Photography (and Finance): Desperately Want this Camera; What do I do?

September 23, 2008

Canon EOS 5D Mark II: WANT

Oh, dear. It has happened. Canon has released a successor to the 5D and it is everything I have ever wanted in a digital SLR. Full-frame. Good ISO range. 21+MP (although resolution has never been my focus). Full HD video at 1920 x 1080. It’s not much to look at–in fact, I’ll probably have to put a sticker on it so I don’t confuse it with my Canon A2 (film) body that I bought in 1997–but it packs a wallop in specs.

This is a problem. It’s going to retail for nearly $3000.

In no way do I have anything resembling three thousand dollars to my name. My personal savings probably add up to about $1000. It’s not that we’re not saving (for retirement, etc.) as a household, but I have not been saving. The reasons abound: Started a small company a year ago, joint Pencilhaven things are more important, we’re still adjusting to the shock of Pencilhaven’s mortgage payments, our natural gas bill is about to double.

So I find that I am actually looking around my house for shit I can sell. It has come to that. But I don’t keep things I don’t want, so, short of selling the grand piano in the living room (which, besides being a travesty and shattering my moral compass, would kind of read like a metaphor from a bad novel), I am hopeless in this regard.

Many of you know that I came back from grad school in 2001 $45,000 in credit card debt. The early ’00s sucked rocks as I siphoned most of my livelihood and sent it to the various credit companies. After I paid my last payment in 2005, I swore that I would never be in credit card debt again. So that is not a viable option.

Any advice on how to kick together some cash before this thing hits the market in November? Stuff I can sell? Services I can provide? I already work a lot so I hope someone can send me an effortless get-rich-quick scheme. If I sound a tad desperate, I kind of am.

In case you’re not won over by the camera yet, watch this video. If that doesn’t do it for you, you have a heart of glass, mister.

I’ve let my photography hobby stagnate for far too long due to my effeteness with gear. I have to do something.

9 Comments

Jess says:

I’ve known people to get expensive copies of software (pre-release and shrink-wrap) in exchange for writing/blogging reviews. You should call Canon and see if they’d hook you up.
Aaron says:

And once you figure out the magic scheme to come up with $3k in a get-rich-quick scheme, you’re going to share so I can buy one too, right?
Aileen says:

I’m sure you want this RIGHT NOW, but don’t most electronic gizmos go down steeply in price after the initial release? If this is coming out in November, I’d bet the price gets better after Christmas. A couple of months could save you a few hundred bucks! Maybe? Of course, there’s always cooking meth – I’m sure your neighbors across the way would provide a steady steam of customers. :)
Alan I. says:

Simple formula
TT sale = Canon purchase … live a little. You have good earning potential.
Marc says:

And buying the camera is probably just the start. Do you have the rest of the setup to deal with 21 megapixel images or video editing?

I’m tempted too, but it would quickly start cascading into other required purchases.
autumn says:

I am by no means a paragon of restraint. It is only by dint of my inability to OBTAIN a credit card that I DON’T have $50k in debt therein. And I have had to resort to some strange tactics to get my acquisition fix lately (see: shopping with other people’s money since they don’t shop for themselves)

However. In this case you seem to be in the retail version of the irresistible force meeting the immovable wallet. If you cannot in good conscience put your thingy on credit, then expediency in obtaining said thingy seems nope. If on the other hand you cannot imagine waiting, ban on consumer debt must waver.

Though, I think Jess had a pretty great idea. Being that you are a talented writer with both technical and photographic savvy, there seems adequate justification to pitch yourself as an equipment reviewer. Can’t hurt to try…

Meanwhile, I long for hats.
Lyza Gardner says:

Thanks, guys. I think what it really comes down to is how much I want it (absolutely must have it now versus can wait) and what I’m willing to do about it (vis a vis credit cards, etc.).

Normally with gear I’m all about waiting. But with DSLRs I get that itchy feeling that the obsolescence clock is ticking away. That’s one reason I hate DSLRs. But, alas, this film thing can’t go on forever.
Lyza Danger Gardner » Blog Archive » Putting my Money where my Mouth is says:

[...] going to try to make buying the camera a real goal. That means being fiscally creative and making some [...]
David Lindes says:

I’m totally with you, and here’s what I’ve come up with:

I’ve made myself a location for saving some cash specifically for a 5D mk II purchase. I actually did this before it was even announced, because I knew it would be coming. And since I started it, I’ve been putting money into it whenever I had a bit of extra. And sometimes that meant I’d feel poor for a while, because I’d dump everything into the savings bucket. ;-)

I’m still a far cry from getting there, and I’ve taken to trying to sell some stuff, too, but hey, it’s a start, and I figure it’ll get there eventually. Hopefully sooner rather than later. :-)

And, uhh… I could give you $100 towards your savings fund, if you’d return the favor. ;-)

Another idea I’ve seen in the past, that may or may not be viable (but hey, it looks like you’ve got at least some semblance of a following on this here blog, so maybe): Pre-sell images that you’ll make with this camera. For every, say, $100 or $500 or whatever price you set, you promise to deliver a print of your choosing to the donor, once the camera has been acquired. Perhaps it could work??