... it's true I'm afraid by the gear because I know that my budget is one and one only, and once gone well it's gone. So I try to plan the best possible choice. That's all.
I understand you, and it's perfectly valid.
But the best possible choice is a very relative concept. The tech evolves at the speed of light and what's a great choice today becomes easily obsolete tomorrow.
People are saying that 4K is the near future, so I'm asking why some of the best prods and filmakers are currently using Arri Alexas today? (the Alexa isn't 4K)
The answer is very simple, because it's a great pro camera today.
You know, this is a culture of gear. Watch the uploaded movies. You don't read the subjects, for example "storm", no. the typical titles are "Canon-5D2-storm-low-light-with-Canon-FD-50mm-1.4-15.000-isos-magic-lantern"
This is not the content anymore, this is the gear that matters. Manufacturers couldn't be happier. They managed to create a never-satisfied spoiled childs consummers, totally gear orientated, that would buy the very latest if it will give them less noise at 500000 isos...then you see the pics, open an Albert Watson's gallery and compare...of course, something's wrong somewhere there.
Do we know, when we go to watch a movie on a theater, if it's been shoot on a Canon C300 with reduced team and so on? Do you imagine a movie title that would say instead of "Hugo", Canon C300 at 15.000 isos with Zeiss bla bla...Hugo"...ridiculous isn't it? Or why not going to a museum to see a Picasso painting and they would put: paint with 3" brush, pig hair, brand of the paintings, brand of the canvas, mood of the paintor, how many times he went to the toilets during the painting etc etc...but that's what is happening now.
The result of that "gear culture" are tons of absurd timelapses, absurd dolly shots, absurd 50.000 isos testings inundating the internet, and of course that puts a huge pressure to the kids (and the non-kids too...) to get the best possible gear. Of course this is all a mirage, but everybody bites on it.
The most ridiculous part of this is that everyone has become a tech, sorry, a tech no, it's not glamour enough, no no... a scientist of course. They seem to know a lot of things...there has never been as many scientits in this image industry...the world if full of knowledgable people testings sensors, using graphics, and writing tons of blogs on the topic.
So instead of putting yourself at work, you are worried: Have I made the good choice? Should I listen to this or that? And if I'm wrong what would happen? ...you're bloody trapped.
And the irony of all the story, is that most of the people are secretly wanting to be famous, but for what I've seen with the people who actually
are famous, is that they don't give a bloody damn interest with gear and specially, very specially, cameras, unless your aim is to become a tech or cameraman, that's another story.
If I've heard top photographers talking (very rarely) about optics, I've never heard just one who was talking about cameras, resolution, DR, and so on...what do they talk about then? Well, cast, talents, story, cutting, places, lightning, money...
So think about it. Maybe there is a relation, a direct relation with the fact that the people who really are doing great stuff, are doing great stuff because they focuss on the ingredients that are key for a stuff to be great...
If you manage to do good stuff with a GH2, a FS100 or whatever, you'll have more chance to grow, strategical people will look at you, than if you got 10 red cameras and do shitty stuff. Like we see quite a lot in the MF section. Big sensors, expensive equipments: fences, gardens and average models in general...a part from a few elite and good guys, the big gear has never transformed a donky into a racing horse.
Then periodically, the 35mm guys trying to demystify their big brothers because of jalousy. In a year there are about 4 of those war threads, and guess what? they are the most read. It tells you all.
So yes, it's important that you see the gear you can afford and try to plan the best purchases you can (bet on lenses, not cameras because cameras don't last long), but it's as important you also forget about all that and simply start to film, film and film until you fall of fatigue.