Originally posted by VoiceOfReason Would you rather work on a project car with a complete set of tools such as found in a dealership including all specialty tools, a set of all your basic ones from a reputable company, or 40 dollar wrench and socket set from a no name company made in China? Obviously, if you can afford it option 1 would be by far the best. You could learn the tools well and get the job done better and more quickly with those. option 2 would still get the job done, but wouldn't be as nice and it make take more work to get what you want done. Option 3, yeah, don't even go there.
I'd put the K1 as option 1, the current and previous generation of APSC stuff as option 2, and then those who say get a 10+ year old camera body as option 3.
Though I like the mechanics reference and can really relate I will counter with this. I put myself through college working as an auto mechanic and having done that, the number of tools that I still have and no longer use in my home mechanic work is astounding. If I had started out with all those tools when first started, I would have not only been confused as to what some tools did and how to use them, I would have been out several thousand dollars that I didn't have. Especially since i started out changing oil and not doing anything else.
Photography is in many ways the same. The amount extra you pay for the extra tools and such can lead to an overwhelming experience that doesn't always deliver on the expectations that go with it. As with my beginning in auto mechanics, people typically start with the simplest task and then move up from there. The beginner simply does not need to invest that heavily to get the desired results. The beginner may also decided they have no use for the tools after some time and abandon them all together, which makes the greater investment up front all the more regrettable later.
I can assure you , the work I completed and knowledge I gained with my $75 craftsmen tool kit was made all the more valuable by the fact I didn't have to spend a ton of money up front. The same goes for my initial purchase of the K-30 and subsequent upgrade to the K-3