How Do You Afford This Addiction/Affliction?

Araakii said:
The problem with America is that people make 3 or 4 times the average salary of other countries but manage to have no money left for anything.
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Well, I know America is an easy target, but can we stop the generalizing? Plenty of people save money here and plenty of people DO NOT make 3-4 times the average salary of other countries (there are so many countries that we could argue pro or con). Plus, the cost of living in certain parts of the country is ridiculously high (i.e. your above average salary doesn't translate into having expendable dollars). Where the cost of living is low, there aren't a large variety of jobs. Most jobs pay you based on where you live in the US.
 
jsrockit said:
Well, I know America is an easy target, but can we stop the generalizing? Plenty of people save money here and plenty of people DO NOT make 3-4 times the average salary of other countries.
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Sorry to generalize but this thread would not have existed if people can save money.
 
Maybe we should just consider ourselves a bunch of lucky b@st@ards that we can afford an internet connection and film equipment and even have time to talk about our favorite pass time and leave it at that ?
 
I've barely scrounged up enough money to buy a used M9. I save, I save, and I save. However, I save by buying lenses that I can use now. An old summicron here for 1k, a new VC nokton here for 1k... etc. While I'm enjoying these lenses, their prices have not dropped much. I had a clear goal of owning a M9, so I invested only in M-lenses (while shooting them on Sony NEX5). After a long while... I had enough lenses to sell and buy an user-condition M9, keeping only a couple lenses that I really wanted to try on M9.

Now my quest is for the 50'Lux asph... and I'll probably do the same thing again. I want it bad enough that I can maybe wait for a year to get it.
 
I'm lucky, I could afford an m9, but I just don't want one.
I work a decent job, don't make a fortune, but live within my means, don't smoke, no kids, and when buying a house, chose one well within my means, so the mortgage is not crippling like some people I know.

To be honest, I think anyone with a decent job could afford an M9, but choose to buy other stuff instead, cars, holidays, cigarettes.
Taking vacations as an example, I'd rather a £4000 holiday with a £200 camera, than a £200 holiday with a £4000 camera.
 
No car, no mortgage, no debts.

But kids are currently draining me and I've sold off a lot of gear over the last year.

I used to have some money to invest in gear that I could sell at a profit but that's out the window too now: no loose change, no easy selling channels left and no nice bargains to purchase.

Now I'm plotting to rig the lottery. 😛
 
No debt other than mortgage, no kids, no car, don't smoke. The economic "crisis" in the UK slashed interest rates, so my mortgage is about half what it used to be.

Buying new Leica gear like M9 and Noctilux is a lot of money, but many people will spend more on a car and consider themselves to have bought a cheap one. You can spend pretty much whatever you want on used film Leica gear, and that gear will hold it's value. Not many hobbies you could say that about the paraphernalia.
 
Well paid job but nothing special, no debt, cheap house, cheap car, cheap clothes, cheap computer, expensive whisky, expensive Leica. Works out for me.
 
Single, no mortgage, no debt, don't really drink, don't have a car anymore, don't smoke, good at saving.

Only own film leicas, older lenses, buy used.
 
Well, I'm a working class stiff with a family and a mortgage and I have a nicely beat up M4P that I really like. I won't own any Leica lenses because their prices don't accurately reflect their superiority to other lenses. Ditto for digital Leica. When you don't have a lot of money compromise is not such a dirty word!
 
I've got some debt, but I'm still pretty comfortable. Not "Leica M9-comfortable", but it's not like we're really struggling. I'm also under the no kids crowd, however. Couldn't do most of the stuff that I do on my income if I had kids. Seems to be common with the folks in this thread.

And, to be honest, I'm a bottom-feeder with all of my equipment. I think my most expensive lens was $400. Shoot a beater M3. And I love every moment of it.
 
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