A $500 Lesson : Part One

This is really strange for me to say, but I'm glad I spent $500 when I probably shouldn't have! Let me explain...

Over the last couple of years I've really enjoyed editing our home videos and making little movies from our vacations, of the boys, and for birthday celebrations. I filmed two weddings thinking I would be interested in becoming a wedding videographer. I just used our little handheld camcorder and had a lot of fun doing it, especially the editing. I spent many months thinking what it would take to break into the wedding industry as a videographer. I knew I would need a professional camera to get better footage. My search on KSL classifieds began. After being deceived and making one poor purchase (that's another story in and of itself...) I was back to the search on KSL.

After more research on the top prosumer video cameras, I found an excellent used one in my price range- a Canon XL2 with less than 100 hours of use and in mint condition for $500. The guy selling it used it to film for National Geographic and ESPN. This camera is legit. Its like the mother of all professional video cameras.

Heath and I had several discussions about whether or not to spend more money on another camera. I knew it was something I want to pursue, but wasn't sure exactly what it would take to make happen. I about made myself go crazy by analyzing the pros and cons of the purchase for days. Here's a sample of some of my thoughts-

Pros:

It would give me the chance to pursue something I enjoy, something that challenges me, something that makes me excited. I haven't really felt that way about much since I've stopped running. Heath told me the benefits of me having a hobby would be well worth the $500. Another pro, is the potential for making the $500 back and then some. It would be great to have a little more income, even though school teaches make bank...ha.

Cons:

Its a lot of money to spend, when I know very little about filming. It's money we should be putting in our medical savings account. I was also unsure how I would balance learning how to work such a fancy camera and all the technical filming skills, learn how to develop a business, take care of my boys, prepare a lesson for YW's each week, cook, clean, etc.

I continued to flip-flop on how I felt about the entire idea. Sometimes I thought "yeah, I should pursue videography" and sometimes the opposite thoughts, "no, not such a good idea". We prayed for direction and I continued to feel torn. Overall I didn't feel that great about buying the camera, but my strong desire to purchase it clouded my ability to see that. Hindsight, I realize that was the spirit trying to guide me.

(to be continued...)