Embarassed by my buying binges.

40 years ago I got my first "good" camera for Christmas. Over the next couple of years I added a couple "entry level" lenses, a flash and a tripod. The film camera era is over so 5 years ago I gave everything to a highschool student who is collecting old cameras.

This time last year I purchased a high quality "point and shoot" camera. It triggered my interest in photography again so I got a higher quality camera that takes extra lenses, etc. That was the start of my buying binge. I have added 4 lenses, a couple flashes, a tripod and a fancy camera bag big enough to hold everything.

Now I'm unhappy with the quality of the photos I am taking so I'm enrolled in camera courses at the local community college.

I'm actually embarassed by the quality of equipment I have. It is all very extravagant.
The good news is I still like photography and am enjoying learning to use my new toys. The other good news is that everything is paid for.

I guess I don't have a question.
I was just feeling I had to confess my attraction to neat stuff and my weakness in catering to my wants.

Well, I don't really think you should feel embarrassed. Let's see: it's an interest you've had for at least 40 years. That means it's not an over-the-top-OMG-I-really-love-this manic thing. You are able to criticize the quality of your work, which has lead you to take up classes to improve. Again, this shows a commitment not characteristic of manic interests. Finally, everything is paid for, so there's no debt to worry about. Did you stop buying necessary stuff to pay for all this? If so, there is cause for concern. If not, good!

I can understand why you feel a bit guilty. Honestly, I think you should keep a watchful eye on your spending, just to make sure things don't escalate. But try and enjoy all your toys. Remind yourself that this is something that brings you joy and that you're actively pursuing and trying to improve on. As long as you don't go overboard, this seems like a healthy hobby. Just try and keep it under control.

I have done the same thing. But I would not see this as productive and healthy if you are operating with comparatively limited funds. IMO this still can be considered self-destructive. Only you can make this determination.

I have gone through 60,000 in cash representing 25% of my net worth. Also there is an additional 8,000 on my credit card. Each purchase can be construed as logically made. I was not purchasing belly button lint on EBay. I do have something to show for it. But if I take a step back, I see it as mindlessness on my part that has damaged my financial health. And I did not realize this until the spending spree came to an end. Thank the good Lord that this has ended. So are my toys worth the actual cost to me, which goes beyond the specific dollar value? Considering it will take several years to recover from? No, I do not think so. I really did not need those toys.

Well, atleast it's just photography gears and you love doing it.

I've been having a similar situation but involving lots of different things. I notice that there's a wave like pattern in my spending. I could go for months not spending anything unnecessary. Months after that, I splurge on things like 'whatever I'm obsessed with at that time', stationery, or more extravagantly violin gears. I admit I'm not a good player but I do love playing.

Last year, I had a phase where I bought some Filofaxes and all its other 50+ add-on pages that I rarely even touch nowadays. No, I am not organised these days nor do I even know where to begin fixing all my other 'creative' messes.

What helps me would be to tell myself that I cannot touch a large portion of my current account and pretend those are my 'savings'. I use an app on my phone so I could divide how much I can use for food, rent, etc and the rest are NOT TO BE SPENT. It doesn't matter how small they are. I update these every month so I know I am saving some money and hopefully won't use them for something ridiculous.

I'm quite lucky here -- I generally don't get buying binges, and if I do, I recognise them for what they are. I go until almost the last step -- put stuff in the basket in online store... then close the tab and not finish the purchase. (Also postage costs put me off -- I almost bought a gorgeous Asgeir vinyl LP yesterday but I'm not going to pay 14 UKP for the vinyl and 6 for the shipping.)

I don't have an app. I'm just aware that I am poor. I can't stop being aware of how much in debt I am despite not buying much, so when this urgent feeling comes, I still feel strong enough to wait it off. The only things I "splurge" on from time to time are one-off iTunes purchases averaging 3 Euro per month and sometimes a book.