GAS - 11 rules for living with the Gear Acquisition Syndrome without losing money

As a photographic equipment enthusiast, I suffer from G-A-S (Gear acquisition syndrome) !
It's been years and yet despite a huge number of cameras and lenses bought and resold I haven't lost any money.
The goal of this video is to share with you my rules that I have been respecting for 8 years, even before knowing this syndrome and knowing that I had it !!!
Enjoy it and tell me in the comments section if you find some of them interesting and how you deal with your GAS ?!!!!!
Thanks again for subscribing to my channel if you find my contents of interest for your and wish to see more.
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2022 !!!

[@masud184]

Very nice background Light

[@murathurmen]

Hi Didier, GAS means always loosing money. Yes you are right, never buy brandnew cameras. I'm a Leica user and i'm very happy to get the 20% VAT back when i buy new stuff in Europe because i'm living in Turkey (outside EU). I have waited for the M11 but that was not for me and so i decided to buy 2 Film Leica MP's, black and silver, got back the VAT again and i'm sure i will be happier with them. Regards Murat

[@madeinclearsky8354]

I'm so glad to meet you with this channel. Your recommendations are exactly what I was looking for. I spent days and days to always delay or reconsider what gear I would really need or like and your words are coming perfectly in my mind which is sometimes filled by frustration. Thanks for this video.

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Yeah what a great welcome ! Thanks a lot. Put everything in perspective to see clear in your search ! It has to be strategic and consistent. And mostly with used market you don’t take risk of what you buy is part of the rare gear.

[@duringthemeanwhilst]

there is nothing wrong with GAS, after all: x=n+1 (where x = ideal number of cameras to own and n = number of cameras you actually own) :-) seriously, great video with superb advice

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Excellent !!! Thanks for taking time to watch this video and for your honest confession !!! lol !!! And obviously your comment is warmly welcomed !

[@romansivers]

Hi Didier, I completely agree with your approach. I’m not as frequent a purchaser as you are, and I don’t have a spreadsheet, but I follow the same rules.

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Yeah thanks a lot I saw some even worse than me here on KZbin 😂😂 Since nearly 10 years now that 8 follow my expenses and my earnings buying and selling I didn’t lose money …

[@fabrizio-6172]

So funny as usual I miss you dear!!!

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Thank you so much Fabrizio. I'm back, check my last videos... I will do my best to be more regular this year.

[@janfrosty3392]

Good advise Didier, Happy New Year, and PF 22. Take care.

[@KimHojbergJensen]

A am happy to find your channel. I suffer from G-A-S as well - I have purchased two cameras so far this year, Nikon F6 and Nikon D700.

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Hello Kim Thanks for joining my Chanel ! I would say that I have more a GASS : Gear Acquisition and Selling Syndrome !!!😃 but hey as long as we have pleasure and don’t loose money it’s ok no?😉

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

D700 and D6 are superb cameras

[@KimHojbergJensen]

@@DidierMOULINPhotography Thanks! I shold learn to sell also. I store everything and my wife is getting crazy. But I will retire in 3-4 years and I tell myself it is good to have something to swap with at that time 😊

[@KimHojbergJensen]

@@DidierMOULINPhotography It s an F6, I am still into films 😁

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

@@KimHojbergJensen in my case I lost my job and selling some Leica gear was a good way to retrieve some cash!

[@ryanstark2350]

A great thing to do is buy old manual lenses. I've been doing this for many years. I have some very good lenses some of which are over 70 years old. Obviously Leica lenses are good but expensive. Schneider Krueznach, early preset and auto Takumars, Nikons and Zeiss are great. The worst buys are Sony cameras or at least the larger full frame ones. They fail a lot and have horrible value depreciation. This is why I'm looking at full frame Lumix. My Sony has had a number of issues and is now useless.

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Welcome to the L mount Alliance and the unlimited capabilities of interchangeable and adaptative lenses !

[@mobilography6786]

Didier your advise is good for the used gear. I love my Nikon D3 that I bought very cheap and its a masterpiece. Also the used lenses are cheap go get.

[@user-qe7gw4yv7y]

The amount of gear I have cost me three divorces. Number four coming up.😅

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

@@user-qe7gw4yv7y I was a single at this moment 🤣🤣🤣

[@nixpaulo]

Didier I know you love D3s... I have a new d750 and I am about to get old D3s. Do you think I will miss the D750? It's a small and practical camera I love street photography and I think it will be a challenge to go out on the street holding a bigger camera. Thank you and happy new year 🙂

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Hello Paulo. And I love even more the D3X ! Well, compared to the D750, the D3S looses half the definition of the sensor which means you will not be able to crop in case you need. Get the right lens and the right composition. Not always possible in street. The D750 has a great dynamic and a good ISO handling. SD cards also makes it easy to transfert photos to your smartphone (the integrated transmission technology never worked with my former D750, main reason why I sold it) But I prefer the OVF of the D3, I prefer its handling and operation controls. It’s a question of personal taste. Be aware the D3 makes a loud sound. It’s not the most discreet camera for street for sure. But it works. I can make a video showing pictures at night in street taken with it… The D750 is small and light and gave me stunning pictures in night events. Its 24Mpx sensor is excellent. I would recommend you to test a D3S before selling the D750. We find some D3S at very low price today. Happy new year, too!

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

But one thing is sure Paulo. I never missed my D750. And today I’m happy with D3S and D3X combo ! But I have to admit also that they are not the only camera I own and in certain circumstances I leave them at home and go lighter. A Ricoh GRii is a pleasing tool for street. A Leica Q is fine, too They are fixe 28mm Maybe the 780 is interesting because when using back tilting screen it’s a true hybrid when the D750 is not! And tilt screen is great for street sometimes. Fuji GFX 50R is quite big but my god the image quality!!!! Well, you have a lot of choices out there! Depends on budget and wish list! Hope I help you and please tell me what you will do.

[@webersteve1547]

And what to do against sleepless nights?

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Good question!

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

But don’t worry it looks like it’s night but it was 5 pm in fact! Cloudy day !

[@crystalous]

take some melatonin man xaxa and use your existing gear

[@Minotaurus007]

While studying the market you lose precious lifetime. You lose time to take pictures.

[@DidierMOULINPhotography]

Thanks for taking care of my time but I want to reassure you I’m ok! I used to check the market in some circumstances where I can’t take pictures. 🚾 for instance 😃 but you are right in the sens that it takes time. But it allowed me to make so good purchases that it was worth that time spent on it. Since I switched back to Nikon and found the gear I was looking for I don’t even continue to check the second hand market.