The price tag on a small business is not small.

I'm a little confused as to why a small business is called "small." Rather, it should be "Small sized business, with big expenses." I've spent a lot of money on this business (granted, I love photography and everything I buy is well-worth it, business, or no business) but I still have plenty of things to buy to enhance my small business.

Here is a break-down of what I've spent thus far to improve and build my business:

Camera and Lenses: $1,200 (granted, I would have bought this regardless)

iMac: $1,300 (grated, I would have bought this regardless)

One semester of photography classes (to begin this fall): $700

Photoshop Elements: $100

Logo: $50

One year website hosting: $50

One year website domain: $2

Business Cards: $8

Photography Book: $25

Thats about $3,335 I've spent thus far. And I have more spending to do than I've spent already! Here are things I would love to buy to improve my business, and eventually will as I build my business, starting with the most important tools:

Time Capsule: 500GB of space for $300, but I'll probably save to buy the 1T of space for plenty of space in the future for $500

More memory cards!: About $100 or so worth of cards

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom: $300

iLife '08: $80 (to make flyers, newsletters, etc.)

Nikon Speedlight SB-800: $390

Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 lens: $1,000

Bigger gear bag: Probably around $100-$200

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 ED-IF zoom lens: $1,800

Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8 ultra wide angle lens: $1,500

Nikon D3 camera body: $5,000 (Okay, realistically, I'll probably be getting the Nikon D300 body at this point, which is significantly cheaper at $1,650. I'll save for the D3 when I'm rich and famous)

Invest in a flash website: I'm not sure how much this will cost, but I'm sure it will be expensive!

Adobe Photoshop CS3 (Probably CS4 or 5...maybe even 6 by the time I get here!): $650

Mac Pro: $2,800

Nikon D3: $5,000 (if I had not gotten this before. Otherwise, multiple bodies!)

MacBook Pro: $2,000

Photography Classes: $2,100 (based on 3 more semesters, at $700 each semester)

Plus, random expenses that will incur along the way, such as lens filters, photography workshops/seminars, extra years of website hosing and domain name, more business cards, printing photographs for portfolio, portfolio books, etc!

Granted, it will take me years to reach my ideal equipment, but hopefully I will get there some day! I love photography, and it's where my heart is! So it's all worth it!

So I will start saving my money today! Hopefully I will get my Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 lens for my birthday next week! That would make me super happy and bring my portraits to the next level!

Have a nice week everyone!!!

E