Zoe wants a camera

spacer · Jun 19, 2011

When I was taking a photo of her with the Yashica 24, she was at first confused and upset that there was no display on the back where I could show her the picture. She's 4, so while I explained a little about film photography, she showed some understanding, but still wondered why she couldn't see the picture *now*.

Since then, though, she's been "taking" pictures with her hands, and talking about how she's going to get a real camera when she's old like Daddy.

Then I thought... Why not now? Yeah, there's a $10 digi-cam at Walmart, no monitor on the back or anything, just the cheapest digi P&S imaginable... or, there are a ton of 35mm models out there right now. Any ideas, folks? I think it'd make her day to have a real camera, and I think it'd be fun to develop her photos... and maybe a little embarrassing.. Daddy in the shower? NO!!!

M.A.Longmore · Jun 19, 2011

.
Hit the Thrift Shops or flea market.
You can get Zoe a Real Camera for $5.00 !

Happy Fathers Day !

Ron
.

Chan Tran · Jun 19, 2011

Either film of digital with the LCD in the back. You can get a fully working camera used very cheap.

onepuff · Jun 19, 2011

How about a Polaroid then she can see the photo just after she has taken it. It would allow her to learn composition better.

tkamiya · Jun 19, 2011

It's a perfect time to get her a nice shiny Hasselblad!

How about a cheap snap shot 35mm? Her interest may not last long at all and likely, she'll put it somewhere and not recall where in days. I was going to say disposable but I bet you can buy a cheapie for less at second hand shops....

Rick A · Jun 19, 2011

Any toy camera that takes film. Thats what got all my kids interested. A couple of my older kids started with Brownies they found at yard sales and thought they were neat.

Brian Legge · Jun 19, 2011

My wife took a Olympic mju-ii to work - a child care center - a few days ago. She let each of the kids take a few pictures. I doubt the camera would hold up to much dropping but it worked well for them. Anything along those lines could work well.

j-dogg · Jun 19, 2011

Rollei 35

Moopheus · Jun 19, 2011

When I was wee little I had an argus C3 "brick." I do not recommend this.

Diana-type toycams can be fun for kids, and no great loss if she loses or breaks it.

pentax4ever · Jun 19, 2011

I would suggest one of the later Canon 35mm point and shoots, try one with a fixed lens. These have auto film transport, auto-focus and built-in flash and use AA batteries.

spacer · Jun 19, 2011

Ooh, and I can keep the Hassie for her until she grows in to it...

Yeah, probably what I have at the front of my mind is an inexpensive fully automagic P&S camera.
As she grows, and if she stays interested, I can help her upgrade as she begins wanting more control
over her shots.

woosang · Jun 19, 2011

Fisher price make a camera I have seen a few on eBay. Look there for kids cameras designed to be mistreated and dropped.

jp498 · Jun 19, 2011

The fisher price camera is rugged but takes terrible digital photos, and the one we got came with a virus preinstalled. Fisher price did make some old film ones from when I was little that worked fantastic. My brother had a 110 fisher price camera and it made the best photos of any 110 camera anyone had ever seen. That's basically a dead format though. Lots of cheap 35mm cameras, but color processing/printing can be sorta hit/miss. If you're set on film, an olympus stylus P&S are good, or you could get a simple holga or it's chinese ebay equivalent.

I just bought my just-turned-6 daughter a $50 refurbed nikon P&S. Pretty color choices and everything. She's capable of using a DSLR decently, but I'm not in the market for such a thing right now, and the P&S is more her size.

She also has the American Girl doll Kit, who has an optional news reporter kit which included a folder camera. I happened to have a real one just like in a pile of lawnsale stuff that didn't sell that someone gave me. It works, but I haven't cleaned up or respooled 120->620 film for it yet.

spacer · Jun 19, 2011

The only thing a digital has going for it is the ability to (relatively) effortlessly upload and view her images without having to go through all the trouble and expense of having c41 prints done or developing the rolls myself. But... the halfway decent digicams I see are a heck of a lot more expensive than a thrift shop P&S, and won't have nearly the image quality in this price/ability range. I figure if we get three or four rolls through it, and she hasn't lost interest in it, I'll figure out where to go from there. Heck, I have a friend with some recently expired film he wants to get rid of, too.

BrianL · Jun 19, 2011

2 suggestions:
1) Give her a disposable. Tough to kill, small enough for her to handle and for the prices I've seen can be cheaper than just a roll of film, at least up her in Canada.
2) I do know much about the Fuji Instax (think it is the name). Pick up the smaller model for her so she can learn with AND have instant gratification so she does not lose interest. I'd suggest a Polaroid 600 or pack camera but for a 4 year old, I think they are a bit too big plus the availability and costs of the films are a disencentive.

elcabezagrande · Jun 20, 2011

She needs one of these

Kraft "Cheesasaurus Rex Super Slueth" 110 by Greyscale3, on Flickr

Axle · Jun 20, 2011

Seconded on the Rollei 35, an Olympus Trip or Stylus Epic would be good choices also.

Mustafa Umut Sarac · Jun 20, 2011

I think , printing with kid together is a nicer idea. She will have idea what is negative , developer , paper , enlarger , focusing. Take two pictures , one with digital and same one with film and print with inkjet and print with enlarger. She will quickly got the idea. Take her interest serious and buy a serious camera. But Polaroid seems to me very appealing may be 350 with Fuji Film. She will be impressed with his father how you give her trust and love.

Happy Father's Day ,

Umut

Jeff Kubach · Jun 20, 2011

If I were you I would check out KEH.

Jeff

Brian Legge · Jun 20, 2011

Sincere question for those suggesting a Rollei 35 -

At what age can kids learn to shoot manual? By 8 or so, I could imagine understanding some form of correlation between settings when I took a photo and the results. At 4, I'd expect most kids to just turn knobs and push buttons. It seems like something with automatic exposure would make more sense. Maybe I'm just underestimating 4 year olds though?

ravenheadphoto · Jun 20, 2011

Brian Legge said:
Sincere question for those suggesting a Rollei 35 -

At what age can kids learn to shoot manual? By 8 or so, I could imagine understanding some form of correlation between settings when I took a photo and the results. At 4, I'd expect most kids to just turn knobs and push buttons. It seems like something with automatic exposure would make more sense. Maybe I'm just underestimating 4 year olds though?

I don't think you're underestimating the average 4-year-old. I'm a father of two and work around elementary-age children just about every day.

I second your opinion about the Rollei and would add that the Rollei 35 uses scale focusing, which is something that plenty of adults I know would have a hard time using effectively, to say nothing of a 4-year-old. My own daughter just turned 7, and my wife and I were discussing camera possibilities for her. As bright and intelligent as she is (and according to people who give us their unsolicited opinions, she's very much so), we think that something more complicated than a point-and-shoot, fixed focus camera would just make her lose interest at this age. If Zoe wants a film camera, I would recommend the same for her.

~Ken

bblhed · Jun 20, 2011

I give my 3 year old disposable cameras all the time to shoot with and she loves them.

My 3 year old has a Kodak cameo, a National Geographic Binocular kids camera, and a Nikon N65 (I was going to sell it, but with the plastic lens she can handle it quite well with me around, she has some problems waiting for the auto focus, and can only use it in Program). She loves shooting with these cameras, and the disposables. By my experience I say stay away from anything that takes more than a split second to focus is no good, also avoid exposure controls as well, basic point and shoot should be fine for now.

Honestly, a nice little fixed focus point and shoot with motor drive film advance that cost about $50 to $90 in the 1980's can be had for about $10 on ebay and they take really great photos.

Some of the brick like cameras from Nikon and Canon can do really nice things, but I prefer the Kodak Cameo or something similar because it is a nice small camera that is easy to handle as a kids first camera.

I personally learned with a Kodak 126 that my grandmother gave me when she got a 110, then I got the 110 when she got a new 110.

spacer · Jun 20, 2011

Yeah, it's gonna be completely automatic at first. As she grows, if she shows interest in creative control then we'll work on that.

jeffreyg · Jun 20, 2011

When my grandchildren turned 2 I bought them a Canon point and shoot that had several modes including auto. The off/on switch was green so it was very easy to teach them how to use it including zooming the lens. My guess is that you have a friend or relative that has a similar camera gathering dust since they went digital. Now other than me, my family has gone digital so the most recent grandchildren don't use film. I recently taught the 2 1/2 year old to use a camera in literally minutes they all can use electronic gadgets, phones, ipads etc. so a camera shouldn't be any different.

Whatever you get she will love shooting with you and you will be impressed with her results -- the kids have a fresh point of view.

http://www.jeffreyglasser.com/

spacer · Jun 20, 2011

jeffreyg said:
When my grandchildren turned 2 I bought them a Canon point and shoot that had several modes including auto. The off/on switch was green so it was very easy to teach them how to use it including zooming the lens. My guess is that you have a friend or relative that has a similar camera gathering dust since they went digital. Now other than me, my family has gone digital so the most recent grandchildren don't use film. I recently taught the 2 1/2 year old to use a camera in literally minutes they all can use electronic gadgets, phones, ipads etc. so a camera shouldn't be any different.

Whatever you get she will love shooting with you and you will be impressed with her results -- the kids have a fresh point of view.

http://www.jeffreyglasser.com/

That's kinda what I'm really looking forward to. Zoe definitely has her own way of doing things, and I'm very curious as to how that will come out in photos. Besides, it might even freshen up my own perspective too.

Zoe wants a camera

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