Stupid GAS strikes again (sigh)

[Quadna71]

So...not to many years ago I found myself sitting on a pile of red-ring lenses, two full frame bodies, and enough batteries, grips, flashes, and other random accessories to fill 2 1/2 backpacks full. How did I get there? Didn’t I have a 2.1mp p&s just a few years earlier? What had started out as my first venture into a basic DSLR consumer crop sensor w/kit lens had miraculously escalated to enough gear to stock a two-person team on professional shoots...and all with my photographic abilities not able to match the gear appropriately. Ugh - it was a clear-cut case of GAS.

I eventually recognized it for what it was and made the hard decision to start downsizing. A few weeks of research later and I settled on an E-PL7 with the 14-42 pancake. Compared to the bulky Canons, this PEN was a breath of fresh air. Sure the lens was slower and the battery didn’t last as long, but I quickly realized that the anxiety of possessing all that gear was lifted from my shoulders when shooting with the little camera. It took me 2 months to sell off all my other gear but I knew I had made the right decision. But unfortunately I’m sure you can see where this going...

Here I am today with an ever growing collection of gear that quite honestly is unnecessary for the “hobby” level of shooting I do. Yes I can appreciate the improvements the Pro lenses offer and the feature set of our flagship OM-D is spectacular, but the anxiety has started creeping back in. Why do I keep grasping at more/better/faster/etc instead of sticking with what I know are the sensible combos for me?

Ugh...I sense another fire sale in my very near future.

 

[dougjgreen]

Probably because you are more interested in cameras and lenses than in photography.

 

[Enchanter]

It's kind of a human thing. The impulse to acquire stuff is completely natural. The hierarchy of needs; food, shelter and clothing, is followed by securing those things. Sometimes that means stockpiling. So it's completely normal to have a backup body and a complete set of primes with a few telephotos thrown in. Three extra batteries, a couple SD cards and so forth.
All one can do is succumb or hope for a loving family member to initiate an intervention.

 

[davidzvi]

What can be truly illuminating is going into something like Lightroom and checking out your metadata. Finding out what % of images you have from each lens / body combination. Then start looking at the smaller numbers and see if you'll miss getting those images or if you could have gotten them with other stuff you have as well.

 

[stevedo]

How much do you want for your 40-150 PRO?

 

[Egregius V]

Here I am today with an ever growing collection of gear that quite honestly is unnecessary for the “hobby” level of shooting I do. Yes I can appreciate the improvements the Pro lenses offer and the feature set of our flagship OM-D is spectacular, but the anxiety has started creeping back in. Why do I keep grasping at more/better/faster/etc instead of sticking with what I know are the sensible combos for me?

Hard to know how to reply to this. Looking at your sig and looking at what you wrote, you seem to think you have more gear than you need and fear that you don't know where to draw the line. Is that because you've been going at this without a plan, upgrading and adding as you go? For what it's worth, I think you're still short of hoarding m43 gear. However, what you list is on the expensive end of the spectrum and might have some redundancies. Maybe it would help to think about your photography: what you really want in different ranges, what the trade-offs are in choosing one solution over another, and if your current gear is either lacking in some way or is overkill. Define the problem and you'll find it easier to get to the solution.

 

[longviewer]

I to count how many great kits I've owned only to blow them out for something better - then hit a budget crisis, dump & restart. Both Pentax and gear has gone that way.
I have several quite nice but not top-line lenses for both systems, but a GX1 + film Pentax/Ricoh bodies. My only cure for GAS is poverty, which works, but barely..

 

[algold]

If all your gear is listed in your sig, you have a good quality well rounded kit - nothing to worry about imho.

 

[Quadna71]

What can be truly illuminating is going into something like Lightroom and checking out your metadata. Finding out what % of images you have from each lens / body combination. Then start looking at the smaller numbers and see if you'll miss getting those images or if you could have gotten them with other stuff you have as well.

You know I did that a couple weeks ago and found a majority of my photos were taken with my 17mm prime. More than 50% in fact. Makes me think that I could easily be fine with that prime, the pancake EZ, and dump all the rest. Would I long for the better/sharper image once in a while? Sure. But aside from that mental struggle it would appear my photography wouldn't change all that much.

 

[Quadna71]

Probably because you are more interested in cameras and lenses than in photography.

While I can certainly see the draw of the equipment, I truly am passionate about photography and am rarely found without a camera (not including my smartphone) and 2 lenses with me. So I'm not sure I could say that I'm "more" interested...but definitely enjoy all the variety. But seeing as I often have buyer's remorse in a matter of days after making a big purchase, it leads me to believe that my GAS is out of control!

 

[tonyturley]

Welcome to the club. I've been working on a purge myself this Spring. I shipped out the last of my Fuji APS-C gear a couple of days ago. I traded one older Fuji camera and lens for a like new GX85. My gear going forward is going to be an E-M10 II + 75-300 II, and the GX85 + Oly 17/1.8. I dumped a lot more camera gear last year, and have finally reduced what I own to what I really want to use to pursue my passion for photography. I'm working on achieving the same simplicity in other areas of my life. Pure simplicity is the goal as I edge toward retirement.

 

[Jeffcs]

Gas strikes I think few are truly only enjoy the purchase more than the usefulness of better quality glass and cameras. So for the rest of us that get GAS attacks are more for the upgrades, more features & better glass. Can an image be made with a kit lens that’s 3-5/6.3 yes it can, will a straight 2.8 Pro provide an improved image, yes it can!
So for those including me get your GAS and enjoy your equipment. As for me I’m enjoying my Olympus gear and as soon as I’m done shooting for the dollar there will be a bunch of Nikon stuff for sale! I’m going to stay with Mu-43 until I can no longer shoot...

 

[pondball]

I'm glad I settled on acquiring only the all round 12-100/4 Pro and EM5.2 when I ditched my Nikon gear. It's all I'll ever need.

 

[agentlossing]

The need to stockpile food and other NEEDED items is natural.
GAS (and the need to acquire cars, shoes or firearms) is not.
GAS harms us all. If a manufacturer knows they will sell products given GAS there is no need to innovate.

It's all natural, human beings have an inherited tendency to stockpile things we place value in, not so much because we want to hoard it but because a new acquisition makes us feel like we've successfully hunted/gathered/foraged in our environment and found something of value.

My income is the only thing that keeps me from having several viable, modern camera systems on the shelf and taking what I feel like using for the day. I don't see anything inherently wrong with that, it's just outside of my budget. And I tend toward a preference of minimalism.

 

[dougjgreen]

My income is the only thing that keeps me from having several viable, modern camera systems on the shelf and taking what I feel like using for the day. I don't see anything inherently wrong with that, it's just outside of my budget. And I tend toward a preference of minimalism.

What is this "minimalism" of which you speak?

 

[agentlossing]

While it may seem counterintuitive, different camera formats and models are different enough in their user experience and output that it makes sense to differentiate if those differences are valuable to you. 90% of my recent work has been with the GX85 and 20mm, and until my most recent eBay expenditure that's been my only camera body for at least a year, so that is close enough to minimalism for my taste

 

[PakkyT]

You know I did that a couple weeks ago and found a majority of my photos were taken with my 17mm prime. More than 50% in fact. Makes me think that I could easily be fine with that prime, the pancake EZ, and dump all the rest. Would I long for the better/sharper image once in a while? Sure. But aside from that mental struggle it would appear my photography wouldn't change all that much.

Perhaps then if your O17 is either the discontinued f/2.8 version or the f/1.8 version you can simply apply your GAS to a lens you KNOW you would use, the O17/1.2 PRO, so you would get the better/sharper image with a focal length you know you like. And on your E-M1 you would get a fully weathersealed prime setup.

Looking at your signature list though, I don't think you are anywhere near the "problem GAS" levels of many others.

 

[scotttnz]

What is this "minimalism" of which you speak?

Minimalism means only owning one system with only two camera bodies and only ten lenses......

That’s my definition, and i’m sticking to it!

Now I just need to aquire one more lens to achieve minimalism

 

[Quadna71]

Perhaps then if your O17 is either the discontinued f/2.8 version or the f/1.8 version you can simply apply your GAS to a lens you KNOW you would use, the O17/1.2 PRO, so you would get the better/sharper image with a focal length you know you like. And on your E-M1 you would get a fully weathersealed prime setup.

Looking at your signature list though, I don't think you are anywhere near the "problem GAS" levels of many others.

You realize getting me fired up over the 17/1.2 PRO is only going to push me down this road further!!! But seriously, it's a valid point. Purchasing the 40-150 was a rash decision that I made quickly and have just as quickly realized now that I truly don't need it for the style of shooting I do. And the 12-40? Well, this is my second one as I tend to have mild ADD when it comes to that lens. Again, ugh.

 

[algold]

...Now I just need to aquire one more lens to achieve minimalism

you surely need at least one nice prime