can afford, doesn't come into play on his purchasing the 1D X. He simply can't afford it.
Click to expand...
 
Family pictures are all about the memories . Technical aspects really don't come into it at all.

Pro gear for a high schooler is a rich man's game.

On top of that your daughter and her family won't care nearly as much as you do.

Taking money out of a retirement account to pay for it all? No freaking way.

--

¡Viva la Resolución!
www.flickr.com

David Francis Panno

Explore David Francis Panno’s 1,779 photos on Flickr!
www.flickr.com www.flickr.com

Flickriver: David F. Panno's most interesting photos

Flickriver - view images as a 'river of photos' and more...
www.flickriver.com www.flickriver.com
On Flickriver chose "Scale to Fit Screen" (upper left) for highest resolution.
 
Timbukto said:
Nope I'm quite frugal in both cost and carry. I have a 6D, 50mm f1.4, 85mm 1.8, and the 200mm f2.8 II prime.

I can afford the entire line-up if I wanted...but I wouldn't be able to use it for what its worth. I can afford the entire line-up mostly because I don't go through life buying the best I can afford in everything I could buy. Waited for the right moment to buy my house, and didn't simply buy the best house I could afford ASAP, that right there could be the difference between negative equity and equity.

I'm in my mid 30's and in my non-retirement brokerage accounts on a single good day can 'earn' a 70-200 f2.8 IS II. Course on a bad day my losses can eclipse the cost of my entire camera system!

I've actually bought and sold gear a lot less recently cause there is a ton of steam lost in the camera industry and pre-owned sales. Everything used to be a free rental, now every choice you stick with it unless you want to waste a lot of time and money craigslisting. And time spent craigslisting for buying and selling gear is time wasted for actual investments. I used to craigslist a lot cause I could get such good deals, now they are slim pickings with lots of spam.

Now I can't even buy a mirrorless camera unless its already liquidated and firesold...its like a self-fulfilling prophecy where no one really wants to buy it until its already failed in the market place and is sold for ridiculously cheap.

By the time my kids play sports I will be able to afford the best sports camera...but by that time that might just be a cheap Sony E-mount mirrorless...who knows?

There are plenty of sports now that I'm sure an A6000 + 70-200 f4 G would 'suffice', so how good will the A10k be 4 years down the road?
Click to expand...
so, i think there are 2 sides to this question. 1, whether one can afford the best camera gear, and the 2, this is more philosophical, when you are retired one really doesn't have much time, considering that 10 years go by like blink of an eye (my own experience). so why not enjoy something that gives you much appreciation and joy. i purchased my 1Dx without breaking the bank knowing and reasoning that it is expensive. i also purchased a canon 300 f2.8II and a 600 f4.0II, knowing that i can sell back those 2 at purchasing price any time if i need money desperately. again, this doesn't mean to break the bank and go beyond the sound logic and reason. i hope you understand what i am trying to say ;-)

cheerz.
 
Today I tried out a Pentax 645Z. Gorgeous viewfinder. Soft shutter. Wonderful deep grip. And files that you can zoom in forever. And the adjustable screen is superb. The thing felt awesome in hand. I may buy one.

Other times I may spend only a little on a backup DsLR. Not always buying the best....and rarely ever need to.

But oh that Pentax was nice to try.
 
Dave Luttmann said:
Today I tried out a Pentax 645Z. Gorgeous viewfinder. Soft shutter. Wonderful deep grip. And files that you can zoom in forever. And the adjustable screen is superb. The thing felt awesome in hand. I may buy one.

Other times I may spend only a little on a backup DsLR. Not always buying the best....and rarely ever need to.

But oh that Pentax was nice to try.
Click to expand...
I would like one also, but then I would have to upgrade my computer to handle those files. How big for a raw file from that beauty?

Did you ever find out about the 5Dc cinema on the other thread...I did not see your reply?

was it really the C 300?

Thanks

whvick
 
Dave Luttmann said:
Today I tried out a Pentax 645Z. Gorgeous viewfinder. Soft shutter. Wonderful deep grip. And files that you can zoom in forever. And the adjustable screen is superb. The thing felt awesome in hand. I may buy one.

Other times I may spend only a little on a backup DsLR. Not always buying the best....and rarely ever need to.

But oh that Pentax was nice to try.
Click to expand...
Hi Dave, please do buy one and show us some pics comparing with your D800. :)

I have been thinking if I really want to go real high MP then why not a MF?
 
Even if the budget was unlimited ...... There are more things in life that are important to me (but that's of course a personal thing).
 
You know, in the end the type of photos that are usually important to people are the ones with family and/or friends in the picture - not of an activity the person did for a few years very early in his/her life. I would not pull $7500' from savings to get a few action shots.

Remember that if you did, you'd also need at least a 300 f/4 to go along with it. You'd waste that $7500 (price including tax) to use it with a teleconverter.
 
aftab said:
Dave Luttmann said:
Today I tried out a Pentax 645Z. Gorgeous viewfinder. Soft shutter. Wonderful deep grip. And files that you can zoom in forever. And the adjustable screen is superb. The thing felt awesome in hand. I may buy one.

Other times I may spend only a little on a backup DsLR. Not always buying the best....and rarely ever need to.

But oh that Pentax was nice to try.
Click to expand...
Hi Dave, please do buy one and show us some pics comparing with your D800. :)

I have been thinking if I really want to go real high MP then why not a MF?
Click to expand...
 
[No message]
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Dick Dastardly
The best ZV-1 review(part 2)
Replies
8
Views
3K
tbcass
tbcass
Truman Prevatt
GFX100RF - a review of RAW samples
Replies
14
Views
232
barkleytom
B
lokatz
Noise reduction: Is it worth it? How much improvement?
2 3
Replies
44
Views
3K
Breakfastographer
B
H
One month with GFX100RF
4 5 6
Replies
116
Views
2K
jhunna
J
Vasilis Delis
Help a newcomer with superzoom gear, Nikon/Lumix/Sony
Replies
15
Views
84
p900learner
p900learner

Keyboard shortcuts

f
Forum
m
My threads
Mobile site
About
Editorial content
Cameras & Lenses
Community
All content, design, and layout are Copyright © 1998–2025 Digital Photography Review All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction in whole or part in any form or medium without specific written permission is prohibited.
When you use DPReview links to buy products, the site may earn a commission.
©GPS Media - Guides, Products, Services.
Back
Top