I have GAS
I don’t think this term is unique to the photography community, but it’s where I first came across it. Gear Acquisition Syndrome is the itch a photographer gets to buy that next lens, camera, or accessory even though we probably don’t need it. We tell ourselves a lot of things to justify our purchase, but in my case, I tell myself if I just had that new piece of gear, my photography would vastly improve. My current GAS situation is with the newly announced Sony A7R VI, one of their new top-of-the-line mirrorless cameras. Why this camera? Well, I own their previous top-of-the-line camera, the A7R V. This camera has been my absolute favorite camera I’ve ever owned. Paired with top of the line lenses, the images this camera produces are incredible and three years later still amaze me. I know I haven’t hit the ceiling of what this camera is capable of and it could easily last me another 3-5 years.
I like watching photography-related videos but I think it might be the root of my GAS. They’re not all bad, a lot of great content creators that share genuinely useful and informative videos on the art and technical side of photography. It’s the other influencers camera companies use to generate hype and FOMO. Just look at some of these YouTube video titles for this camera:
Sony A7RVI : Real World Test - 67MP is INSANE!
Sony absolutely cooked with this
It's Too Good - Sony A7R VI
SONY a7R VI Real World PREVIEW: HOW DID THEY PULL THIS OFF!!!
Did Sony Just Build My Perfect Camera?
My plan is (hopefully) simple. Use the gear I already have and challenge myself to try new things with that gear. It’s easy to get lost in the hype and convince myself that I NEED the new camera. I’ve done amazing things with this camera before, and that won’t change just because a new one came out. There will always be something new that is bigger, better, faster. Chasing specs is a losing battle so I think I’ll stick with what I got.
Currently I only share my work on Instagram, but I plan to change that in the future, and will be something I write about. But for now, here is a photo that really demonstrates how insanely good my current camera is!
