Moment of truth

[BAPIEMAI]

I am presented with a very challenging dilema. I have some money stashed away and I was ready to get the Bessa R3A with a Zeiss Planar but an opportunity came to spend that money on a 10 day trip to Amsterdam.

Now if I go I will have to use my Canon EOS 30 and Sigma 28-70 f2.8 lens which is a huge KIT and I will have to postopone the purchase of the Bessa for at least three months.

And I wonder what should I do, what would you do in my shoes ? I mean I have 8 cameras but only one RF and I cannot trust it for very long (it is an old Hi-Matic 7 ready to die) so I WANT a new RF. But on the other hand it does seem silly to waste a perfectly good trip just to satisfy my GAS.

 

[RML]

Take the trip! When it comes to trips it seems you never get a repeat chance, while with cameras it seems to be different (or perhaps we're more inclined to give into our GAS attacks).

 

[thmk]

Enjoy the trip together with your EOS gear. I also think there are more opportunities for gear than for a journey abroad.

 

[wierdcollector]

Travel, family and bills come first, cameras are fun but definitely second. There will always be another camera. Trust me, I know.

 

[Pherdinand]

trip,trip,trip. What's the use of the cameras if you stay home coz you spent your money on gear.
If you really think the EOS is a pain to carry, get rid of it - it's obviously not for you. For the price of the f/2.8 zoom and the body you should be close to get a good rf, anyway🙂 You can complete it from those 8 other cameras.
Or you can take the challenge and go with your hi-matic only. If it dies, you still can enjoy the trip.

 

[chug]

Buy the Bessa R and 35mm combo for the trip?

 

[Penguin_101]

I would take the trip. Like what others have said, what good is your gear at home? And if you want to get rid of the EOS stuff, I will take it off your hands, cheap. 😉

 

[back alley]

i like sleeping in my own bed, buy the camera🙂

joe

 

[Pherdinand]

you've just had to be different, Joe, right?😀

 

[DougK]

No question about it... take the trip 🙂

 

[cbass]

Take the trip. Use your money to make memories. The Bessa will still be there when you return.

If you stayed home and bought the camera, every time you used the Bessa you would be reminded of the trip you passed up to buy it.

Enjoy Amsterdam!

 

[RObert Budding]

I'll give you a camera and I'll take the trip. You'll need to babysit my two sons, ages 8 and 6, though, while I'm away.

Robert

 

[captainslack]

TAKE THE TRIP!!!

If you can buy the Bessa in three months, then wait three months. If you buy the Bessa now, I'm willing to be in three months time you'll wish you'd gone to Amsterdam instead!

 

[SolaresLarrave]

Another vote for the trip. As the Captain put it above, in three months you'll have the Bessa but no memories and you'll probably be kicking yourself for having missed the chance.

Have fun!

 

[BAPIEMAI]

I am pleased to see that almost everybody here has his head screwed on right. Of course I will take the trip since it now includes Paris as well. I will most probably take my Hi-Matic and my small Olympus mju just in case.

Actually the problem with the Minolta is that the counter is broken and the rewind/shuter cock feels very loose and I always have the feeling that I only expose only the first frame of the film. Of course all the films come back from the lab ok but I fear that it will break down when the alien spaceship will land and I will not have nothing to show for it.

 

[Honu-Hugger]

Take the trip and your most dependable camera. Gear is great, but the experience and the memories are what matter most. Earlier today I gave a very serious reply to the "Camera Around the World" thread; I'd take my little Rollei 35 and enjoy myself to the max!!! OK, if I was really taking a trip around the world I'd probably be hard-pressed to decide what to take, but the point is as much as I love photography I've learned to put the trip first and photos second -- whatever the choice would be for "simple and dependable." Enjoy your fabulous trip!!!

 

[back alley]

i like sleeping in my own bed, buy the camera🙂

joe

I am pleased to see that almost everybody here has his head screwed on right.



hhmmm...

time for a trip to the shrink for me, i guess...
joe

 

[taffer]

groan...

Buy two cameras, keep one and sell the other at European prices, you'll end with a camera for free and you won't feel guilty during the trip 😀

 

[RML]

groan...

Buy two cameras, keep one and sell the other at European prices, you'll end with a camera for free and you won't feel guilty during the trip 😀

You'll have to look hard for a fool to pay those European prices. I think most if not all RF enthousiasts have already found Cameraquest or eBay. 🙂

 

[Little Prince]

8 other cameras? Sell some of them off, get your r3a/planar combo and take the trip. I bet you don't need all those. Besides, with GAS being what it is, you'll be buying again soon enough. But I don't suggest buying something you don't really have your sights set on just for the trip because it won't really satisfy you and you'll be in the market again in no time.
I went to Amsterdam about 6 months back. It was wonderful. Despite not being there entirely for pleasure, it was one of the best holidays I've had. Being from Greece, it might not be as big a deal for you but it's still fun. I wish I had a small camera then that I could have taken around. Ended up taking very few pictures and lost most of what I shot too (mid-roll change fiasco, incorrect developer dilution, etc..).