What is a good age to pass down DLSR to my Kids

[mjones185]

Hello all,

I recently posted a question about selling my EOS 10D with 28-135. I've had this thought in my mind for a while and figured I'd ask other photographers.

I have a seven year old daughter (eight in January). I'm currently not with her as I'm at Osan AB, Korea and will return in December.

If I work with her closely supervised, would the 10D with 28-135 be a good camera for her to start out taking pictures?

Or, would it be wise to hold onto the camera until she's a good age to use that camera and get her a simpler camera to use?

If I hold onto it, whats a good age to let her use it?

This camera is basically new, I bought it in 2003 and have less than 5000 shots, I bought a G5 at the same time for the wife and wound up using it for everything as I was first starting out with DSLRs. I now have a 40D and 7D along with the 10D.

My thought on selling the 10D and the 40D with the 28-135 lenses is to put the funds towards additional lenses or equipment.

What I have:

Canon 7D
Canon 40D Gripped
Canon 10D
Canon 70-200IS 2.8
Canon 17-55IS 2.8
Canon 60 Macro
Sigma 30 1.4
Canon 28-135
Canon 28-135 Never used (came with 7D)

Your thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Mike

 

[jr24]

that seems like a lot of camera for someone her age. what about getting one of those kid tough cameras and letting her play around with that and see how she gets a feel for it. i think you can run around with those and if they drop them, they are pretty resilient. then maybe introduce that one or something else to her a little later on.

 

[highres]

Early teens.

 

[Xander562]

Definitely hold onto it for a while. It'll be a great thing to have when she actually wants to get into photography. By that time, you'll be able blow the dust off some pretty awesome (and retro) equipment for her. It will be a lot better than saying, "Well you ruined it when you were 8, remember?" or "I sold it because I didn't think anyone would use it." Both of these were told to me when I was growing up.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

I would let her play with it as you show her how to set the camera, what each button is used for, and would do this right away if she is ready for it. After having a few kids of my own, now of adult age, I found that it's best to use the camera while they are watching (take a few "fun" photos of the kids, or the dog), then to connect it to the computer, to download and process a couple of photos they find funny. If you do this enough times, she will ask for you to let her take a few photos.

That's the best time for her to handle the camera, not when you feel it should be the best time. The reason why I say this is because if for whatever reason she is intimidated by the camera, she won't want to use it. Just get her interested in it and the things she can do with it, but don't push her. If she wants to play with it today, make it possible for she will have fun learning how to use it. Take a short "photo-taking trip" to the backyard or something, and let her take some photos.

 

[pukifloyd]

I would say give her the camera when she's 12-13. I agree with other posters that you can start teaching her the basics and how to use it. Just let her take a few shots with it first

 

[mjones185]

Thanks everyone for your comments. I should have been more specific. I was considering teaching her how to use it under supervision, not to just give it to her to do as she wishes. She already has a kids camera that she really likes. I was going to start teaching her this one with letting her take pictures and explain the features slowly.

I was wondering if it was worth keeping this camera for longer term or if she's way to young en consider selling and when she's older then she might can learn from my 7D.

I hate to sell it as it's in perfect condition and other than maybe expensive IR conversion this was what I thought might be a good alternative to see if she would enjoy photography and you never know, it could be her passion. I'm not one to force anything, just an introduction.

Mike

 

[leighonigar]

I think this is going to be highly dependent on your individual child. That said, my first SLR was a Pentax ME which I must have been passed when I was not that much older than your daughter, I was fine with it, but there were a lot less controls and most significantly - it was a very small, light camera. I have an EOS 10D myself and it is not small.

 

[Abyssgh0st]

I would say 11-13. They seem to be responsible by then.

 

[Foggy]

My daughter had her own point and shoot for her 4th birthday. Those 'tough' cameras are rubbish in my opinion, they are expensive, the photos are awful and they teach bad habits (i.e. its fine to chuck your camera on the floor!)

She is now 6 and has taken shots with my D700, by the time she is 8 or 9 I would have no issue with her using a DSLR.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

My daughter had her own point and shoot for her 4th birthday. Those 'tough' cameras are rubbish in my opinion, they are expensive, the photos are awful and they teach bad habits (i.e. its fine to chuck your camera on the floor!)

She is now 6 and has taken shots with my D700, by the time she is 8 or 9 I would have no issue with her using a DSLR.

I did the same with some of my kids, but with a HI8 Nikon camcorder. The youngest one was around 6 or 7 and was very interested in using it, so I let him use it after showing him which buttons to press to record. The camcorder was a little heavy, so I mounted it on a tripod and left the kid alone in the backyard. I now look at the short videos he made, and admire the things he found interesting. Kids are full of imagination, and come up with some very weird perspectives. The best time for any kid to learn anything is when he or she is interested in the subject (regardless of age), not when we parents decide they should be interested.

If the 10D is too heavy, get a small and lightweight tripod for it.

 

[mjones185]

My daughter had her own point and shoot for her 4th birthday. Those 'tough' cameras are rubbish in my opinion, they are expensive, the photos are awful and they teach bad habits (i.e. its fine to chuck your camera on the floor!)

She is now 6 and has taken shots with my D700, by the time she is 8 or 9 I would have no issue with her using a DSLR.

I agree with the quality of the two-handed kids camera's teaching bad habits. For Christmas I will be back home from Korea and I think we will get her a P&S camera and I will see how she does with me teaching her how to use it and then start teaching her the fundamentals of an SLR.

I agree with everyone's comments and the most important thing is for her to want to learn and not to do anything that will discourage her from the hobby.

I do know size and weight is a huge factor and the camera is not something she will use as her primary camera, it's something to pull out here and there and slowly introduce her to.

One thing that put the idea in my head is with watching her, I'm amazed at how fast she's learning things compared to other kids her age.

Mike

 

[Amasashi]

8 seems to be a bit young for a DSLR. I think giving her a point and shoot, teaching her basic photography techniques like lighting and composition, and encouraging her to go out and shoot anything and everything will be more than enough at her age. It'll also prevent her from going down the gear lust road and developing the mentality that better gear can compensate for poorer technique.

I handled my first SLR when I was 14. Actually it wasn't mine, but the school's. I had taken 2 photography elective courses and was on the school's yearbook committee. No unfortunate accidents after an entire year of use both on and off campus

 

[bsamcash]

I would say not until high school. And only if she shows an interest in SLR photography. And preferably if she's taking a class in photography. SLRs are tools in my opinion, and they require care, attention, and knowledge.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

I just don't understand it, I guess By the time some of my kids were 8 years old, they were already driving farm tractors. By the time they were 17, they were very proficient bulldozer and very large track-backhoe and grader operators. Some kids can play piano by the age of three, while some can ride a bicycle, and some others can fire a BB gun by the age if four.

 

[Shacklebolt]

I agree with the quality of the two-handed kids camera's teaching bad habits. For Christmas I will be back home from Korea and I think we will get her a P&S camera and I will see how she does with me teaching her how to use it and then start teaching her the fundamentals of an SLR.

I agree with everyone's comments and the most important thing is for her to want to learn and not to do anything that will discourage her from the hobby.

I do know size and weight is a huge factor and the camera is not something she will use as her primary camera, it's something to pull out here and there and slowly introduce her to.

One thing that put the idea in my head is with watching her, I'm amazed at how fast she's learning things compared to other kids her age.

Mike

Honestly, I would give her the camera now. Back when I was 7, I was playing with my parents' AE-1 (with their supervision of course), and I think having an SLR in your hands from the get-go really gives you an opportunity to understand what a _camera_ is - not just something that takes pictures. (Auto-focus is a privilege.... not a right!).

I understand cameras aren't cheap, but if I had a mature 7 year old who liked taking pictures, I would definitely put my D80 w/18-135 f/3.5-5.6 in their hands and (well-supervised) see if they're interested.

 

[AlaskaMoose]

Honestly, I would give her the camera now. Back when I was 7, I was playing with my parents' AE-1 (with their supervision of course), and I think having an SLR in your hands from the get-go really gives you an opportunity to understand what a _camera_ is - not just something that takes pictures. (Auto-focus is a privilege.... not a right!).

I understand cameras aren't cheap, but if I had a mature 7 year old who liked taking pictures, I would definitely put my D80 w/18-135 f/3.5-5.6 in their hands and (well-supervised) see if they're interested.

This guy was using his dad's camera by the age of ten, and look where that lead him:
http://www.brettnickeson.com/gallery/9949682_AqubS

 

[notjustjay]

I volunteer with a kids' summer camp, and I remember the first year I brought my new D70 to camp. It took great photos, but of course all the kids wanted to try taking a few photos too. Under supervision, I had no problems letting them try it out.

There was one particular set of identical twin boys, free spirited, rambunctious and I'm fairly sure had ADHD. It turns out they had a soft spot for photography and one way that we kept them in check was to let them take either the DSLR or my video camera and go around taking pictures or video. It was certainly a leap of faith to entrust my expensive equipment to two hyperactive 12-year-olds! However, they took the responsibility seriously, got some nice photos (and a pile of silly ones, of course), it kept them out of trouble and it gave them a badge of honour that they could be trusted with this stuff.