PTP Ep. 003 | Gear Acquisition Syndrome

Sep 7

Hello and welcome Photo Therapy Podcast, brought to you by Oath Photography. I am your host Phillip Slaughter.

I created this show to have in depth discussions with fellow creators, talk about the photography industry, gear, news, and other topics of interest.

Today I want to talk about GAS or gear acquisition syndrome. It’s easy to get caught up in the hype of new gear, trust me I do all the time, I love waking up in the morning, grabbing a cup of coffee and checking the B&H deal zone, checking youtube for any new photo gear reviews, or reading through gear rumors. But, this has got to be tamed. Getting new gear has to be a need, not a want… for the most part.

So, as many of you already know I am a Sony Pro photographer, I have really loved the innovation and ground breaking systems they have produced. In fact my very first digital camera was a Sony. It was 2 mega pixels, and the most I could afford at the time was a 1 gb proprietary memory stick made by sony.

But as Sony quickly dominated the mirrorless full frame market they also were initially producing and releasing new cameras and lenses left and right. Most all of them were fantastic. But not all of them fit my needs or budget.

In the 1999 cinema classic the matrix, a wise old woman called the Oracle tells neo to “know thy self”. I think that is a fantastic place to start when it comes to gear acquisition. Before you purchase something, you need to know your self, know your budget, know your style, know your current gear limitations, and will this piece of gear help fill the gaps.

Another thing to think of before purchasing a new piece of gear is to look at your recent body of work and figure out if your photos need better quality gear or if your technique and style need some attention first. I highly recommend you invest in your training, before you invest in your gear.

When should you buy new gear or upgrade your current system. When your needs exceed the camera specs while fitting into your budget.

But first lets look at a few news topics in the photo industry.