How much is enough?

jbrubaker nailed it. His is a partial loose quote from Proverbs

".....Give me neither poverty nor riches. Let me devour the food food prescribed for me" Prov. 30:8 NWT

With that said, how come cameras seem to accumulate even when I don't go looking for them. (I was just gifted 2 SLR's and 4 lenses)
 
Consider the film-only user and this question that Dave has posed. What stock of Tri-X and XP2 in the refrigerator is satisfactory with the future supply shrouded in mystery? Is too much not enough?

Pete
 
Godfrey, that sounds like a good idea, that pontification thing. Wish I were closer.

So, let's be sure about definitions.

Pleasure, joy and happiness are certainly different things. I may have pleasure with 25 cameras and more joy in using some of them than others, but happiness surely does not depend on my having all of those cameras. Happiness is a grander concept, much larger.

How much resolution in a digital camera or scan is enough?

How many bells and whistles is enough in photography?

Can "enough", or indeed "happiness" be attained by yet more technology, money, advertising, spending?

Some of us love the chase and new technology with each offering of cameras and gear every year or sooner. Others, like me, are tired of that rat race. Not that either one is "right" and the other is "wrong".

So, how does one measure pleasure, joy and happiness? Believe it or not, there really is such a thing as Happiness Economics.

I understand that David Cameron (UK) is now looking at GDH (Gross Domestic Happiness) in addition to GDP (Gross Domestic Product). So, surely, there is a way to quantify all of this....😕

Keynes was wrong. Consumerism is insatiable and we are slaves to work to attain "enough". Yet, some of the finer things such as photography is being experienced everyday amongt us in the RFF community. This is at least part of the good life.🙂
 
enough?

Things I gave had enough of . . . .

Political sh#t
Snow
Temperatures outside the range of 32F - 80F
Tuna salad
TV "news"


Things I will never have enough of . . .

Hot dogs with mustard and anything else on top
Wine
Old time "monster" movies
Time
Books
Sitting on my porch on a sunny day


....................................................................
 
Although I'm a greedy American who enjoys abundance, I still justify my ownership of the cameras through use and somehow relate my gluttony of having more than I need through fitness, exercise (meaning usage) and sustainability over the long-long term.

It makes no sense to have cameras or other gear to go unused and become neglected through disuse so I often carry two cameras, generally carry a camera all the time, and shoot as much as I can. Lately I've been shooting about 50-60 rolls of B&W film a month, but the real bottleneck is the processing. Currently I have 146 rolls in the fridge that need development, but adding more and more film to this is like eating too much and gaining weight, and eventually this will kill me. Anyways I will try to perform a marathon development session (3 full days over the Veteran's Day weekend) to help empty my refrigerator.

Also note that the freezer is full of film, but this hoarding is never enough because I constantly have to replenish.

Now add onto all the above the introduction of a M9M that might slow down the above log jam of film mentioned above, but already one of my friends gave me this monster printer (HP 9180) a bulk load of paper and an ink supply, and already looking into a new Mac Book Pro and a NEC monitor...:bang:

And I failed to mention I live in Madhattan in a 1 bedroom apartment with a girlfriend. Anyways I can already see that yet again I'm on an unsustainable path. Just call me a greedy (lucky) American. Like someone who is eating themselves to death I see this as destructive behavior that I just can't stop. Anyways the addition of a Leica digital means that I will be at the saturation point. 😱

Cal
 
So, you are wondering where did I get all of this "crap"?😛

From a book recommended by Roger:

http://www.amazon.com/How-Much-Enough-Money-Good/dp/1590515072

Although it is very broad indeed, I see a parallel just within the photography world because we are consumers.

Some of us are fine with just film cameras. Some are fine with digital gear and others are constantly upgrading. Is either one happy? Is either happier than the others?

I don't have a clue. But I do know that photographs taken with older cameras are not obsolete...so is this "enough"? Are HCB's photographs obsolete? Is a camera similar to his obsolete? Maybe since different clients and fields of photography have different requirements. Having said that...is "enough" a changing yard marker?
 
daveleo said:
enough?

Things I gave had enough of . . . .

Political sh#t
Snow
Temperatures outside the range of 32F - 80F
Tuna salad
TV "news"


Things I will never have enough of . . .

Hot dogs with mustard and anything else on top
Wine
Old time "monster" movies
Time
Books
Sitting on my porch on a sunny day


....................................................................
Click to expand...

In reality, all we have is "time", IMO.:angel: What we do with it and after it is gone, is up to the individual.
 
dave lackey said:
So, you are wondering where did I get all of this "crap"?😛

From a book recommended by Roger:

http://www.amazon.com/How-Much-Enough-Money-Good/dp/1590515072

Although it is very broad indeed, I see a parallel just within the photography world because we are consumers.

Some of us are fine with just film cameras. Some are fine with digital gear and others are constantly upgrading. Is either one happy? Is either happier than the others?

I don't have a clue. But I do know that photographs taken with older cameras are not obsolete...so is this "enough"? Are HCB's photographs obsolete? Is a camera similar to his obsolete? Maybe since different clients and fields of photography have different requirements. Having said that...is "enough" a changing yard marker?
Click to expand...

Dave,

It does seem like photography makes me happy, but I hope I'm not too imbalanced because photography has become so important in my life. I wonder where the line is where it becomes an obsession or addiction?

I have the perfect low maintenance woman who actually encourages my behavior, and she is a big part of my happiness.

Cal
 
This is a great thread idea... thanks, Dave.

Regarding my photography: Enough is when I'm producing 50% 'keepers'.

Regarding camera gear: Enough is about the size of Leica or Nikon film gear, manual focused, with lots of interesting lenses to choose from, and enough pixels to comfortably fill my printer's output of 13x19 inches (about 16-to-20 megapixels).

Regarding income: Enough is 3 times what a teacher makes. Any more should just be put back in the pot for the common good.

Regarding love: Never enough.
 
photography, including gear, images and talking rf trash brings me pleasure.

good conversation brings me pleasure, as does good food, cigars and life traditions.
i have had much pain in my life...physical, mental and spiritual...it has been ok as i seem to have a great tolerance for it.

i do not believe in happiness...at least long term happiness...i have experienced only pockets of it.
 
The ground state should be contentment. If it is not, either you are VERY badly off (many are) or you are expecting too much. Or maybe you are suffering from clinical depression.

Happiness is a good, contented day. Today was a happy day for Frances and me. A public holiday (All Saints); a good brunch (smoked eel and sparkling wine); a log fire; Frances hand colouring Ilford Art 300; me working on a piece of writing that matters to me; grilled duck breast with roast vegetables; sitting by the fire talking; a bath (we have a big bath, and Frances is still in it) with a glass of sparkling pink; a warm bed... And, it must be said, a seasoning of RFF.

Joy? That's rarer, but it happens. Some of it's too personal to discuss, but then there are things such as driving the Land Rover across difficult terrain; having a vernissage (opening night) for a little local exhibition; talking to my father on the 'phone; talking to my 'adopted daughter' on the phone (really the daughter of a very old friend, but we're very close -- she was born on my 40th birthday, 1990 for 1950); tentatively/provisionally planning trips to Paris, Spain, Bulgaria...

Pleasure? A part of both happiness and joy.

Remember the words of the Lord Buddha: "All sentient beings desire happiness and the causes of happiness, and to avoid suffering and the causes of suffering." And remember the vow of the bodhisattva: to strive for the happiness of all sentient beings.

The vow of the bodhisattva can be hard work sometimes, but that's OK. We don't always have to deliver. Again to quote the Lord Buddha (his last words): "All compound things decay. Work out your own salvation with diligence."

Tashi delek,

R.
 
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