[MrB1]

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Hi
I think a discussion with the young lady is the first port of call, to see what she wants/expects in a camera.
After that you have a clearer way of knowing how to help,which way to go.
Dave.

Good suggestion for you here alpheios - you need to understand how seriously she "wants to get into photography"?

As for the next step:

If you were wanting something from the Pentax world, I'd think a Kx or Kr would be a nice place to start. They're fairly small and lightweight with a simplified user interface that will allow her to take decent pictures right out of the gate in 'green' mode and then as her interest grows, she can learn to take increasing control over the process with the various manual exposure controls. As for a lens, it would be hard to go wrong with an 18-55mm kit lens. It's fairly versatile and she can add to the kit as she decides what aspects of photography she's most interested in.

These are also good suggestions. However, perhaps the K-5 (or even better the K-5 ii) would be preferable - almost bullet-proof, two separate control dials for exposure control, and no "scene modes" to distract her from learning, developing and practising the basics. I agree that a kit lens would be a good choice - while beginning, in "Green Mode", she can concentrate mainly on composition, and a kit zoom will help to develop this very important basic skill in the viewfinder.

Philip

[PocketPixels]

I can't get behind these recommendations of a DSLR—any DSLR—as a first camera for someone exploring a new hobby. It's like debating which helicopter to get for someone interested in flying lessons. It's too much information to take in at one time.

Also, 13 year old girls tend to want to be "cool" and it takes a very special teenager to pull off "cool" while carrying 3lbs and $1000 of clunky gadget around. I'm old enough and comfortable enough in my skin to know I'm super-cool with my green DA* lens on my K-S2, but my teenaged self would never have tolerated that encumbrance. If this girl wants a camera—and let's please confirm that before we go foisting our hobby on her—then she very likely wants something small, easy, and non-threatening.

Back around 2010–2013, most manufacturers were still making serious point and shoot / rangefinder cameras with fast zoom lenses (ƒ/2.0 or thereabouts) and P-A-S-M on a mode dial. Canon S90 and S95. Olympus XZ-1. Nikon P7000. Any of these can be found on eBay for $100. They teach the basics, they offer far more control than a cell phone, and they tuck away easily into a purse or jacket when the cool kids start staring or pointing. This is a Pentax forum, so if you really want to go with Pentax, then maybe the Optio I-10 or even possibly a Q-series with just the kit lens.

My first "real" camera was an Olympus D-550z, and it was exactly the tool I needed at that stage in my life.

[TwoUptons]

I just bought my 12-year-old niece a ME Super with a 50mm f1.7 and a 200 f4...

She loves ‘Stranger Things’, so to her it is very cool...

Now whether she shoots with it is a different question.

But I’d ask the girl... she might think a SLR is cool and she might want something completely different... and how important is video?

-Eric

[DWS1]

I have 2 granddaughters (a couple years apart) I helped get started when they were about that age. I let them use my K50 with the 18-55mm and it was too much for them. Weight and size being the biggest complaint. I then let them use my old Kodak ZD710 bridge camera which has auto, manual modes, and a view finder. A viewfinder is very important. They fell in love with it and learned on it. Small, light weight and easy to use (didn't get left at home like the K50 did), but after a while they saw the limitations it has and wanted something better. Now they are older, bigger, stronger, and more experienced and have DSLRs. 1 has Canon, 1 has Nikon, and I use Pentax, go figure (It's like pulling teeth to get one of them to let me use theirs' now). One thing to keep in mind, to a 13 year old girl, social networking is their entire life. They must have a way to easily get their photos from the camera to online very quickly.

[timb64]

If you can now get a K5 for the same price as a Kr it's a no-brainer!

[BigMackCam]

May I ask, has the young lady in question learned all she can whilst using her phone camera? For instance, has she learned about compositional techniques, story-telling, light and the directional properties therein, etc.? If not, I suspect there's still a great deal more she could learn with her phone camera, and without Mum spending another dime on gear - investing instead, perhaps, on personalised instruction or books (depending on her appetite and ability to learn from adult-level instruction). There are numerous professional photographers who produce exhibition-quality work with similar equipment. I'm wondering if she might be better off learning to be a photographer from a creative perspective first and foremost, rather than learning to use more advanced gear. Just a thought...

EDIT: Here's just one inexpensive book that might possibly wring a lot more value out of the young lady's phone camera (I'm sure there are other resources):

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Smart-Phone-Photography-techniques-incredible/dp/17...s=books&sr=1-1

[Greg1956]

Hi,

I would be talking to the Mum and daughter together find out what she wants to do.

At that age it may not be a serious interest in photography as you have been told.

Also take around a selection of your cameras so she can test them out. Find out what she likes and what she is able to hold and carry
That will send you in the right direction.

My 12yr grandaughter loves my DSLRs but they weigh too much for her, so we bought her a bridge camera (Fujifilm ...) and now she runs around with a tablet to take photos. Go figure.

My best laid plans undone,

Good luck

[timb64]

Hi,

......and now she runs around with a tablet to take photos. Go figure.

Please tell her to stop standing in front of me at gigs

[RookieGuy]

Of course talk to her. But for my daughter, a Sony 5000 with kit lens was better than any point and shoot she's ever used. A step or two up from that might be worth a look. Very light, can fit in a purse, wifi which kids these days seem to be unable to live without, ok enough jpegs and pretty good raw should she progress to that. Not a ton of lenses around, but what is available is pretty decent.

Yes, we all grew up with a SLR as a proper grown up camera. But, well for me anyways, technology has changed. She'll more than likely do better with something mirrorless. Better video and it's more set up for touchscreen and video and connectivity. More intuitive to them.

[C_Jones]

I would definitely recommend something like the Pentax K-5 and a lens such as an 18-55 Pentax lens. Really, if you got her something such as that it would be a common size which she could learn with, since it has most of the features that are found on the newer models with the exception of a few. It has control dials and also an lcd screen on top to view settings (such as ISO, aperture, shutter speed, and EV) along with the lcd screen on the back The weight of it is not tremendous, and she would be learning on a camera that yields excellent images and has an excellent style and build. Also the menu setup on Pentax cameras is very well structured for ease of use.

[R.Miller]

K-5 series, DA 50 1.8, DA 35 2.4, DA 16-45, and DA 55-300 rounds out a reasonably priced starter kit. If cost is a big concern then hold off on the primes until there is a real interest in the hobby.

[alpheios]

Wow that is a lot of input to wake up to. Thank you all for your answers. Many interesting thoughts to help me out with.

Good suggestion for you here alpheios - you need to understand how seriously she "wants to get into photography"?

I talked to her a little a few days ago and she seems to be very serious about learning photography. Her father is a professional photographer but unfortunately he lives in a different city now and has no interest to stay in contact. So there has been more contact with photography in the past than just her using her phone.

Also, 13 year old girls tend to want to be "cool" and it takes a very special teenager to pull off "cool" while carrying 3lbs and $1000 of clunky gadget around.

She is in fact not the typical thirteen year old teenager who wants to look cool.

If APS-C is all you know and you are not swapping formats crop factor is irrelevant.

That is of course true when you already know a bit about photography. But when I was learning photography crop was quite confusing to me because in all the literature and all the video tutorials people were talking about the classic 35mm focal lengths and not about APS-C equivalents or angle of view. That’s part of the reason I considered a full frame camera.

Some seem to still be confused about crop. I see no other reason why someone would recommend an APS-C camera with a 50mm as a single cam/lens combo for a beginner.

One thing to keep in mind, to a 13 year old girl, social networking is their entire life. They must have a way to easily get their photos from the camera to online very quickly.

Good thought. Didn’t consider that before. But anything that makes this possible with either bluetooth or wifi would probably be much newer and thus too expensive.

So since she seems to be very serious about it I thought about giving her a serious tool. That is why I didn't consider a point and shoot or bridge camera. The weight is of course something I thought about for quite a while. I will have her try out my K-1 and my other neighbors K-r. I still consider APS-C to be a viable option even though i.e. a K-5 is only 60 grams less then the original 5D. But of course there are lighter (cheaper) APS-C options as well. But I would definitely pair it with a prime for said reasons (reducing to better learn). I also remember that I wondered why my K200D gave me soft, uninteresting pictures until the point when I swapped the horrible kit zoom for a good lens.

So for now I guess I will have her try out different cameras and see what she likes and don’t likes and talk to her a little more to see what is important to her. But any more input from you is of course very appreciated.

[blacklite]

That is of course true when you already know a bit about photography. But when I was learning photography crop was quite confusing to me because in all the literature and all the video tutorials people were talking about the classic 35mm focal lengths and not about APS-C equivalents or angle of view. That’s part of the reason I considered a full frame camera.
Some seem to still be confused about crop. I see no other reason why you would recommend an APS-C camera with a 50mm as a single cam/lens combo for a beginner.

Definitely didn’t recommend 50mm on APS-C as a single combo for a beginner.

Although I don’t routinely use zooms myself I think they are the best choice for a beginner. I would suggest that given a prime, a modern child would learn all about how to crop in post, not how to choose the appropriate focal length lens for a given scene.

[SpecialK]

Hey folks, I have a thirteen years old girl in my neighborhood who wants to get into photography and her mum asked me for a camera recommendation. She has a budget of around 200-300€. My thought was to recommend getting a Canon 5D MK I that is still highly regarded for its pixie dust as we Pentaxians would call it plus a 50mm F1.8.

I had a 5D (now a 6D and 70D). I would say "no" to that. She needs a used Pentax and 18-55 (17-70 would be better). She needs not worry about crop factor, which is not a difficult concept anyway. She needs a bit of flexibility, and most of the tech available. She needs to learn composition above anything else, with the ability to compare wide and tele options. Exposure compensation would be second. The rest will follow if she has interest.

[alpheios]

Definitely didn’t recommend 50mm on APS-C as a single combo for a beginner.

Of course you didn’t. With ‚you‘ I meant ‚someone‘. I edited my post to make this clear.