I want to teach my son. SLR or P&S

[tom l]

I had a similar issue crop up last year. I had just bought a 40D and also had a 10D & 30D. My son seemed to

take an avid interest in learning about photography - not just clicking the shutter but in learning the basics of

composition, exposure, dof, etc. I went looking around for nice P&S that had some manual settings too and came

to the conclusion that I could give him my 10D cheaper than I could sell it and buy him a P&S. He loves it

(especially when he wants to borrow my 70-200 L lens).

 

So give him your oldest SLR and buy yourself a new one! :)

[robertbody]

An alternative to "getting away from the computer", I would suggest going once a week to Kinko's to use their print 4x6 photos, you can just push a few buttons and have "Print All" on a memory card option, probably $0.30 per photo but it's a together-activity..... or at Costco or elsewhere you could drop off/pickup. What I like about Kinko's is using the same machine always and that consistency has some benefits, rather then overused machines working on maximum profit.

<br><br>

And those $1 albums that hold 36 4x6 photos from Michaels... that could be part of the together-activity. Many times Michaels are quite close to Kinko's. Of course computer is an important part of the process, but maybe not right away if there is too much new... but computer just adds to the variety and fun, especially for those Special photos.

[anthony_zipple]

SLR. You can share gear and trade stories. A used 20 or 30D and a short zoom and he will be in heaven

[waltflanagan]

My dad taught me to use his Nikon F2 when I was 6. He showed me how to load the film, explained aperture, shutter speed, focusing and depth of field. It seemed pretty easy when I was 6, an 11 year old should have no trouble.

[evphotography]

I say got for it, the 30D would be a great camera for him to start with and that is a pretty good price.

[richard_oleson]

I think he's old enough to use an SLR at 11, but he's not necessarily old enough to take care of it... so, both for the learning value and the economics, get him an older, decent quality 35mm SLR that's cheap enough that you won't be mad at him when it gets broken or lost.

 

I learned at 10 with a Voigtlander Vito folder, and then my parents gave me my "own" camera - a brand new Kodak Instamatic. After learning to adjust the shutter and aperture and focus, a one-speed, one-aperture fixed focus camera was a crushing disappointment even at 10 years old. One of the great things about the Digital Revolution is the quality of 35mm equipment that you can get at don't-worry-about-it prices.

 

The idea of giving him a $400 autofocusautoexposureautowashyoursocks DSLR does not appeal to me at all, but that's just me; I guess the instant gratification will help keep him from getting bored with it.

[bridgette_c]

I think an SLR for sure. Though i am only 22 now, i was around 10 or so when I first started shooting on my dads Canon Ae-1. We were on the Murray river on a houseboat and there was an amazing bird just sitting on the deck that I wanted to take a picture of. The rule that he made was that i can use it whenever I like, but I have to read the manual start to finish first. At the time i thought it was terrible mean! but in hindsight it was definitely the best way for him to go about it. So I read and read, and went over and over the bits I didn't understand until I did. And from then on I was always taking pictures. Kids are smart, aperture and depth of field etc, they can handle that stuff, and so i used to be quite expensive for the first year or so, taking pictures, some that worked and some that didn't, I think it was vital that I learnt on a film camera as i really appreciated that every picture I took cost money and to really concentrate on what I was doing. After a year or two when I started taking abstract pictures of rocks and bark, I had to save my pocket money up to pay for the film and processing but I did and have never looked back. I think you should get your son a good old fashioned simple SLR. It will teach him to concentrate on the technical side first, which i definitely think is really important to know early on, and know well. Im 3rd year fine art photog student at RMIT and have students around me still stumble on things like aperture and shutter speeds etc, I think you need to know these things like you know the alphabet, they make everything alot easier in the future. By giving him a film camera, he can appreciate his photos more as he has to wait for them to come back from the shop, if there is one that is too dark or blurry, you can help him learn why that happened. If he shoots digital then digital mindset of Ill just keep shooting till it looks right might set in, rather than learning how to not make the problem in the first place. Just my thoughts! Bridgette

[frank_page]

Going with a DSLR wouldn't hurt. I had my first SLR at around 12 or 13 (still have that Canon FTb...). And if you son can understand shutter speed, dof, etc. great! But even if he doesn't yet, don't forget to teach/encourage good composition and teach him about good light.

 

I was self taught and studied lots of books on photography, and these were too topics that I didn't get when I was a kid - yet they are just as, if not more, important thant the technical stuff.

 

Cheers and good shooting

[danbliss]

I think kids are often much brighter than we give them credit for. I'd go with the slr. I'd get a short prime, and I tell him to

shoot in aperture priority for the first year. I might turn off the autofocus too. An adult might take months to get a hang of it,

but a kid will get it within a week. Depend on how careful your son is you might get a cheap 35mm camera, which will cause

little concern if destoyed. Around that age I was playing with my dad's om2. I am glad I learned how to control the camera

early. Of course you know your son. Any advice anyone gives should probably be ignored. :-)

 

Dan

[vadtel]

Thanks everybody for your warm advises! All your stories touched me and I really appreciate you decide to share them! I'm still thinking what to buy (or maybe give him some old film camera I already have?!) but your responses gave me some GOLDEN LIGHT feeling - thanks and thanks!

[dave_redmann]

[First let's get rid of the d!&^ italics.]</I><P>

 

The fundamentals are not f-stops and shutter speeds. The fundaments are composition and light and decisive moments. A P&S may even be better, because its simplicity will let him concentrate on what really counts.<P>

 

For whatever it's worth, I just ordered my older son a Canon PowerShot A1000 IS for his ninth birthday. I think he will enjoy it without having to learn too much technical stuff. Not that the technical stuff doesn't ultimately become important--it does, and I normally shoot with a DSLR, and also enjoy my 4x5 (and other cameras). Also, some point-and-shoots have manual, aperture priority, and shutter priority modes; the Canon PowerShot A570 IS that I got for my wife a little over a year ago does (although apparently the A1000 does not).

[steven_f1]

I would get him a camera that is compatible with the same lenses and accessories you have. That way you only have to buy him a body and one general purpose lens. If he needs an accessory you have he can just borrow it. If he needs a polarizer loan him yours. If you buy him a camera that is not compatible with your lenses you can expect frequent requests for new expensive photo toys.

 

I would not get him a film camera at this time. Kids can loose interest in something very fast unless they get quick feedback. A digital will do that. As long as he is interested, take him out as often as you can. You will be surprised at how fast he will learn. He might loose interest in a year or so as frequently happens when they are young and have multiple interests. If that happens don't drag him out to take pictures. That could kill his interest in photography. Instead continue to invite him out and entice him with locations such as the zoo, the fire station or Disney Land. That would help restore his interest.

 

In stead of buying him a used camera, I would suggest upgrading and give him one of your older bodies. In time "Dad's camera" could add something to his memory of the photo trips you had together. As his skill and interest increases you can get him accessories such as a lens, tripod, or a film body (especially if he has interest in taking star trails).

 

Have fun!

[ulf_agerup]

In my mind, just shooting is enough for a start, i e learning to find subjects and frame them. What is important is that a kid feels free to explore. Interesting photos come from daring to try new things.

 

Therefore, I would get him the new Olympus SW 1030 point & shoot. It is vitually indestructible (water proof and shock proof). My children have smashed a camera and cracked the base of an expensive flash already. Not on purpose, but because children do not have the dexterity of adults. Nevertheless, when they now reach for my kit I get a bit apprehensive, and I'm sure they sense that which is probably not good for their enthusiasm.

[luckystokes]

I would get him an inexpensive DLSR (the DLSR will let him identify with being a photographer more than a P&S). Then just

let him shoot it in program mode and enjoy himself. If you inundate him with technical matters, he will probably just put it

away and go on to something else.

[richard_oleson]

Whether film or digital, giving him one of your old cameras may be a very good idea, as Steven suggests. Thinking back to that age, something that was Dad's Camera is by definition Real, fundamentally a more adult thing than an equivalent item bought for me... it is likely to take on more importance and seriousness for that, and it may enhance the experience all around.

[rgerraty]

What a wonderful thread. I agree with everyone just about. In a sense it should be both. If he wants pictures I agree with

the P&S. My daughter, 15, is so creative with her mother's Ixus 50 and would not want to be bothered with aperture and

all that stuff. My son got a similar camera for his 11th birthday recently and has a similar interest in the picture

possibilities. One of his first efforts was of a tree reflected in a puddle. A beautiful shot. On the other hand, they both

love my old film cameras and sense the magic just holding them. But this is partly the photography as hobby rather than

the business of making pictures. My 11 year old has a very scientific outlook but seems more interested in the pictures

than the process at this stage. It is gratifying to see that someone as young as Bridgette C has learnt the traditional way of us older ones,

but our children are half a generation younger again. Whatever your age nowadays, the first tugs to more serious photography are the bitter

disappointments of the P&S

capabilities. At some point this leads to the desire for a more controllable instrument. Trying to understand a point and

shoot and how to defeat its automatic functions seems very difficult without knowing the rudiments of aperture, shutter

speed and ISO, and ultimately the important difference between incident and reflected light. It was also the shallow

depth of field I wanted that took me from a point and shoot 35mm to a rangefinder with faster lenses. These

fascinating aspects of photography will either have their own intrinsic interest for your smarter than us 11 year old, or the

pictures will demand it of him when he sees the blown highlights, noisy interiors and blurred faces from his point and

shoot experience. Whatever you decide, you can't lose. I've also been looking at a G9 for myself which could be the best of both worlds.

Thanks for generating this thread.

[el_fang]

<i>My son will be 11 in 2 weeks.</i>

<p>

11? For the love of all things holy, don't corrupt his young mind with useless technical minutiae like aperture, shutter speed, DOF etc. Just give him a camera, any camera, put it on auto and let him shoot away. Take him to galleries and museums and show him paintings and drawings. Start him on the right path by teaching him how to see. Anyone, even with Down Syndrome, can learn the technical part of photography - that's easy. And with the sophistication of light meters and exposure computers built into cameras these days, the technical is pretty much a non-issue. It's the SEEING part that most people have trouble with, and you should try to encourage him to develop it early.</p>

[dave_redmann]

The suggestions for an older film SLR strike me as a mistake <I>unless both</I> (1) he is uncommonly patient for an

eleven-year-old and (2) you will yourself develop and print, on a reasonably timely basis, B&W film that he shoots.

One of the great things about digital is the virtually instant feedback; for that reason it is great as a teaching tool, and

also keeps people with limited patience (like most eleven-year-olds) engaged. Cost is another issue; if he shoots 100

pictures for every keeper, ditigal costs virtually nothing, but film, processing, and (except with transparencies)

printing are significant costs. And I will let you judge how important this will be to your son: his friends are much

more likely to think a digital is cool, or a nice present, or whatever.

[preston_merchant]

Your son needs to shoot 10,000 pictures before he worries about stuff like apertures and shutter speeds. Just give him any old camera and let him have fun with it. The equipment doesn't matter.

[dilip_kumar_singha]

Dear Mr.Vadim Telesh,

 

My feeling about your question is that, to develop a 'sense of photography' should be the basic learning for a new and very young photographer, if already he is not so mature. Any P&S is enough for this purpose. At least he can concentrate more over the basic aspects with out keeping himself busy in the hastles of adjustments. If you get any good camera cheap, you can buy it and keep for his future use. To develop the eyes is the very baisc and very important thing in photography like like to develop the ears for music.

 

Regards,

 

Dilip

[paul_goutiere]

El Fang , Sep 10, 2008; 09:23 a.m.

 

"It's the SEEING part that most people have trouble with, and you should try to encourage him to develop it early."

 

Wow! Is this ever true! And make it fun.

[john_beaver1]

My kids could handle a p/s at age 6 or 7. Get him the SLR. He'll feel more like a real photographer and that will boost his

confidence and desire. (I remember the difference it made for me when I was 12)

 

I also like the idea of slowly teaching him exposure, dof, etc... then sending him out with a film SLR and a 50mm to really teach him.

[mark u]

In photography, seeing is not just about framing the image. Or perhaps it is better to say that choice of depth of field and exposure (both level - e.g. creating silhouettes, or exposing for shadows or highlights, and shutter speed) are themselves key framing devices that are part of the language of photography. Exploring the range of photographic control is just as important as classical composition technique such as "rule of thirds" or using warm foreground colours on cool background colours. That is why I would pick a serious camera over a simple, automated P&S.

[katherinemichael]

Just get him something and encourage him to have fun. He would probably love to have a camera that was yours. There was always a special meaning in that for me. I "inherited" lots of cameras from my siblings and my dad before I bought my own. Just let him experiment and be creative. If the passion for photography is there, the technical stuff will come easily later on.

[joshua_mortel]

Start him off on a full-manual 35mm film SLR and a ton of black and white film -he don't need no color!

 

or, better yet, a pinhole camera... muhahahaha

 

Be like... Son, you see all these DSLRs? I EARNED these... okay? You'll thank me in the end.

 

If he still likes photography after that, he is worthy ;)