Making It Worth It
For quite some time now, I've been interested in getting a proper camera. It's been decades honestly, yet for some reason I still haven't pulled the trigger. I know part of it has to do with the cost. I just haven't been able to justify spending so much money on something I might only use occasionally.
I remember growing up, cameras were a pretty normal piece of life for us. My dad is a freelance photographer and he had a very nice Nikon F3 and a Mamiya RB (67 probably) medium format portrait camera that he used for things like weddings and senior photos.
Although he did a variety of formal occasions, his real passion is nature photography and I think it is safe to say the apple hasn't fallen too far from the tree when it comes to me. Though I never spent as much time in our darkroom with him as my sister did, I still look back fondly on those days, the smells, sights, and sounds still very present in my memories.
I remember at one point my dad sold his medium format camera and bought new cameras for all of us with the proceeds. My mom and sister both got Nikon camera bodies where you could swap out the lenses and I got a Nikon fixed focus point and shoot camera (all film of course!).
Kind of a let down, but looking back now, I was probably too young to handle a full feature camera anyway. Perhaps that is part of the reason I've wanted a proper camera for so long. I somehow feel like I missed the experience when I was younger...
I claimed that cost was one of the reasons I haven't pulled the trigger yet on a DSLR or one of the newer mirrorless cameras, but I also think part of it is the fact that I don't necessarily want to be "that guy". You know the one, shows up at every family function or sporting event with that massive camera dangling around his neck.
The obligatory exaggerated zoom lens attached to the front like they are taking photos for Sports Illustrated or something like that.
Sorry, no offense to the photographers out there. Heck, my dad was/is "that guy" for as long as I can remember!
With the recent craziness that happened with HIVE, I started thinking about my time here.
If HIVE were to go to zero, could I say it was honestly worth it.
I'd like to think yes on a philosophical level, but in a more tangible world, I don't know if that is true. It got me thinking about ways I could say "at least I got (fill in the blank) out of this". I thought about users like @steevc who bought a guitar a long time ago with his earnings from HIVE. I really don't want to power down any of my HIVE right now, but then I got thinking about my HBD.
What if I saved up my HBD for a fixed amount of time, and then after that I moved it off chain to buy a new camera. Would that kill my KE? Would it take forever? Would it even be possible? It seems that electronics retailer New Egg accepts BitPay which I have used a couple times in the past.
With the "how" out of the way, I suddenly found myself tackling the "why".
I didn't think it would be very hard to convince @mrsbozz about my plan given the fact that I wouldn't be touching our regular finances to accomplish it. However, when I brought it up to her, she still had a lot of questions. More than I anticipated, and it suddenly gave me pause. The fact is, my Pixel 8 Pro takes some pretty amazing photos. In fact, all the photos in this post were taken this past summer with that phone.
There is a lot to be said for convenience, and do I really want to trade that just to fulfil some childhood whim? Although unexpected, I don't fault my wife for questioning me. If I was going to pull money out of HIVE, I am sure there are plenty of other things she would love to see it go towards. A camera just seemed like something tangible I could say "all that time blogging got me this".
Just for fun, let's say I pull the trigger and do it. Any recommendations? I'm looking to spend right around $1000 for the camera body and maybe a couple decent lenses. Trust me, I know that might be a tough call with high end bodies alone running over $2000, but remember, I'm technically just an amatuer. Plus, I don't necessarily want to be "that guy" :).
I was looking at a couple offerings from Pentax and Olympus, though I used to have an old Fuji camera that took some fantastic photos. Of course I am not opposed to the popular brands like Nikon and Canon, but I was hoping to find something more unique.
Of course, this might all be for naught, but as a tech geek, I enjoy researching stuff and dreaming.
I'm sure many of you can relate.
Truthfully, picking a brand is probably the easy part. The hardest part is convincing myself it is worth it.
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Hive cannot really go to zero, as long as there's at least a single user and working witness nodes. Anyway, it must be fun in the first place, just like any other social network. People have to entertain themselves, and then perhaps earn a dime for their content. Using Hive just with the I-need-to-earn-money mindset is just a road to perdition, and we shall not really promote it this way anyway.
I'm having a blast here, and I've met a bunch of amazing people from all over the globe on events in various countries. And that is quite something ;)
I started here with the intent of making money, but I quickly realized that wasn't very realistic. I stay because I enjoy it and it has become a nice hobby for me. That being said, I'd like to think one day I can have something tangible to show for it.
I'm not against people spending their earnings and I have done so a few times. We should be able to treat ourselves and some people just need to pay the bills. I don't think you would dent your KE for this.
I don't know much about cameras, but I know we have lots of keen photographers here. There may be communities to reach more of them. My dad likes photography and he's had various cameras. I just tend to take snaps, mostly with my phone. I have a bridge camera with a decent zoom if I want to capture some nature.
My bridge camera was really good. It's still in my office somewhere. I'm still on the fence about this. Maybe I am actually thinking too small and I need to do something bigger that my wife will be on board with. I don't know.
It seems obvious to me you already get something out of Hive ;) Otherwise you wouldn't be here. But I definitely get the desire to get something tangible out of it. When BTC skyrocketed, what was it, 8 years ago?, I funded a trip for myself to Milan out of money I got blogging on ye olden platform. Was hella proud of myself. I mean, I was 18 I think, so the knowledge I'd earned my travel money doing my favorite thing was hugely rewarding.
If you resonate with the idea of getting a camera, then why not? :)
That is pretty cool you were able to do that. I was able to take advantage of the NFT craze on another platform and take out some funds to eliminate the debt my wife and I had, but I'd still like to be able to point to something as having come from HIVE. Something physical anyway!
I’ve been wanting to get a camera too but every time I see the price, I can’t quite convince myself I need one, especially since my phone already takes great photos and videos, plus I’ve got my DJI Osmo Pocket 3. But still… a camera is a camera, right? That alone feels like a good enough reason to get one! I just can’t fully justify it unless I can make some money from it too 😅 Btw, Pixel takes great photos!!
And I’d say just take a bit from your savings and don’t use up all your stock 😁 less regret that way if ever! hahahaha
I’ve been eyeing the Canon G7 X Mark III and the Sony RX100 VII! you might want to check those out too :)
!PIZZA
I know what you are saying. I'm at the point where I just can't justify it. As much as I want to or try to. I don't know if I will ever be at the place where I can. I actually have an earlier version of the Sony you mentioned at my work. It's a great little camera and the 1 inch sensor is miles above most other point and shoot cameras like that. It takes some amazing photos.
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I understand you there, I've been meaning to update my camera for sometime but the cost just always seems prohibitive. My older one still work fine, but they lack features of the newer generation. Just buying the body is expensive, but worth it if you get what you want. Then add in the cost of the lenses you want on top of that... It gets expensive really fast! Your dad sure had some nice equipment back in the day, the good old days of film and the dark room. I've spent time in dark rooms developing monochrome back in the day, it was a lot fun. The day of those chemicals is long gone unless you are one of the few who still insist on using film which is getting harder and harder to find and process!
As for Hive taking out some HBD won't kill your K/E all that much considering how much HP you have amassed over the years. If you're picking up something special for yourself, why not? Everyone should treat themselves sometimes. I hope Hive stays alive and doesn't go to zero, but time will tell. I know some who are jumping ship, and it's hard to blame them. As for me, I enjoy spending time on Hive and won't be pulling up stakes any time soon!
It will be interesting what you decide to do on the camera, let me know. I'll be curious!
Yeah, I would like to find something that can use some of those off brand lenses that are still high quality, but a little bit lower cost. I am not sure how feasible that is. I'm not too worried about my account here as I don't plan on going anywhere. It's just a matter of justifying it to myself and not feeling guilty after the fact if I decide to get one. I suffer from buyers remorse quite a bit. I think it's my frugal side...
I hear you there. Even if I had boat loads of cash I would still be frugal, it's how I was raised. You wouldn't catch me driving around a Range Rover or BMW, I'll stick with safe and reliable!
I might splurge a little, but I don't think it would be anything too extravagant. I'd still probably buy used when it comes to vehicles!
I like safe and reliable, I think it's a waste to get the overly luxurious vehicles. More systems that can have problems, the more fancy stuff there is the more guaranteed you are that something will break sooner than later!
I'd like an Audi one day, but I don't think I will ever happen.
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I am still using Canon 5D Mark 3 from my pro-photographer days, it was replaced with Mark 4 in 2016. The mark 3 is still a great camera but if I was buying one now I would go with: Canon R6 Mark 2
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1908148-REG/canon_5666c106_eos_r6_mark_ii.html
At $2,219.00 for the body it is not a bad price compared to what I paid for my 5D :)
Then you would just need some L glass and you are set!
Thanks for the info! That's probably way more than I am looking to spend. I'm not pro level at all. I just like to dabble! That's one set of skills that didn't rub off on me from my dad!
Well, that camera is basically an entry level semi-pro camera, the real pros use this one: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1828640-REG/canon_6577c002_eos_r1_mirrorless_camera.html
Right i still have my analog minolta cameras and lenses , these days i use Sony since they took over Minolta , i got 3 mirrorles camera's sony a6000 aps-c sensor , the sony A7II FF sensor and since juli i also have the Sony A7IVFF , i consider myself to be an amateur since i don't make any money from photography .
Is it worth to buy a camera and a walk arround lens depends are you still enjoying photography and looking for new creative options to do it and better quality or is it ocassionaly taking a snapshot ?
And what to buy ? Mirrorless camera are awesome on my sony i have multiple adapters to fit old school manual lenses , and i can use them on my FF and on my APS-C camera. My older AF lenses with A-mount from minolta is a different thing there is an adapter but the modern AF is so fast on the Sony A7IV that they can't keep up , but you can stil use them in manual focus .
I just enjoy taking photos i hardly print anything out i just post them on hive and maybe one day my grand daughter can sell them to go to college 😁
So is it worth to spend a lot of money , it all depends on the person buying it .
the Sony that i bought this year with 2 new lenses was +/- € 3250 ,- i had a nice tax return so i could spoil myself .
Thanks for the great info. It is sounding more and more like it might not be the best choice for me. I still have time to decide though.
It’s never ‘overzealous’ to follow your passion! You’ll make it worth every penny 💛
Thank you!
Call it your midlife crisis purchase 😂 Hey it’s cheaper that a Corvette! If you want something interesting, check out Fujifilm. All our pro bodies are Sony but I think Fuji makes some cool stuff.
I used to have a Fujifilm camera. It was a great bridge unit.
I also think the newer Nikon ZF is pretty cool .
I did use Hive to take Mrs T to Amsterdam last year for our Silver Wedding anniversary. A camera is a cool idea, but I know I would not make the most of it. A few years ago I got a Canon Powershot HS70 bridge camera which is a one lens camera and pretty darn good. But I am not a good enough photographer or have the patience to use an even bigger camera with interchangeable lenses. I used to develop my own film as a kid and it was fun. Now the Pixel phone does me fine nine times out of ten.
Yeah, I think I am starting to talk myself out of it. What an awesome trip though!
Yeah was fun. Maybe not a camera then, but I would do something, maybe for @mrsbozz too
Yeah, I was thinking about that.
Glad to hear, have to pamper the wives
For sure!
I am Very happy with the camera on my iPhone 15.
I sold some Hive at $3 to buy a Car and a few kayaks back in 2021… turned out to be very good timing.
Wow, that looks like a great investment! I didn't have enough Hive liquid at $3 to take advantage.
That’s one good thing about downvotes …. You end up Powering down 100% and you’re ready to sell during the Next big Pump.
Yeah, I guess so.
@bozz I also believe that for good photos, you need a good photographer, and the images you post on your various blogs, or the ones I've seen, are very good. A professional camera is good. But as technology continues to advance, today's cell phones have very good resolution.
Yeah, I am starting to realize that. I may have to rethink my plan...
Honestly, save your money. The camera on camera phones is pretty close to anything you will get from DSLRs unless you are willing to also invest in the pro level lenses that run into the thousands of dollars. The sensor on DSLRs may indeed be larger than this one on camera phones, but it's not that much — and unless you buy the pro DSLR, it will be half or less than 35mm size.
If you want a good camera, get a hand held medium format one. Even a cheap ass Holga will give some amazing images. Even better, a TLR. You can pick up a rollei cheap second hand and they give unbelievable images.
Thanks for the advice. Interesting on the medium format ones. Reminds me of the stuff my dad used to have.