If you had $30,000 to spend...

[Josh66]

Whoa, broke again. That didn't take long.

Exactly...

Money is easily spent - it doesn't really matter.


What kills me is that I was completely uninterested in everything I like today- I could have bought some kick-ass gear, but instead I blew it on crap.

 

[Josh220]

Whoa, broke again. That didn't take long.

Exactly...

Money is easily spent - it doesn't really matter.


What kills me is that I was completely uninterested in everything I like today- I could have bought some kick-ass gear, but instead I blew it on crap.

That's why I am taking it easy on my gear. Just in case it blows over and I decide on a different career path. I have only been working at this for a little over 2 months, and I already upgraded to a D300 and have a 70-200, battery grip, new tripod/ballhead, and a few other things planned in the coming month.

Money is too easy to spend, especially with expensive hobbies like this.

 

[Josh66]

Money is too easy to spend, especially with expensive hobbies like this.

Exactly.

Figure out what really matters, and save your money for that.

 

[tnvol]

I would add it to my kid's college fund.

 

[Josh220]

I would add it to my kid's college fund.

I don't have kids, I am only 20. So instead, I put $$ into my retirement funds. I have a stocks/bonds account that automatically withdraws $200 per month from my checking account, and then whatever I add to my money market account to build up interest. Some months I add $2k, others only $1k, but thats better than nothing if I do say so myself. I plan to keep the $200 monthly withdrawals until the day I retire. Should add up nicely.

 

[musicaleCA]

Darn, well isn't this an interesting discussion. I'm still finding it really hard to hold back the urge to spend some more money replacing my 17-85 with the 24-70 f/2.8 USM ... Hmm.

I'd buy myself a 5D (yes, just a 5D; a 1D is just insane, because I don't need it...it's not like I'm running into blizzards or waltzing around the blazing heat of the Sahara). I'd get an L-bracket, a good gitzo or manfrotto tripod, whichever floats my boat (I haven't seriously considered a really good tripod yet). Probably a RRS ballhead with arca-swiss quick release. Lesse...lenses: EF 24mm f/1.4 USM L, EF 50mm f/1.4 USM (have it though), EF 85mm f/1.2 USM L, EF 135mm f/2 L USM, and the two lenses in my sig I'm fawning over. (24-70 for street stuff, the ultra-wide for landscapes and cityscapes) My 450D with the 55-250 is just fine for candids. 2 Alien Bee 1600Ks, just to have some *real* studio lights, and a couple thousand on props, props, props (backdrops, cheap cups, the props for a project I really want to do...hrm...I better get on that). And, er, that's it. Anything left I'd save.

 

[Josh220]

Would you guys spend that $$ differently if it had been earned/saved rather than given to you?

 

[Garbz]

Not enough for a Hassleblad so it'll have to go in the bank.

Me? I'd move out. $30000 is a good downpayment with monies left over for a $500 Sony Trinitron TV.

 

[blash]

Buy some large format (maybe some 8x10 stuff) equipment and a nice supply of film and developing supplies to last me. D700 with accompanying 70-200 f/2.8 VR lens. Buy 3 of those $1,000 30" monitors and the appropriate VESA mounting equipment. New video cards... rest goes into CDs/stocks (the marlet's probably only going to go up from here )

 

[CrazyCanuck]

30k USD or canuck bucks? Either way, its a pretty damned good down payment on a small aircraft... If somehow I managed to quadruple that, I'd get me a (used) float plane.

if not that, I'd toss it in the bank. Don't need it now, might as well put it aside for a rainy day.

 

[c.cloudwalker]

No matter how I got that money, I would invest it. Spend it and it is just gone. No matter what you buy. Invest it and you have a profit to spend. Even better, re-invest that profit and you get a bigger profit over time.

I personally don't believe in the stock market and, what's happened in the last year tends to confirm that idea, so I invest in real estate. In my area I can buy a house with that $30,000. and still have enough to fix it up nicely and, then, I can rent it.

As far as how easy it is to spend money, just look at the number of people who've won huge amounts of money in various lotteries only to find themselves back in the poor house within a few years.

 

[NateS]

Easy, I'd take out 2,000 for me which I'd probably spend on gear and a trip, 2,000 for my wife for a shopping spree. Then I'd put 10,000 in savings and 16,000 toward our mortgage.

My 1,000 gear would probably get me a Tamron 90mm f2.8, Nikon 70-300 VR, and about $1000 for a small getaway with my wife and son (or if my wife would put 1000 of hers toward it....a longer getaway).

 

[Dylan-Fishman]

Donate it all. I don't have need for more money that I didn't even earn. When people ask me what I would buy if I won the mega-lottery (yah know the 600 mil one) I always say donate. And no one believes me . Money only brings greed, which leads to sadness, which leads to a crappy sad life....

 

[PhotoXopher]

Money only brings greed, which leads to sadness, which leads to a crappy sad life....

Oh but how I'd love the opportunity to prove that wrong

I'd get 'some' gear, the rest would pay off my debts and a fun family trip to celebrate.

 

[SrBiscuit]

pay off debt.