Only What Is Earned: Going on a Financial Diet

were it not for my wife, i would spend myself into oblivion without end. she’s been my rock and really the inspiring force behind my push into photo over the past several months. we’re it not for her ultimatum that any camera gear i want needs to be paid for with camera revenue, then i probably wouldn’t have come so far so fast after a long period of stagnation.

now i stand on a new plateau and it’s time to micro-evolve once more. out of necessity, my established buying strategy has been to acquire the equipment i need using my own personal available funds or my interest-free adorama credit card, and then replenish those funds and pay my balance monthly as i earn revenue from my work. using this strategy, i’ve hustled my way into the black, and even turned a small profit. but as of last week, when i decided to pull the trigger on the eos rp purchase, i am now in the hole by more than $1,000. granted, i have about that much in revenue on the calendar, but after my regular weekly client decided not to continue with our arrangement (totally support her decision and hope we work together again), and after my regular monthly event photography client didn’t ask me back to take this month’s photos, i have effectively lost what i calculated to be $435 of recurring revenue per month. that’s why they say you shouldn’t count your chickens before they hatch.

mans for that reason, it’s time for a change in my purchasing strategy, a hard shift. i will no longer acquire gear that my work hasn’t already paid for. that is to say, no more buying until i’ve paid off what i have, and once that finish line is crossed, i have to earn enough money to buy something before i buy it. i’ve talked about this before, but i haven’t been faithful to it, so now it’s no longer just a goal, but a hard and fast law with only two potential exceptions: nd filters and a drone. these are two items that i will need to have with me on my upcoming travels to complete my kit, and there is no point stopping five yards short of the goal line at this point.

once those are in hand, i need to be done. i don’t have any more pressing needs, no more bucket list items. i will finally have a kit that is complete as i need it to be, and i can finally just turn my full attention to the work of photography and away from the camera store.