I’M NOT DYING BUT I NEED YOUR HELP!

Well, I guess the title is pretty clear, right? Thanks God I'm not dying but I DO NEED YOUR HELP!. I'm a Colombian 30 year old English teacher. I went to the university and studied to become one for five years. However, like we all eventually do, I found myself at one point of my life trying to find something to do on a personal level that would help me cope with everyday work related activities (and all the negative stuff that comes with it). Trying to find balance I guess. The good thing is that I DID find something that I am passionate about and that helps me lead a healthier and futfilling life style.

Colombia is the country with the most number of bird species on earth (You can check this info here: https://rainforests.mongabay.com/03birds.htm). I somehow ended up taking pictures of birds as a hobby and I truly loved it from the very first shot. I started with a simple camera somebody gave to me some years ago. I truly enjoyed that camera and I think I got the best out of it until it broke. Nevertheless, I wasn´t gonna stop there. I worked hard (exceptionally hard since being a teacher is one of the worst paid professions in my country. It barely helps me cover rent and house expenses) and managed to save to buy a decent camera to keep shooting. Unfortunately, the more I learn about photography the more aware I am of the fact that this is an expensive hobby! Moreover, it can seem excesively expensive when you are planing to make a living out of it.

Having the richest country on earth when it comes to bird species and not doing anything about it seems just lazy. I want to show this vast, colorful, mesmerizing treasure to the world. Some people are doing so by showing the beautiful species people would see when visiting my country and offering "Bird Tours" to people from all over the world.through platforms such as instagram In fact, I started my own instagram account at the begining of the year. (you can go check it out, just go to @maadcitizen) So, when do you guys come into the story? I am in desperate need of improving my gear. Colombia is not the proper place to get photography gear since everything here costs twice or even three times as much as in countries like the United States or Canada. I'm not asking for much. In order to make this business idea come true I need to post better quality photographs that could spark attention of potential clients that would love to come and enjoy bird tours! I need a telephoto lens to be able to register birds properly and they are just too damn expensive! I just can´t afford to get one, but I'm not willing to give up on this because of money! I'm not even trying to get the most fabulous brand new equipment. What I am aiming for is a simple cheap canon telephoto lens (Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 is II USM Lens) which you can check for price over here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B01LXTX4WY... This is not a fancy top of the line lens. All the contrary, it is just something that would allow me to step up my bird photography game, continue my learning process and eventually start my own birding tours which would just make me so freaking happy.

Please, I know this cause may seem empty or foolish for some, but trust me. We all somehow need help and sometimes even what we perceive as hollow or stupid can make a radical difference for someone somewhere else where conditions might be not the best.

PLEASE HELP!

If you need to confirm how expensive my country is when it comes to photography gear please refer to this website:

https://articulo.mercadolibre.com.co/MCO-479868438...

It is like the Colombian Amazon. There, the very same lens that you saw previously posted on amazon costs almost 1.000 dollars, whereas in Amazon it is possible to buy between 400 and 500 bucks!