Believe it or not, I've slowed down. If you check my flickr page you'll see most of the cameras I have, many of which are high-end compacts, but also include some stupidly pricey larger cameras. It has only been this year that I am NOT desperately hankering after a new camera. In the preceding few years I have gone from one compact to another, always keeping them because they all do something that the other cannot. I think that a lot of my GAS came from wanting to shoot with a certain kind of camera in particular circumstances. Now I've got so many that just about all of my wants have been met!
For example:
- Ricoh GRD III is my silent museum camera. Stealthy and quiet, it hides in the folds of my scarf and emerges to take a photo when no one is looking, and then it disappears just as quickly. I used to use the Canon S70 for this but the AF was crap in low light. I moved to the Canon G10 later but it has that darn Power light on the top, and is quite large in comparison. I tried the Sigma DP1, and while it is super quiet and has a wide angle lens, the AF was poor and low light/high ISO photos were terrible. I tried using manual focus with all of these cameras but the implementation was too clumsy. The GRD III focuses very well in low light, takes wonderful photos in low light for a small sensor camera, and also has a very good manual focus implementation when it's needed.
- The Ricoh GXR and the 28 and 50 modules are my general everyday camera. I used to carry a Canon 30D DSLR every day in my shoulder bag. I took thousands of photos with it and eventually upgraded to a 5D Mark II, which I found just that bit too large to take everywhere. After some time, I came to realize that what I liked the most was not necessarily speed or zoom range, but excellent image quality in wide angle and medium lens. I used the Sigma DP1 and DP2 as a two-camera combo for a long time, and while they gave me many wonderful photos with a unique look, the GXR+28+50 is much faster, easier to handle, and produces much better high ISO images. Higher ISO is very important to me as I shoot a lot in natural / low light. So I can quite happily use the GXR as a general purpose camera, but NOT as a quiet museum camera as it is relatively noisy.
- I use the Leica M9 a heck of a lot, and it covers levels of image quality and versatility that the GXR cannot, and yet vice versa, too. I get the best low ISO images from the M9 compared with any other camera I have. I can use my collection of Zeiss, Voigtlander and Leica lenses. And I get to enjoy the rangefinder shooting experience. But it won't do low light as well as the GXR; it doesn't have AF so there goes shooting from the hip without setting the lens; it is louder than the GXR so I can't use it in certain places; and it cost me an arm, leg and kidney, so taking it to some places is a bit risky. But I absolutely love it, and it is my favourite camera, with the GXR close behind.
The only thing that none of these cameras do well is video. I usually take the Canon S90 when I want decent pocket video, but I am currently borrowing a friend's Sony HX5V. It is stunning for video, and I have read that the HX7V is even better. But the S90 suits me for most purposes and is smaller than the HX series cams. So all of my bases are covered. I have a small and silent camera in the GRD III. I have a super general purpose camera in the GXR. And when I really want to bring it on, I have the M9.
All of my other cameras have either gone to family members or are only used when needed. I shoot shop interiors, products and promotional video for a living, so the 5D Mark II plus assortment of zooms and primes takes care of this. But filling all of my most likely needs has lead me to drop the GAS. Heck, I even passed on the Fuji X100 when I got that call!
Leica, however, will be unveiling a new compact interchangeable lens system in the next year. We shall see what happens then!