Financial marked being the way it is and my wife inspiration made us sit down and look at hard numbers that we had spend on digital equipment ( mostly MFD ) in the past 5 years and compare one year depreciation on each investment from the point of purchase to the point of sale or upgrade. In just 60 months we wasted ( because there is no better expression ) $105,000. That is the amount that still would be in our packet if we bought exactly the same equipment but just a year later. When money when rolling in it seemed like it really did not matter but now when market bottom down it would be nice to have it.
I think I got enough couple months ago when less than a month after I bought my new Leaf AFI 7, the exact camera sold on Ebay for $12,600 with 80mm AFD from Calumet demo with 340 clicks on it.
Sickening. MFD does not have to be expansive it is just us suckers who have to have the new toys instead of a first class trip around the world with the whole family.
You can trust me that the quality of an image from Ebay's $9500 Aptus 75 is identical as from $35,000 AFI7 II and yes I have thousands of images to prove it.
I promised myself that from now on I will be wiser ( at least until real estate market picks up LOL )
Andre
Don't hold your breath as the market (Realestate) aint getting better any time soon.
As long as guys keep paying big $$$ for MFDB's the companies will keep ripping us off.
I would NEVER myself buy any MFDB new. Just like I would not buy a NEW car. Drive it off the lot and it is worth many $$$$ LESS. That is known to come with new car sells.
I bought my P30 used with cameras and got a pretty good deal and even so those prices dropped Heavily after my purchase.
Also about 2 months before the crisis started I posted a thread asking how many have been affected by the crisis so far and a lot of guys jumped in saying what crisis like smart asses. Now they know what I was talking about.
I hear in New York you can hear a Pin drop. Nothing really going on there. Just a bunch of Big photographers with BIG expenses who will be going down the pipes really fast as New York is not cheap!!!
Luckily where I live things have picked up a little and thank gosh we rely more on China than the US as China is supposed Kicking ass right now...:+}
I feel for you and agree when the $$$ is rolling in we get a little high and pay what ever thinking it will keep rolling in.
Not anymore. Every one of my purchases have been well thought out after the crisis started for us here about in September 2008.
I can garantee you my MF days are over. Unless they come out with something in the 30-50 megapixel range, which is still over kill (for my work) and has leaf shutter lens', big LCD screen and Light weight and under 10,000us$. Forget it!
There nothing that cannot be done with the current 5DII if you ask me. and it cost 2600.00
Argue it all you want but if your not printing HUGE there is NO difference, period! all the rest is Rep hype BS.
Like the current P60 BS if you ask me. WHo the hell is going to pay that much in these times for some that looks like the original back from the 90's?
It is all marketing BS which I admit I do the same making SHITTY clothing look good by using good light and pretty models....
Sounds like you bought a lot of stuff like a lot of us with out thinking if you "really" needed it or "wanted it... that is the great part of life.
Do you need it or want it.
A can garantee you do not "need" much.
This crisis is good in one way, for me atleast. It has made me re think a lot of things and also opened my mind to other aspects of photography.
I think it was einstein? who said that crisis brings growth and forces people to be more creative with new ideas.
These Big Back manufacturers have been pulling the wool over your eyes for a long time!!!
Snook