Desert Gecko Loc: desert southwest, USA

John N Loc: HP14 3QF Stokenchurch, UK

If you specifically want a 3yr. olds camera try FISHER PRICE or V-TECH. Otherwise an old point and shoot.

lone ranger Loc: Port Saint Lucie, Florida

excellent question, but my guess would be, that the long lenses would weigh more then the little guy...

Psdunner

Having made the mistake of over buying with my kids, my grandson is not where your grandchild is quite yet but I learned my lesson. What do you want to do with your grand-daughter? Buy her a toy or inspire some love of the magic of photography? (Rhetorical Question!). i would strongly consider a Fujifilm Instax! They arent expensive, produce immediate tangible results that the kid can hold and see repeatedly without a computer and are still as magic as they were when it was a Polaroid product. On my trip to North Korea I packed one with plenty of film to give out pictures of people who have no access to cameras and they ate it up! It permitted me to whip out my DSLR and get some nice portraits. Now imagine the joy of a 3 year old as the picture comes out of the camera and develops! Enjoy the reaction if you go that route.

SteveTog Loc: Philly

My daughter has been using a Nikon 1, J1 because it is available. She started with it at 3. She's 5 now. She gets a little freaked out because the internal battery is shot, but she gets past that and takes shots with me when she feels like it.

BJW

This has been a very helpful discussion since I'm now trying to decide which camera to get for my 9 year old grandson, who is itching for "Poppy" to start teaching him all about photography. He's a smart computer savvy type kid who will probably get bored in 30 seconds with a toy camera, so I've decided to give him my old Rebel T1 which I've graduated from and which has been sitting in the closet collecting dust.
The first lesson: put the strap on over the neck to make sure you don't drop it. I'll spring for a used 50mm lense to get him started. Then we'll go out on a shoot together and let him shoot what he finds to be of interest. After that we'll come home and pop the SD card into his laptop and then I'll first start teaching him all about the exposure triangle, composition, etc to help him understand how he cam make better pics on the next shoot we do together. In other words, let him learn from his initial errors how to improve his shots.

Is there a better way to teach kids photography?

Any other suggestions from other grandparents out there who have taught their little ones how to fall in love with the camera would be much appreciated.
Happy Holidays, all.
BJW

pyroManiac Loc: HIXSON,TN

I would suggest an old obsolete cellphone with a still working camera as a starter and if she shows promise go for something better. We picked up an excellent old Canon at a charity sale for $8.00. About the size of a cigarette pack and is still working after 3 years. 3 MP but produces excellent small prints.

turp77 Loc: Connecticut, Plainfield

Try Amazon "Child's first camera"

My "First" Digital Camera http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HJBUGUG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_2xzoybC5PPJGG

TommiRulz Loc: Corpus Christi, TX

At that age I gave my son an old Canon D10 that I had. It is waterproof and drop proof. You can buy them used on ebay for pretty cheap and actually take gorgeous pictures.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

Not necessarily so. My 19 year old grandson was that age when he began playing with his mom's little digital camera. Somehow, he managed to understand the thing, and he was taking pictures all the time. At first they were just goofy pics, like, up someone's nose or ear, or the dog's eye, but he had a knack for a photo. He now shoots with a D810 and a variety of lenses, and is wanting to go to a bona fide school of photography. So don't sell your kid short. You just never know. And no, I wouldn't spend a lot of money on a simple camera, but it's worth getting her one that is real.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

mvetrano2 Loc: Commack, NY

Thank you again for all the positive responses. I wound up buying her a Discovery Kids camera in Kohls for $30 that is perfect for 3-year-olds, and it takes a micro SD card.

kiterwv Loc: Hagerstown, MD

Go to a pawn shop. I'm a clinical Counselor and do phototherapy. They're cheap and can be replaced easily.

lowkick Loc: Connecticut

I bought a camera for my (then) 2 year old granddaughter. She watched me and her mother take pictures all the time and started pretending to take pictures. Look at the Vtech Kidizoom Camera. It's made for the abuse that a little kid will give it, but it takes real pictures. https://www.amazon.com/VTech-Kidizoom-Camera-Pix-Pink/dp/B01D11ZOEQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1480183895&sr=8-1&keywords=vtech+kidizoom+camera

jamesl Loc: Pennsylvania

I had a similar situation with my son when he was 3 or 4 and we got him a Fisher Price camera designed for kids. It was just the right size for him to hold and use and it took decent pictures. The one we got was a film camera nut I've been told that they make a digital model now. That or a fairly inexpensive point & shoot model would be my suggestion. She can have fun taking pictures and if it accidentally gets dropped or misplaced it wouldn't be real expensive to replace for her. The Fisher Price, since it was designed to be used by you children, was almost indestructible, kind of like the Tonka Truck of cameras.