Underage shooting? (Kids and cameras)

[Roddie]

I want to throw this out for discussion ..... at what age do you think a child should have their first camera? With the holiday season coming up I am sure many would like some input and personal experiences on this. As this in the Small Compact forum I am talking about P&S cameras, not the XTi's and 30d's etc. Thanks for the input.

[mes448]

They have some specially made for young kids cameras I have seen advertised by Fisher Price or someone like that and they claim they can be dropped, hit, etc., without breaking. So I guess about 5 years old would be OK for those. A "real" camera, probably a little older and the age would depend on the maturity and interest of the child.

[EOSAddict]

My daughter is well able to handle an IXUS 40 (Powershot 400 for you Americans ;)) and has been since she was 4+ (5 1/2 now)

Even been known to grip the DSLR!

[71sbeetle]

I got my first camera when I was 7 (my Grandma got a new camera and gave me hers) it was a bulky P&S Canon film camera

[cdjr4@cox.net]

I just bought my 10 year old a used digital rebel for $150. She goes on shoots with me and now she can second shoot with me and I don't have to worry about her using my 30D.
It's been great teaching her the ropes.

[Croasdail]

My 5 year old has my old 4 mpx point and shoot. I love seeing what he thinks is neat. I am just recycling a camera I otherwise wouldn't use and is simple enough for him. It's fun watching him explore with it.

[victoria]

My 6 year old uses my XT and at times my 30D and gets some pretty awesome shots...sometimes better than my own. He is as careful with them as I am and I have no need to worry about my cameras at all. Some day real soon he will have his own. :)

[kenwood33]

I think as long as the kid is responsible you can hand him/her a camera anytime.

[Citizensmith]

I got my eldest kid his first camera for his 6th birthday. It was nothing special, just a $90 P&S, but he loves it. Probably get him a better one soon. And his brother is going to be 6 next year, guess I need to treat them the same. :)

[Roddie]

Wow, Thanks everyone for the quick responses. I thought it would be an interesting discussion. I feel quite happy now that I got my 6yr old grandaughter her first 'real' camera for a holiday season present. (I'm being politically correct, I think of it as Christmas but I do respect the opinions and beliefs of others). Its just as you said Citizensmith, a $90 P&S. My opinion on the Fisher Price one is that if it looks like a toy the child will treat it like a toy. Make sense? With a real camera it may also teach some pride of ownership and responsibility. Please continue..........................

[Eagle]

It would depend on the individual child, how do they treat things. How do you feel about the possibility of them trashing the new camera, they are kid after all. Do they have a real interest in taking pictures.

[the_incubus]

i had a camera from birth

[Woolburr]

There are some fairly inexpensive P&S models out there...if the child has shown an interest...get them one of the cheapies to start on...if they show some interest and take care of things...you can always get them an upgrade at a future date. My grandfather gave me my first camera at the age of 6....and just kept upgrading it as my skills improved.

[DizzyV6P]

My daughter got this camera for xmas last year when she was almost 3 years old.

http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Tough-Digital-Camera/dp/B000QUJKFU/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_k2a_2_txt?pf_rd_p=304485601&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-2&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000EULZPU&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=13E8RV89YQJJ06P6159C

She loves it and sometimes carries it w/ her when I'm taking photos :)

[DrPablo]

I'm getting my cousin a point and shoot for his Bar Mitzvah (13 years old). I had some film cameras (like a Canon Aquasnappy) when I was younger than that, but I think digital cameras should probably go to older kids, like 12 or 13 -- just too expensive to lose or break.

[Crossfire]

I've been teaching my 10 & 12 year old daughters with my 30D and a 50 1.4 It's not too heavy for them. At this stage I have them concentrating just on composition.

[DocFrankenstein]

I want to throw this out for discussion ..... at what age do you think a child should have their first camera?
It doesn't really matter... as long as the rest of the education falls into place, they won't be disadvantaged by being cameraless. ;)

[ibdb]

I bought my oldest son (he's now 8) his first P&S camera when he was 4. It was a cheapo (<$100) HP. Initially, he used it all the time, but his interests have broadened as he's grown older. He still uses it from time to time, and when he gets serious about it, he really gets into it. The camera is really the limiting factor for him now in a lot of ways -- if I had it to do over, I would probably look for a camera with more manual control options.

By now, he knows more about operating a camera than his mom and grandparents, and has been called upon by each for help more than once. :lol:

[Nouks]

I've had my first analog P&S camera at... Well, should have been somewhere around 9 or 10 years old, I guess... First (for that time, pretty) decent camera came at my 14th I guess. Have been photographing pretty serious since.