If you are a photographer, you know what I’m talking about. If you aren’t a photographer, I’ll explain.

Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS) is when you can’t resist buying much more photography equipment than you’ll ever really need.

My GAS has come and gone a few times over the past 20 years. It originally began in 2003 when I purchased a Canon EOS 3 film body. I quickly added another EOS film body to my kit. Eventually, in 2004, I dipped my toes into the digital water by purchasing an Olympus point-and-shoot and a Canon EOS 350D “Digital Rebel.” The 350D was a consumer-grade DSLR with a whopping 8 megapixels of resolution. It came with the kit lens, a basic 18-55mm plastic lens. I was happy with that lens and body for about a year. My collection was growing.

Add a few more lenses, another DSLR, the Canon EOS 30D, and I was now fully consumed with GAS. The cycle went like this: buy a new camera, then another, then more lenses. I’d sell something off to buy even more gear. I made the same rookie mistakes many do. I’d buy cheap stuff to save money and then end up buying something better because the cheap stuff wasn’t cutting it. Over and over for a few years, I would eventually end up with more photography gear than I really needed, and I was living the life.

The GAS didn’t stop with cameras and lenses. I quickly began buying camera bags. I needed something for flying, with dimensions that fit airline overhead luggage. However, I soon discovered that airlines cheat – not all overhead luggage dimensions are the same. So, I’d buy a different bag, slightly smaller. Then a larger bag to hold all my gear when traveling by car. Then another bag to accommodate two different camera kits. I’ve often owned two different brands of cameras and also collected all the gear I needed for each brand – a Canon bag, a Nikon bag, and an extra bag for accessories and miscellaneous stuff that every photographer accumulates, but may rarely use.

Then came the tripods. Big tripods with gimbal heads for the super-telephoto lenses, regular tripods for everyday photography, compact tripods for travel – carbon fiber, wood, aluminum, plastic, you name it, I’ve collected so many variations I can’t count them. Panning heads, panoramic heads, ball heads, pistol grips, boot plates galore – every size and shape. My office now looks like a used camera store.

Flashes and studio lights. Boy, there’s a rabbit hole one can climb into if they develop a serious case of GAS! I think I had at least five hot shoe flashes (a small flash that mounts on the top of the camera) in my kit, both Canon and Nikon brands. Plus, I had at least two sets of external studio lights. I did use them though, when I was full-tilt into commercial photography. Portable backdrops, seamless papers, flash stands, scrims, soft boxes, different cloth backdrops – all useful tools to have when one is doing portraits or studio work. I have a whole shelf in my basement dedicated to this gear. Except for a hot shoe flash, I never use any of that stuff these days, but I can tell you I’ve spent thousands of dollars on it over the years.

And so it went, for many years, the gear accumulated. I had become a collector of photographic equipment.

The digital revolution had been kind to my photography. For years, my trusty Nikon DSLRs had captured countless memories and fueled my creative vision. But as 2020 approached, a tremor ran through the industry: the rise of mirrorless cameras. This innovation not only challenged the dominance of DSLRs, but also forced me to confront my own stubborn attachment to the familiar.

Mirrorless. Suddenly, everything seemed to be about them. My health, my mindset – even the way I approached photography – began to subtly shift.

My initial reaction was defiance. Selling off all my gear just to buy the latest gadgets? No way. Especially since many DSLRs were still being made. But by 2019, the writing was on the wall: mirrorless was the future. So I dug in, stubbornly clinging to my Nikon D850 and D810 kit. I wasn’t about to be swayed by trends.

However, a seed of doubt had been planted. I kept a close eye on the evolving mirrorless market, meticulously comparing specs and prices. The early models just didn’t impress me – image quality felt like a lateral move at best. Still, I held out hope for a game-changer, a mirrorless system that could truly outperform my trusty DSLRs in terms of image quality, functionality, price, and weight.

Then came 2021. A nagging truth became undeniable: my DSLR kit, once a source of pride, was starting to feel cumbersome and dated. Lugging around a 30-pound pack wasn’t getting any easier with age. My trusty Sony RX100-II pocket camera saw more and more action, a testament to my growing desire for portability. Even airline travel became a chore, forcing me to wrestle with my bulky carry-on. My priorities were shifting. Lightness, portability, and a streamlined kit were becoming increasingly important. Mirrorless offered the potential for all three, and the idea of switching systems started to simmer in the back of my mind.

Here I am in the Spring of 2024 and I’ve made the decision to migrate to mirrorless. It won’t be a sudden shift though. I’ll start out with a starter mirrorless camera and lenses. Once the budget allows, I’ll add more mirrorless gear to the kit. It will be a return to using a mixed kit for a while, but that doesn’t concern me, I’ve done that before. I’ll remove the D810 from my bag along with a couple of lenses and will replace them with lighter, more capable new gear.

The starter kit will be an APS-C body. I’ve perused the current offerings from the manufacturers and have decided that my mirrorless future will be with Sony. I’ve looked at all the APS-C options out there and found that for me, Sony offers what I need in the way of new cameras and lenses, better than Nikon and Canon. There are other brands I have considered as well. OM Systems (formerly known as Olympus), Fuji, Pentax, Leica, Panasonic. I’ve found all to be off the mark for my needs.

And so, the GAS continues. I’ll report back later with the results.