$500- spend or save?

[dannylightning]

i had a gibson LP studio and i liked it but i just never loved it so i sold it. i have played some of the New Gibson LP standards where the hollow out the body to save weight, they do not sound like they used to, i just don't care for them.. my buddys older les paul sounds like a million bucks , my epiphone lespaul custom pro sounds better than the new gibsons IMO, i can pull the knobs and switch from humbuckers to single coil on the pickups so you get a nice LP sound or a more glassy smooth type sound,.. LP standard from the 70's,s 80's, or early 90's, now those sound good.

the gretsch duo jet sounds awesome. i think the american fender telecaster with the custom shop pickups sounds awesome. i think some of the epiphone lespauls sound very good but i just cant seem to like the newer gibson guitars. that new joe bonamassa epiphone lespaul with the bigsby is killer, i just wish they made it in left handed.

 

[Jim Walczak]

Well, these are just my own opinions, so please use them only for what they are worth to you.

As a musician, yes...I do certainly understand the concept of G.A.S., LOL!!! Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt! That said here, I have to agree with the sentiment of a few other comments here in that it sounds more like the money's simply burning a hole in your pocket as apposed to having any real specific need. As a musician, I have certainly made a few "impulse buys" over the years...although that's just as often about finding a deal/steel (like the recent purchase of a used mint condition Peavey 5 channel powered PA head...for $70 how could I say no? LOL). With photography however, I really do try to limit my purchases to "need". For example I recently busted my D90 while on a camping trip so I really needed to get a replacement body. Sure I look for bargains here too...just snagged an older manual 28-200mm lens for...wow...$5. Sure it's "Sears", but for that awesome amount of money, it might be a fun old manual to screw around with. The big purchases however...I make those based on need.

So from that perspective, ask yourself this; do you really need a full frame body at this point? I've been a photographer on some level most of my life and I've been shooting digital exclusively now for well over 15 years and the truth is that I'm still quite happy with the APS-C sensors....for what I shoot and how I shoot (including my freelance work), they do a GREAT job. For myself, there just isn't any real reason to upgrade to full frame. As SCraig said however, "I would also not concern myself [with] what others would do since their interests in photography and mine might be radically different". The simple fact of the matter is that different people have different needs and only you can decide what's right for you.

Unfortunately photography is A LOT like music in that there seem to be a great many gear snobs out there. You may only need a small digital camera for shooting pics of your kid's birthday party to email to Aunt Helen, however there are people who will tell you without a second thought that you should go out and buy a top of the line D4 (along with a large box of fast top of the line lenses) and that everything else is just crap. I never understood how people can be so totally ignorant or inconsiderate. In any case, -if- you shoot sports or some other work that would in fact take advantage of a full frame or pro body, then by all means go for it. If you're just a hobbyist however, you may wish to consider something a bit more humble (and affordable) or even stick with your 5500 until you get a "better feel for the waters". I recently shot a commission using a D5300 as a backup to my D90 and I have to honestly say that for an "entry level" camera, that little 5300 was rather impressive...if that's all I had to shoot with, I certainly wouldn't turn my nose up at one.

Now with that said, it seems to me that you already have a fairly decent body there, so I might be looking at lenses instead. After all, even a full frame body is pretty useless without a piece of glass attached to the front of it! LOL! On that issue alone however, again I would suggest that any purchase be based on some need. Don't spend money on a lens then try and figure out what you'll use it for...decide WHAT you want to shoot, THEN buy a suitable lens. For example, if your interest is critters and wildlife, you may consider a decent zoom that goes out to 300mm+. If your interest is sports or stage photography, a fast 70-200mm can provide some serious benefits (as a musician, I also do a fair bit of stage photography and have been really missing my Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 since switching from Canon to Nikon). On the other hand, if your interest is landscapes or architecture, a wide or super-wide may serve you better. Again, decide what your interests are first, then make your purchase accordingly.

As far as the other options you've listed...again I have to put a great deal of that under "need". Do you really need a hot shoe flash...or will it simply sit in the box (or closet)? If your interest is simply to learn how to use a flash, do NOT spend gobs of money on a speedlight. You can often pick up fairly decent (or used) hot shoe flashes for WELL under $50. In fact I got my old Metz of Ebay for $40 and it's still my "go to" flash for most applications. As with a better camera body, consider a better flash AFTER you have some idea of what you'll actually need.

Filters? To me filters are usually nickle and dime stuff...for my own needs, I don't usually need too much more than a decent circular polarizer and the occasional neutral density filter. I actually have a decent size box of various color filters left over from my film days, however with digital, I don't really use them any more at all. You can certainly try some special effects filters, however these days, it's just as easy to do it in Photoshop (or other software) without spending extra money.

A decent tripod perhaps? Again...need based. If you do a lot of low light work or super-zoom work (300mm +), having a decent tripod certainly has it's advantages. On the other hand, I can and have lived without one as well. Again, depends on what you do.

Classes/instructional material...ok, right off the bat here I'll say I have some VERY mixed feelings on this one. On the one hand, I am a BIG believer in "education". As a photographer, as an artist and yes, even as a musician, I am always trying to learn and improve my own work. That said however, as a perpetual college student, in a world now dominated by digital photography where editors want your images emailed to them 5 minutes after they're shot, the college I attend STILL has a photography program based on 3 semesters of black & white film photography....oye! they offer -1- class in digital photography and that's only offered as an afterthought. I do think such concepts ARE important, but in today's world, they really should be offered as a footnote in the classes. To me this is very much like taking a bunch of pre-med students and saying "we're NOT going to teach you about X-Rays or MRI's or robotic surgery techniques any of that new fangled stuff, however here's your jar of leaches...go bleed the evil spirits out of someone". Seriously. For a college institution, they are REALLY doing a disservice to the students. So that said, -IF- you have a well balanced school in your area, then "classes" are certainly an option, however make sure you know what you'll be getting for your time and money...unfortunately not all classes (or schools or teachers) are created equal these days.

As far as books and reference material goes...yea...personally I have a couple of shelves full! LOL! The upside of this however is that you do NOT need to spent a ton of dough. Look around on Amazon and check out local used book stores (in my area we have a "Half Priced Bookstore"...some great bargains there!). Even older books can still provide you with the basics of color, composition, yadda, yadda, yadda. That goes for "how to" videos as well...some time back I got several old VHS vids (including a few older vids from Kodak) from a local library sale for whopping .25¢ each! I did in fact find several of them to be quite useful, so it was an outstanding investment, LOL! That said however, we DO live in an age where we have this marvelous technological miracle called "the internet". With a few clicks of the mouse and a Google search or three, I suspect you can find MORE than enough tutorials and information to keep you learning for years! Seriously...I -WISH- I had of had Youtube around when I was a kid (as an artist, a photographer AND as a guitar player!). Before you invest A LOT of money in books and classes and such, the truth is you may find everything you need right at the end of your computer's mouse.

Also as a quick side note...if you're truly interested in learning (and you should be), don't be shy about checking out local photography clubs as well. Yea, you can run into a few pompous idiots, but for the most part you can usually find intelligent people willing to provide honest critiques and helpful tips on your work. In my own not so humble opinion, honest, if not brutal feedback and critiques are the singular best way to learn and improve. Don't go in looking for an "ego stroking"...expect...no...DEMAND that people beat the hell out of your work! Even when I don't directly agree with or use information I receive in such critiques, I always make a mental note of it.

Now to directly answer your question of "what would I do", baring any specific need (such as the aforementioned camera body replacement), I would likely invest in glass myself. In my own case, I already have years of experience and I have plenty of reference material (a few books that I bought on sale in years past and haven't even read yet), I have a camera body that I'm happy with (or will have again very soon), as well as any flash equipment I need, etc.. That said, there are a couple of specific lenses I could put to good use. Recently I've found myself having the occasional need for a super-wide for some interior work and as a critter/wildlife photographer, I often find that even 300mm just isn't long enough...at some point I really want to get something in the 400mm, if not 500mm range. That said though, again I KNOW these are lenses that I could use...they wouldn't be purchased on any whim or impulse.

I will say that along with my new (used) D7000, I did also get another tripod (a Manfrotto "pistol grip" which I've wanted for a while now), a vertical battery grip, a spare battery, a decent circular polarizer (lost my 52mm somewhere in recent years) and in my case, I also got an IR remote from the camera...I occasionally do some astrophotography work and since I switched to Nikon, I haven't gotten a remote release yet, so this seemed like a "must have" for me. While this may be something of a small rationalization, I can say that I do have specific reasons or needs for each of those purchases...the vertical grip for example, since I've been shooting a lot more video recently, having the extra battery capacity will be a genuine benefit. Even the tripod...even busted as it is, I still plan to use my D90 until it finally quits on me (again for video work if nothing else), so having a second pistol grip will be a great advantage. I -could- live without these items...and I have...however I do also have specific uses in mind, so they're not simply impulse buys.

So again, I would ultimately suggest that you determine your own specific needs before investing in anything...camera, lens or otherwise. Decide what you NEED and allow that to dictate your decisions.

 

[Designer]

The Studio is a great guitar- very good bang for the buck. .

Hey, Peeb, have you done the deal yet?

Jim Walczak woke this thread, so now I'm wondering how it went.

FWIW: I recommend a Nikon Speedlight. Go for an SB-910.

 

[Peeb]

The Studio is a great guitar- very good bang for the buck. .

Hey, Peeb, have you done the deal yet?

Jim Walczak woke this thread, so now I'm wondering how it went.

FWIW: I recommend a Nikon Speedlight. Go for an SB-910.

I was actually commenting on astroNikon's desire to get a LP Studio.

I don't have any need for another humbucker-equipped guitar right now. I'm mostly acoustic, followed by my trusty strat (s-s-s config) followed last by my LP-style cheapie for those rare instances when I feel the need for the roar of a humbucker (mostly the bridge pickup, btw).

I have a current need to recreate a group photo in a specific location that will require slightly more width than my 18-55 can accommodate, so a Tokina 11-16 is in my mind right now. The POV for the photographer is limited by a set of descending stairs, so unless I can get a ladder of the landing further away and elevate to a proper position, a wide angle lens may go from 'want' to 'need'. Would be nice for my landscape shots too, so.... we will see.