When I started writing software for developing video footage last year I quickly had the need for hardware to test the software with. I admit it, I have GAS, so this was a welcome occation to give into my desires and buy some stuff. That was fun at first, but very quickly developed into a financial problem, of course. So I had to dial it back. I had to find a way to test a lot of equipment and not ruin me financially doing so. I searched around where and how to rent video and photo equipment. And that's were I came across Gearo.de.

Gearo is a German startup that operates in Germany and Austria. It works like Airbnb, but with photo and video equipment. If you have some equipment lying around at home, you can use this platform to start renting it to other people for one or more days. And if you like to check out a certain camera or a particlar lens without buying it, you can rent it from somebody in your local area.

I liked the idea and created an account. The setup process is quite painless and fast. Within minutes you can start renting stuff. Once you've decided for an item and a certain renting period, you request a rental. The owner of the gear then approves or denies the request. I had a couple of denies at first and started to get annoyed, but the Gearo staff is very kind and will help you find an alternative. So far I rented a Panasonic GH5 and a Sony Alpha 7s.

I also looked around in my closet and checked what I can rent out. You can check out my stuff on my profile page. There haven't been a lot of requests yet, but I already rented out my Zhiyun Crane v2 two times and earned about 60 EUR so far. Once you have an agreement with the equipment owner, you take the car and just pickup it up. The renting process on site is very quick. You basically make a picture of the gear, note the serial number and the id of the renter and both sign the contract on the gear owner's smartphone. So far it was a lot of fun for me. I met a lot of creative people with great and inspiring projects and ideas.

It's too bad that the service only operates in Germany and Austria so far, because I think that it's a great idea that connects creative and inspiring people around the world. Keep up the good work, Gearo!