How long do you plan on keeping your current camera body(ies)?

[PeteS]

At 71 I am getting rid of stuff I don't use so my question was the right one. The only thing I collect is images and fossils (which I am duly recording recording GPS location of find so when I am go someone researching the two formation I collect in will find value in them).

Don't get me wrong. I don't collect stuff either. None of it was bought to collect it was all bought to use (yes, even the Speed Graphic). It just wasn't gotten rid of when It was no longer in use. A few of the cameras I have a sentimental attachment to because they were my moms or my dads and I remember them using them and some memorable images from them, so those are kind of in a different category. Some are just still around because I never bothered to sell or otherwise dispose of them.

At 70 I too have been shedding a lot of stuff, but it is mostly larger stuff than photo gear. I did shed my darkroom stuff including several enlargers up to 4x5 in size that didn't make the move to Florida 6 years ago.

 

[Armoured]

I interpreted the question to mean when I might buy a new camera (rather than dispose of current).

My guess is that I won't see anything compelling enough to upgrade for at least two years.

Could be wrong.

Anyway, I think the interesting part is that both my main cameras (d750 and em5ii) are getting on 6-7 years from date of introduction. So I can easily see ten years solid use out of both (although not fair as I got the Olympus used not long ago).

That's how long it has been since something I see as compelling for the money.

Mind I could move up my schedule if prices dropped a lot but I don't really see that happening.

 

[GBarrington]

I might buy an E-M1 of some vintage at some point (likely used), but I doubt I would get rid of my E-M5 III. I am content with what I have.

 

[Ghostbuggy]

Well my first Pen-F is now over five years old and so far I haven't replaced it and, although I looked at other cameras every now and then, I haven't found one which I considered a real upgrade. In fact I bought another Pen-F last year as a backup, just in case you know my first Pen-F fails badly.

The only camera I've been thinking about selling is my original E-M1, which gets only used very rarely. Now with the X100V in my kit, I also have a compact, weather sealed camera besides the E-M1. The Fujifilm itself is great and lots of fun, however it won't replace my ILC kit.

 

[MiguelATF]

Wait...have you heard something?


The poll is missing a choice. My answer is: Until I'm bored and want something new.

That's really it. I don't plan to buy or keep. The odds of me wearing out a camera and 'needing' something are slim. So as long as it scratches the itch, I'm good to go. If newer/better/bigger/smaller/ become a desire, then so be it. It is a bridge to be crossed at that time.

I know that flies in the face of conventional wisdom, but I purposefully live a very responsible life so I can be irresponsible when it come to my hobbies.

Brownie really expressed it beautifully.

With me it's not so much a question of making "plans" - but a random roller-coaster process of discoveries - of evolution - and of occasionally changing tastes - that determine how long I actually 'keep' a camera.

My 'oldest' digital camera, a Pen E-P3, is 10 years old but I've only owned it for a few years and it's so much fun to shoot with, I suspect I will use it for at least another 10.

My tiny Pentaxes - a Q and a Q7 - open the doors into an entirely different kind of photography and I'm hoping they will outlast me.

But my current workhorse rangefinder-body-style micro-4/3 camera, a GX9, I've only had for a year or so, and it was the successor to two other cameras in the GX series, a GX7 and a GX8, both of which I used and loved for a long time, and neither of which I thought I would ever replace...until I did. And two other of my favorite cameras - a digital Pen F and a Pentax KP - I parted ways with because, at a certain point, I realized they had been sitting unused for too long, and that bothered me.

Moral of the story: the cameras I use, each in their own way, continue to surprise me and engage me in rethinking both what I photograph and how I photograph it. It's a complicated process, and one which defies simple, rational answers.

 

[PakkyT]

Looking at the current poll results and reading the comments I'm sure glad that I'm not in the business of trying to sell cameras.

Ya I joke that although I am an Olympus fan, they have made very little off me directly in the last 13-14 years or so. Since moving from an Olympus P&S in 2008 I have purchased a grand total of one body brand new (4/3rds) and one refurbished (m43). Everything else has been second hand (~5 other bodies across both platforms).

 

[ac12]

Ya I joke that although I am an Olympus fan, they have made very little off me directly in the last 13-14 years or so. Since moving from an Olympus P&S in 2008 I have purchased a grand total of one body brand new (4/3rds) and one refurbished (m43). Everything else has been second hand (~5 other bodies across both platforms).

Actually Olympus does make money off of you. Indirectly.
By buying someones gear, you help that person to buy a new piece of gear.
So the 2nd hand market is important in the economy.

 

[archaeopteryx]

How long will you keep your current cameras (from time of purchase)?

Well, for sure four years since that's how long it's been since I got the G7. I'm inclined to view the G100 as a replacement for the G7 but the G7 continues to be sold new at a lower price point, so it's not like I'm fully on an n - 1 generation body yet.

Changing to a G100 would give the 20 MP sensor, add focus bracketing to post focus, and reduce weight by 15% (63 g). The other option which I find somewhat of interest is IBIS on the G95. But I'm not using the G7 off tripod enough to justify the cost and weight and, since I have mostly OIS Panasonic lenses, IBIS would give an OIS to dual IS increment rather than unstabilized to stabilized when off tripod. It's also not like the 20 MP sensor gives much advantage for publishing online at 1-2 MP and I rarely use more than ISO 400 or exposures beyond a few seconds, meaning there's little practical noise or dynamic range benefit to changing off the 16 MP sensor.

So, other than the G7 dying, I'm not sure what would motivate an update in the foreseeable future. With shortages still from SARS-CoV-2 basal and now new lockdowns from δ the G100 seems likely to remain quite expensive for focus bracketing and its weight reduction for the foreseeable future. If I really wanted IBIS or focus bracketing I could probably find a used G85 for around half the price of a G100 or G95. If Panasonic sold focus bracketing as a reasonably priced firmware unlock for the G7 I could go for that. But they don't.

For a similar amount of money as what a body would cost there's substantially more camera upgrade potential to my older phone. But if I wait one or two more generations it's likely the cost will drop by 2-4x, meaning I don't feel any hurry. We talk about ILCs slowing but phone cameras seem not so mature yet.

 

[BosseBe]

I voted: "Till either it dies or I do....", but "The schemes of mice and men".

So I don't plan to get rid of any camera right now, I like them too much!
GM5 is little gem, soo tiny and still capable. (It has become my desktop camera with the 30mm Macro or 20mm).
G80 is the one I turn to when using longer lenses because of the good grip on it.
Pen F, what can I say? I just love it, I bring it with me everyday but I don't use it everyday, I hope I can change that.

So I don't see myself getting a new camera soon and when I do I will probably not sell any of the old ones, I am more likely to loan a body (and lens) to someone who wants to take photos but can't really afford to buy a ILC.

“The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men. Gang aft a-gley”.

 

[PakkyT]

Actually Olympus does make money off of you. Indirectly.

Yes, hence my carefully worded response where I said "they have made very little off me directly"

 

[ChuckG]

I still have my Sony a300 I bought in 2008. I bought my current main camera, G85, last year after I temporarily misplaced my Sony a77. I will keep the G85 until I see something that suits my needs better at a price I like.

 

[Stanga]

I gave away my Panasonic FZ50 after about 12 years of use. The person I gave it to told me last week that it had finally failed. So I am sending him a digital Leica that I own. I did sell a G80 after two years in order to fund a G90. But I am not sure that I am going to part intentionally with whatever I now have. Each one serves a particular purpose.

 

[doady]

I remember as a kid going to buy video games and the employees at EBGames/Gamestop were always pushing very hard to get me to buy a used copy to save $5 off a $70 game, or trade in games I that already bought for $70 to get $20 or $30 or something. These stores were basically glorified pawn shops, and their shelves had more used games than new games, so obviously their services were very popular. But even as a kid, I've always been skeptical of the long term or wider benefits of such an approach. Instead of constantly buying and selling stuff on the used market, I decided to be more selective and buy only new stuff, and buy them for the intention of keeping them, not for the intention of selling them, and I've continued that approach with cameras and lenses.

 

[coffeecat]

I've still got my 9yo G3 and it still works just fine, as does my 7yo E-PM2. So I'm optimistic for my 3yo EM10ii and 1yo E-PL8...!

 

[ivanbae07]

for any gadgets or tools 'use' cycle, or in this case, camera, nah... i will keep using it until i can't use it anymore for whatever reason(s).

my st801. been with me since elementary school; timer and meter been broken since 7 years ago; and just recently it become fully unusable. i will never get rid of it even if it's unfixable (not just because it has a sentimental value, i just don't wanna), but i might add another fully mechanical camera. and this time i will turn it as an investment, but i will use it (extensively) unlike some of my vintage lens...

it's nearly a year i own a digital pen f. actually i didn't planned to keep it this long, even i've been put it on sale at some of online marketplace (id only) just 3 months after i have it... it's not because of the sensor limitation or any kind of that, but because of things that i cannot get used to: the menu, the placement on off switcher, and the placement of the jpeg switcher. sadly, no one interested, so i still have and using it...

 

[DefectiveMonk]

I have an EM10ii that I love(d). I still have it and use it even though the shutter sticks. Honestly, if the EM10ii shutter hadn't died I would have just used it alone until it died. PDAF was the feature that finally got me to upgrade because I have kids who move fast and CAF was necessary. I can't think of a feature that would get me to upgrade again.

 

[Michael Meissner]

I've only sold a few cameras (Olympus C-8080WZ, Olympus E-510, and Olympus TG-860), given away a few others (Olympus SP-550UZ, Olympus VG-120), and thrown away some cameras that were broken (Canon S1, Olympus D-40Z). Mostly they just sit on the shelf. Sometimes I will take them out for a spin.

The real question is when I do I anticipate getting the next camera? The answer is I don't know, it depends on what new features the cameras have (or if I break the current E-m5 mark III for stills and G85 for video). And of course balanced with that how much money am I willing to lock in on credit card debt to get the new shiny.

 

[PeteS]

And of course balanced with that how much money am I willing to lock in on credit card debt to get the new shiny.

Not sure if that is a serious comment or not, but for me that number is $0.00. If I don't have the money I can live without it. Credit card debt is bad news.

 

[Sniksekk]

Bought 2x em1mk3 may 2020.
Will probably keep them until em1mk5 (if that is ever released), but miiiiight reconsider because there ain’t no continuous AF with pro capture high on mk3.
If mk4 got that, I might buy 1.

 

[Armoured]

Instead of constantly buying and selling stuff on the used market, I decided to be more selective and buy only new stuff, and buy them for the intention of keeping them, not for the intention of selling them, and I've continued that approach with cameras and lenses.

I think this presents a false dichotomy, as if the only two options are buying new and keeping forever (or very long) or 'constantly' buying and selling on the used market.
Used judiciously, it's entirely possible to buy used and keep that equipment and use it actively for long periods. Buying new if it has the right feature set to use for the long term - perfectly valid.
Buy used when newer versions don't provide much that's really new that you need (and you can be reasonably sure of quality) - it can also be perfectly effective and you can save a lot of money. (For games - if you can wait six months and buy used as the early adopters move on, you can also save a lot - at least that's what I hear from gamers, my strategy is to not play those types of games).
"Churning" new by chasing the latest-and-greatest when those features aren't really needed/don't add much - that's an easy way to spend (and arguably lose) a lot of money. (Although if you make your living from it and get the use from it - possibly justified). It is a fact that you lose the first chunk the moment you walk out of the store.
"Churning" used just for the sake of it - well, probably not cost-effective, but some can make it work, if exceptionally disciplined about pricing.
Personally I am more willing to buy lenses used, because often a lens offering doesn't change for 5-10 years, and can or tend to keep their prices for longer, and good ones last for ages. But I will occasionally buy a used digital camera from one generation previous, because a good mix of recent tech and lower price.
I'm mostly not referring to film or much older cameras - different situation entirely. But I keep my eyes out for quality gear I'd like to try at good prices (usually meaning somewhat out of fashion), and have few outright errors - quality is more likely to come back in style. I've no illusions I'm trying to make money though, and I don't actually churn at all - although it is time to thin the herd.