Financing Stuff: The Survey

**Brian Sims** · 8-Jun-2005, 18:00

Ok...you are all beating around the bush. How you finance your photography habit (for those of us with significant partners) involves strategies appropriate for the marital battlefield. There are several approaches: 1. Get the kids involve and claim "It's for the kids." 2. Threaten to start drinking again (only works if you have stopped). 3. Keep a detailed record of your partners hobby purchases and then try to stay just under that level. 4. (This is my approach) Over pay your federal taxes then assert that the big refund is due to your write-offs of your photopgraphy business. Then take the refund and go shopping for that new lens!

**Dave Moeller** · 8-Jun-2005, 18:23

Brian-

You missed one: 5. Have a partner who appreciates that artistic work has theraputic value, and does not therefore have to pay for itself dollar-for-dollar. (Or maybe I'm just lucky, and I'm the only one in this situation.)

**Bill_1856** · 8-Jun-2005, 20:46

Personal check to Dagor77. Everybody else gets VISA or USPS money order. VISA is paid off monthly. Oh yeah, and cash at Wolf/Ritz camera on the rare occasion they carry anything that I need (like Polaroid 55 for instance).

**Conrad Hoffman** · 8-Jun-2005, 22:11

Cash only. I'm basically cheap and wait to stumble on decent used equipment, especially something I can shine up or repair. A major purchase would be anything over $100, and I almost never exceed $200. I can afford most anything I really want, but I can rarely justify top line equipment. Most recent purchase was a set of 4 like-new Lisco/Riteway 4x5 film holders at a flea market for $20. Also picked up a nearly perfect Argus 35mm for $5, so you can see I'm not a big spender. I'd rather invest in film and paper. I buy used cameras and my wife buys yarn, so we don't have to hide anything from each other :-)

**Bruce Wehman** · 9-Jun-2005, 08:55

You know, I really don’t know. It seems that whenever I need something, all I have to do is mention it to one of the young, female, groupies who are always hanging around and soon enough, it appears! Then, there are these marketing reps who are underfoot constantly…you know, they actually pay to have you use their stuff! Yea, and there was this flea market where the guy forced me to take a 110 XL so that he wouldn’t have to carry it back to his garage. … Then they’re times when I’m feeling down, and my wife comes over and says, “Hon, you look like you need to go out and spend a bunch of money on some of those wonderful things you have downstairs – here’s some money out of the cookie jar.”

Seriously: Being a really, really, cheap sort of a person, and having the company that I work for unload an entire photo lab to reduce overhead, are reasons why I have been able to (so far) get by with cash.

**Ole Tjugen** · 9-Jun-2005, 11:03

Cash only, but only because "real" credit cards are very uncommon here in Norway. I don't think I'd want one either, my company expenses card is bad enough.

Basically if I don't have the money, I can't buy. Maybe that's why so much of my equipment is more than 50 years old?

**Scott Rosenberg** · 9-Jun-2005, 11:34

cash only... buying things you can't pay for is a sure-fire way into a deep hole financially (cars, houses, and other large purchases withstanding).
about 90% comes from Jim at midwest photo. 10% private sales.

i try to avoid ebay, as often jim sells stuff in better condition for less money.