Affording Equipment

Elmy

Elmy

Well-known member
I was wondering if I could get some opinions/advice on affording equipment, specifically the camera. I would really like to order my HMC150 as soon as I can, however being a full time college student, and only making 8$/hr part time retail, (sometimes I also work parties for 25$/hr but thats few and far between in this economy.) it is proving to be a long journey to save up the money. I'm currently at about 2100$, so I'm only about a grand or so off. Do you guys think I should just wait, keep saving? Or try to to get financing, either try for a 6month-1yr no interest credit card or panasonic offers a financing plan however the HMC150 isnt under the 2.99% APR one I think for the HMC150 its like a 6-7% APR.

I'm trying to stay away from credit cards, but if someone can give me a good card and a good reason I might go there. The financing sounds good however I'll admit I know a lot of things but what loans, credit cards, and financing entails is not one. So if you think thats a good way to go can you also maybe explain the details with it?

There is no real reason I need it NOW, I just want to get it as soon as possible, I'm anxious to use it.
 
Elmy said:
There is no real reason I need it NOW...
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OK..I think your answer is right there...

Keep in mind, this is just the opinion of one old guy...but considering the economy right now, the last thing I would do is go into debt for something I didn't need.

(Honestly, even if I needed it, I would figure out a way to pay cash)
 
I understand your anxiousness to use it, but wait. I don't know if you have student loans or not, but as a college student you don't want any more debt than you may already have. And if you can stay out of debt completely, even better. I got into some trouble in college the same way (credit cards), and struggled to get out of the debt but finally did. Don't put yourself in that situation. I've been careful ever since.
 
I remember when I was in school and I screwed up my credit like very, really badly... It took years of eating rice and living like a miser to turn it around.


If you are starting a business then you'll have some options in terms of writing things off but if you are starting a business you need to have money [cash] in the bank and not just a credit limit.


I'm not anti-credit but you have to be very smart about how and when you need to use it. Credit can cost you more in the long run but it is something that we need for the most part but it needs to be in good shape to work for us or we'll work harder for it.


Right now, the only way I would charge a camera is if I knew I had a gig that would pay for most or at least a large part of it. If I had the cash to buy it flat out without eating rice for months or years I would do it with cash or if my credit card paid cash back points and I could do it without adding up interest charges...


I would not charge it if I had no real job lined up or if I thought it would mess up my credit rating or if I would pay more for the camera in higher interest rate charges.

I ramble but think about what you need and be smart about how to get.
If you pay more for something or if it cost you more in the long run I would not think that that is smart.
 
save the money, I did, and after 3 years I was able to buy it (during those three years I went from wanting to buy a sony fx1 to a HVX200 to the HMC (which I finally buyed). You may end up buying a better camera when you save enough for the camera that you want now...
 
Hidef1080 said:
Right now, the only way I would charge a camera is if I knew I had a gig that would pay for most or at least a large part of it. If I had the cash to buy it flat out without eating rice for months or years I would do it with cash or if my credit card paid cash back points and I could do it without adding up interest charges...
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Along the lines of what Hidef said, look for a friend or acquaintance who is getting married and explain the situation to them and how they can get their wedding video at well below what they would normally have to pay (be honest about your skills, and learn all you can to make it the best that you can at your level). They may be willing to pay several hundred dollars for something that's above amateur level but not so involved that they would need to pay thousands to get it done. You in turn get practice and skills, and can also give you footage for a demo reel that you can use later for future customers if you so decide to go that route.
 
IF you think you can generate the extra money you need to pay it off quickly AND get the accessories you need, go for it. i really didn't need either of the two cameras I bought in the last 5 months, coul dhave stayed with my Sony's a LONG time, but screw it. you can do some cheap craigslist weddings, build a folio, make some cash, and then you in the black.
 
thanks for all the comments guys. I posted it mainly to see if anyone might have had a good reaosn to purchase it before I actually had the money (i.e a good no interest credit card, or other reasons about the camera). However right now I am just going to save up. Luckly I have no debt, I actually have perfect credit, had a credit card for three years, no late payments, and I have a car loan of 195$ a month that I'm paying off fine. I'm really good with paying things off, I'm actually upset Newegg doesn't have this camera listed. I normally purchase from them because its 1 year no interest for purchases $999.99 and up. Thats how I got my DVX100b before, which i paid off in about 4 months.

However since I can't seem to find a 1 year no interest plan anywhere, and at my young age they are hard to obtain with credit cards I will save my money for now. Hopefully I can purchase the camera soon anyways.
 
as stated probably 7 times already, just save your money, granted i bought mine with insurance money, nonetheless i had to save to buy the equipment that was stolen from me.
 
you got a nice DVX100b !!!! Go out and shoot, make wedding videos as suggested already. You gain skills and make the extra money you might need in the future for an upgrade ;)
 
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I dont have the DVX100b no more, I sold it to save up for the HMC, because I was worried If i waited it would drop in value even more. Although I do miss it, doing a Wedding in South Florida with a Non HD camera, or even with a company is very very difficult. I know because I work for an Entertainment company that does parties and they won't use anything non HD anymore around here (especially Boca Raton). There was a limited demand for SD it seemed and even limited ability for me to find anyone to hire me. I'm also not to interested in looking to do weddings or parties in general, If its offered or It's not difficult job for me to find I'll do it, sure, money is money and I love video taping things, however I'd rather invest more time into independent projects and what commercial use i can find.
 
i just pulled out a hefty loan. The way I see, I'm in school to learn and everyone is learning the same thing. I took out the loan to get a camera and a mac computer to familiarize myself with work I want to do in the future and to be a step ahead of another student. So, if someone were to ask me, "Hey, can you do ___" Hopefully, my investment was not in vain, and I can say "YES!"

But good work ethic and a few other essentials couldnt hurt either.

It always a risk though.
 
You mentioned NewEgg. Great company, but not for buying Panasonic video products.

Always buy Panasonic authorized.
 
Newegg is authorized. When I purchased my DVX100b I called panasonic to make sure It was Authorized and they would cover the special offer (which was a 200$ rebate) and Panasonic said Newegg is authorized and ok.
 
The real bummer is that you need two HMC-150s to shoot a wedding IMO.

Then; two tripods, maybe two wireless units and certainly two good shotgun mics.


We get paid how much to shoot weddings?....and the photographer gets paid how much? Video is a capital equipment intensive business.
 
i don't see the need to shoot a wedding with 2 HMC's, my friend shoots great wedding videos and he uses one Z7u
 
I think that being 2/3s of the way towards something means that just a bit of a push and you are there. Do you have any family members or friends that could loan you the cash and you pay it off over a year or so. That would be a 100 bucks a month.


If you have the camera it will force you to get work and you should be able to pay it back from even small jobs and or renting it out to people you trust. I'd say to consider getting it.... since you are almost there.
 
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