My child wants to take photos of birds with me.Do you have any gear suggestions?

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Hmmm! perhaps get a (do check out overall weight first?) the OM 40-150mm f2.8 & the the x2 TC to use on your Olympus EM-1 II = at the long end 600mm FoV equivalent to Full Frame.

Note ~ it is weighty but as the CoG (Centre of Gravity) balance is possibly better for a smaller person/child that might not be as much of an issue :unsure:
 
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I suggest the Nikon Coolpix P950. It is an all in one zoom, takes RAW or Jpeg. Weighs less than the newer P1000 and P1100.

You have three big issues: what camera and lens; what to do with the images once taken? Just view and send? Or process?; and your budget.

I would keep it as simple as possible for a beginner.

Here s a comparison of three Coolpix P cameras:

https://nikonrumors.com/2025/02/05/...s-nikon-coolpix-p1100-superzoom-cameras.aspx/
 
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mghohoo said:
My child is 8 years old, weighs 36 kg, and is 140 cm tall.
I bought an 8x32 telescope for him, and he has been enjoying birding in the nearby parks with me for weeks.
Now, he wants to take photos. My gear includes a Sony A7C, 100-400GM, 200-600G, 70-200G and 1.4x teleconverter. I also have an Olympus EM-1 II with a Zuiko 60mm, which is not suitable for birding.
He took a few photos using the A7C and the 100-400GM, but he said it was too heavy for him. Thus, I am considering four options:
1. P1100
2. Olympus 75-300 II
3. Buy a new Sony camera and let him use either camera with the 100-400GM
4. Buy a Z50 II , a Z to E mount adapter and let him use either camera with the 100-400GM

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

I went through this process fairly recently.

Back in DSLR days, my son started using my D500/D850 –though never unattended. He eventually wanted his own camera, so he got to use a Nikon D5300 that I had. That camera was fine for flowers and the endless stream of family and pet photos. Once he got into birds he would borrow the D500 with a 500mm PF, which he found heavy back then (he was 7-8 years old, and of a similar weight and height as your son currently is). We entertained going to m43, but I in the end I did not want to buy another mount/system that I really could not use with my Nikon stuff. We also thought of one of the Sony A6X000 models, but the lenses again seemed heavy and unbalanced.

In the end he got a Nikon p900, which he outgrew quickly. So he ended up with with a Nikon Z50 with the 12-50 and 50-250mm kit, which gives him 24-375mm equivalent coverage in a small and very light package. We added the Nikon 300mm PF with the 1.4 TC which, which as Fenton noted earlier in this thread, is a fantastic lens. My kid is 11 and we will upgragde his kit to a Z50 II and, a bit later if he keeps at it, the z 400mm f/4.5.
 
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This is why I've kept a lot of my old gear. When any of my children wanted to use a camera, I had one around that wasn't worth much money, but they could use to get good photos. Whether or not I had to be with them when they used them depended upon how old and responsible they were, as well as where they were going and who they were with.
 
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Whiskeyman said:
This is why I've kept a lot of my old gear. When any of my children wanted to use a camera, I had one around that wasn't worth much money, but they could use to get good photos. Whether or not I had to be with them when they used them depended upon how old and responsible they were, as well as where they were going and who they were with.
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Yes!

My daughter is using my 500mm pf on her Z6iii as she learns how to do bird photography. She borrowed my 300mm f4 pf and learned it did not have enough focal length. And now she is learning the importance of a high enough shutter speed and what AF mode to use. At some point she will buy her own Z mount tele.

I still use my old D800e, D 500 and D850 as needs arise. I love making multiple exposures I can save as a RAW file with these older bodies. My Z9 can do multiple exposures but the saved image is a Jpeg.
 
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John Navitsky said:
take this with a grain of salt because i don’t have kids, but i’ll be the anti voice about not buying kids expensive stuff

not specific to photography, but i’ve seen a lot of kids go on to be very into things and very good at things because their parents got them involved at a young age and supported them with (sometimes expensive) things (and treated them like adults).

heck, my parents bought me a very expensive (for them at that time) computer when i was young and it’s been both my career and hobby.

basically, if you can afford it, why not?!
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My parents bought a computer for my brother and me 30 years ago. Now, I’m a programmer too. Hehe……

jeffnles1 said:
I will add another lower cost and light weight but high quality option to the mix. This is what my wife shoots:
Canon R10
Canon 100-400 RF lens.

This combo is light weight, with Canon 1.6 crop the angle of view on the 100-600 is about 160 to 640 or so. Her image quality with this set up is excellent.

Just another lighter weight consideration.

Jeff
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Thank you for your suggestion. I prefer not to use Canon. Nikon offers a Z to E adapter, so I can use Nikon cameras with Sony lenses.
I also have an Olympus camera body, which is my second camera system. But now, I’m looking for a bridge camera for my son.
 
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Jimmy G said:
Hi mghohoo,

An 8-year-old with burning curiosities and creative interests, that's great stuff! :)

Having been a, er, "patron to the arts" for the past 44-years with my daughter's creativities (and for the past 30+ years for my sweetie) I can't think of a more-enjoyable or rewarding thing to do than help put creative tools into their hands! Me personally, I like to engage them in the process and see what they think might be an appealing or useful choice, I never pass on the grand opportunity to get either my daughter or my sweetie to be involved in the decision-making process and for me to learn better what their interests and needs are. However, for those times when it's meant to be a surprise I'd still try my best to find out just what sort of camera or lens they might be interested in and pay attention to what they've been looking at or expressed interest in.

Short of all of that, harkening back to my younger self...a versatile tool such as "a superzoom (like that P1100 you mentioned) that I could call my own?!" would likely be my first choice were I an 8-year-old today. A powered-zoom?! I can take both pictures and videos?! Woo hoo!

Hope that's helpful, do let us know what you decide!

Best, :)
Jimmy G
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In high school, I often read benchmark articles and talked with my classmates about how much I desired a camera. Having a large zoom felt like a superpower to me. The Sony DSC-828 was my dream camera, but I couldn’t afford it.
 
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mghohoo said:
My parents bought a computer for my brother and me 30 years ago. Now, I’m a programmer too. Hehe……



Thank you for your suggestion. I prefer not to use Canon. Nikon offers a Z to E adapter, so I can use Nikon cameras with Sony lenses.
I also have an Olympus camera body, which is my second camera system. But now, I’m looking for a bridge camera for my son.
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Cool. Have you looked at the Sony RX10iv? My wife shot one of those for a few years before she went to Canon gear (so we can share lenses, flash, etc.). The Sony is a little dated but nobody except Nikon have updated the long zoom bridge cameras in a few years. The Sony has a better sensor (we had a Nikon P900 for a while). We still have an RX10iv as a backup camera. There are situations when my wife still grabs the Sony when she wants to go out and not carry gear around. The RX10iv is a very good bridge camera and it would be familiar to anyone using Sony gear.

By the way, well done in taking your son out with you and encouraging his interest in nature and photography. I love to see parents and children when we are out taking photos and hiking. Would would be a better place if more kids were out in nature more frequently
 
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Box Brownie said:
Hmmm! perhaps get a (do check out overall weight first?) the OM 40-150mm f2.8 & the the x2 TC to use on your Olympus EM-1 II = at the long end 600mm FoV equivalent to Full Frame.

Note ~ it is weighty but as the CoG (Centre of Gravity) balance is possibly better for a smaller person/child that might not be as much of an issue :unsure:
Click to expand...
It is a goog suggestion. I didn't know that the 40-150 2.8 is so light.
 
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jeffnles1 said:
Cool. Have you looked at the Sony RX10iv? My wife shot one of those for a few years before she went to Canon gear (so we can share lenses, flash, etc.). The Sony is a little dated but nobody except Nikon have updated the long zoom bridge cameras in a few years. The Sony has a better sensor (we had a Nikon P900 for a while). We still have an RX10iv as a backup camera. There are situations when my wife still grabs the Sony when she wants to go out and not carry gear around. The RX10iv is a very good bridge camera and it would be familiar to anyone using Sony gear.

By the way, well done in taking your son out with you and encouraging his interest in nature and photography. I love to see parents and children when we are out taking photos and hiking. Would would be a better place if more kids were out in nature more frequently
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I know that the image quality of the RX10 IV is much better. But for the same price, I could buy the P1100, which is better for birding.
 
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Giving him a camera that's too large and too heavy can easily turn him off to both photography and birds and many of the previous suggestions are both large and heavy, including the Nikon bridge cameras. I often use an Olympus E-M1 ii with the 75-300mm ii lens as a walk-around long zoom. The combination is light and small and takes better photos than it's usually given credit for --

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Woody Meristem said:
Giving him a camera that's too large and too heavy can easily turn him off to both photography and birds and many of the previous suggestions are both large and heavy, including the Nikon bridge cameras. I often use an Olympus E-M1 ii with the 75-300mm ii lens as a walk-around long zoom. The combination is light and small and takes better photos than it's usually given credit for --

View attachment 110170

View attachment 110171
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I bought a Panasonic 100-300mm lens at the beginning of my birding journey, but I sold it after a few days. At that time, I didn’t know about the 75-300mm II. When I learned about this lens, I looked up some information, benchmarks, and sample images.
The P610 weighs 565g, making it much lighter than the EM1 II with the 75-300mm II. I think he should start with something simpler, like the P610. If he ever needs a more professional camera, I would be willing to buy a mirrorless camera or lens for him.
 
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mghohoo said:
My child is 8 years old, weighs 36 kg, and is 140 cm tall.
I bought an 8x32 telescope for him, and he has been enjoying birding in the nearby parks with me for weeks.
Now, he wants to take photos. My gear includes a Sony A7C, 100-400GM, 200-600G, 70-200G and 1.4x teleconverter. I also have an Olympus EM-1 II with a Zuiko 60mm, which is not suitable for birding.
He took a few photos using the A7C and the 100-400GM, but he said it was too heavy for him. Thus, I am considering four options:
1. P1100
2. Olympus 75-300 II
3. Buy a new Sony camera and let him use either camera with the 100-400GM
4. Buy a Z50 II , a Z to E mount adapter and let him use either camera with the 100-400GM

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
As someone who's spent a small fortune indulging my daughter's countless interests over the years, my only real advice would be to start slow and small, to see if it lasts, before investing in a bigger way. Perhaps a good place to start would be with a midrange kit camera and telephoto zoom, which would let your son develop his photographic knowledge, and to work on composition and field techniques. A good, well maintained used kit might be worthwhile. There's also value in engaging him in the selection process, as others have suggested, which encourages ownership, and is a learning process in of itself. Each of the major brands has starter kits, and in a way it doesn't really matter which you pick, although it probably would make more sense to go with Sony since you already are familiar with the brand. Whatever you decide, best of luck, and enjoy the time shooting with you son!
 
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mghohoo said:
I bought a Panasonic 100-300mm lens at the beginning of my birding journey, but I sold it after a few days. At that time, I didn’t know about the 75-300mm II. When I learned about this lens, I looked up some information, benchmarks, and sample images.
The P610 weighs 565g, making it much lighter than the EM1 II with the 75-300mm II. I think he should start with something simpler, like the P610. If he ever needs a more professional camera, I would be willing to buy a mirrorless camera or lens for him.
Click to expand...

The P610 is quite comparable to the Canon SX70 which I have and still occasionally use. The Nikon 610 would be probably be a good choice for him -- versatile and not very expensive. I've given each of our three granddaughters one of the Canon bridge cameras, the smaller less expensive bridge cameras are really good for young folks' introduction to photography.
 
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Nikon D7500 with 18-140 lens. Modest cost if used. Pretty light and flexible. Fast enough with good IQ before graduating to full frame mirrorless.
 
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mghohoo said:
My child is 8 years old, weighs 36 kg, and is 140 cm tall.
I bought an 8x32 telescope for him, and he has been enjoying birding in the nearby parks with me for weeks.
Now, he wants to take photos. My gear includes a Sony A7C, 100-400GM, 200-600G, 70-200G and 1.4x teleconverter. I also have an Olympus EM-1 II with a Zuiko 60mm, which is not suitable for birding.
He took a few photos using the A7C and the 100-400GM, but he said it was too heavy for him. Thus, I am considering four options:
1. P1100
2. Olympus 75-300 II
3. Buy a new Sony camera and let him use either camera with the 100-400GM
4. Buy a Z50 II , a Z to E mount adapter and let him use either camera with the 100-400GM

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

Interesting comments even if a bit sad. You have a wonderful opportunity here. In my case when my son was 8 I had made the jump from newspaper photography to TV. I had a ton of expensive Nikon gear laying around and when he wanted to shoot it was all available.

At age 8, he was putting photos in a major metropolitan newspaper, interned there at 9 and was a member of the National Press Photographer's Association at 10.

There were so many good times hanging out together and shooting. There were also great opportunities like he was mentored by a Putlitzer winning photographer etc. Don't let this opportunity slip away!

A lot of comments about bridge cameras. If he's serious I believe he'll quickly grow tired of the limitations. So here's another suggestion, he's already using a telescope so how about a tripod and gimbal head? Let him use the big guns, just with a little support.

I wish you the very best. You're a very lucky man!
 
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Maybe look at the Sony RX10 IV all in one with the 1 inch sensor and 600mm equivalent lens? My main issue with it is the cost at $1,700. You could get a Z50II and a used tamron for close to that.
 
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Hi guys, I bought two P610 cameras from two different sellers, but neither of them was in good condition as described. So, I returned both and switched to the Olympus 75-300mm II.My son really likes it. The 75-300mm II is a great lens for him to start with.

The attached photos were taken by me.

The shutter speed was a bit slow on these two shots—haha!

I’ll share the photos he takes by himself in the future. Thanks, everyone!

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