What camera & lens/es you started out with?

[iGas]

The school Pentax K1000 and 50mm f/1.4 Takumar was my first experience with a camera.
Canon AV-1 film camera and Canon FD 50mm f/1.8 was the first photography equipment that I purchased with my own money.
Canon A70 was the first digital camera that I purchased.
Canon 5D mkII and 24-105L + 100L were the first DSLR equipment that I purchased.

 

[CuriousMike]

I was Captain P&S for years;
First digital P&S was the Nikon 950.
First DSLR was my D5000 + 18-55 kit and the 35 f1.8. It was that 35 f1.8 and the ability to control DOF that gave me the DSLR woody I'm still riding today.

 

[blurredvision]

I started out back in 2006 with a Nikon D50 with the 18-55 kit lens. Took fantastic pictures even though I had no idea what I was doing. I believe my second lens was a very cheap, very crappy Sigma 70-300 (or something like that). That's when I learned what CA was all about. I ended up with the 50/1.8 soon after.

I've since graduated to a better body and better lenses, but I still have the D50, which I'm handing over to my mother for a quasi-birthday gift here in a week or two. She has wanted to get into photography for many, many years, but never has had the money to buy a "proper" camera. I think the D50 will be a great camera for her.

 

[CA19100]

First one I used was my brother's Olympus OM-1; first of my own was a Nikon 8008, bought in 1989. Paired with one of their 70-210mm AF zoom lenses. Still have it, and it still works great, but I hardly ever use it in this digital age. It was an amazing camera for its day, and for a piece of tech to last the 25 years I've had it is pretty damn impressive.

 

[blastingcap]

If we're talking film, I don't even remember anymore.

If we're talking digital, my first digital camera was a Canon S50 high-end P&S and precursor to today's S120.

My first DSLR that I kept for more than a week was a Nikon D90, with a lot of nice lenses.

 

[IronWing]

I learned on a Kodak rangefinder, model unremembered. I spent a lot of film with my dad's Canonet. The first and only film camera I bought was a K1000 SE with a Sigma 35-70 zoom. I added a Tamron 70-120, Tamron 500 cat, and a Tamron 24mm. I still use the Kiwi case and Velbon tripod I bought for the K1000.

In the digital age: Coolpix 990, Coolpix S4 (a monstrous comedown), D90, Lumix LX5, and a D5100.

Edit: Nohr's post reminded me, I also has a ViCam webcam. It was an early generation with three interchangeable lenses. I used it until Win 7 when driver support was dropped.

 

[Nohr]

I didn't get my first camera until the 2000s and I've never used film. For several years I wasn't all that interested in photography as a hobby. At the time it was just a tool to share the occasional pics of pets or whatever with friends online and I didn't put any more thought in to it than that. It wasn't important to me so naturally I spent little to no money on cameras.

Initially I just used a Logitech 320x240 webcam to take pics around the house. This was terrible of course but amusing to look back on.

Then in 2002 a friend gave me his old camera, a Polaroid PDC-640 0.3MP (640x480) with fixed focus. It was a big clunky thing and it would quickly drain it's 4 AA batteries but it was an improvement.

In late 2005 another friend gave me a Concord Eye-Q Duo 2000 that they had lying around in a cupboard. The upgrade to 2MP was nice but still no zoom. I had a hard time getting it to take consistent quality photos and it often caused frustration.

Finally in late 2007 after a lot of research I bought myself a new point & shoot, a Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ7. This was my first good quality camera and my real start in to photography as a hobby. At 7.2MP with 6x optical zoom and image stabilization it was a massive step ahead of my old cameras. I liked it so much I even bought a case for it.

My first DSLR came from my mother for christmas in 2010, a Canon Rebel XS (1000D) 10MP w/18x55mm kit lens. Initial thoughts: "Holy crap is this thing big!" "WTF are all these settings?" "I *have* to use the viewfinder?" But I got used to it and ended up later gifting it to my little brother after I got my current Canon T4i.

 

[OctaneZ]

I think I had a nikon film P&S first.

My first SLR was the Canon EOS Elan with the 28–80 mm f/3.5-5.6. This was added to a year or so later with the 50 mm f/1.8.

My first digital camera was a Canon A80 4MP P&S.

My first (and current) DSLR is a Canon 60D.

 

[JohnnyRebel]

Wow...

"First" camera was a brand-new 1972 Kodak Pocket Instamatic 110 I got for Christmas.

 

[corkyg]

Ha, ha! My first camera was a Kodak Brownie circa 1942. Then my dad handed me down a Kodak 35. That was about 1948 or so. I used that until 1961 when I bought a Minolta ST-101 SLR. Had that until 1977 when I got a Nikon F2AS SLR with motor drive and extra lenses. Along came digital in 1995 with an Olympus P&S. Got my first DSLR, a Canon D30 in 2000. I started collecting Canon lenses. Then came the EOS 20D and more lenses in 2004. That was followed by a 5D in 2007 and more lenses. That was followed by a 5D MKII body, and no more lenses. Today, that 5D MKII sits idle - I do all my shooting now with a great little camera - Canon SX50 HS. I still have the Nikon F2AS kit and my dad's venerable Leica IIIC.

 

[Spoooon]

Ha, ha! My first camera was a Kodak Brownie circa 1942. Then my dad handed me down a Kodak 35. That was about 1948 or so. I used that until 1961 when I bought a Minolta ST-101 SLR. Had that until 1977 when I got a Nikon F2AS SLR with motor drive and extra lenses. Along came digital in 1995 with an Olympus P&S. Got my first DSLR, a Canon D30 in 2000. I started collecting Canon lenses. Then came the EOS 20D and more lenses in 2004. That was followed by a 5D in 2007 and more lenses. That was followed by a 5D MKII body, and no more lenses. Today, that 5D MKII sits idle - I do all my shooting now with a great little camera - Canon SX50 HS. I still have the Nikon F2AS kit and my dad's venerable Leica IIIC.

I don't know if you still have that Minolta, but I bet it still works.

I never really cared much for photography until my wife bought me a digital P&S for Christmas 10 years or so ago. Upgraded to a superzoom, than the Sony A35, picked up a slew of film cameras (Minoltas mostly), and most recently got an A7 so I can use all the vintage glass I've picked up.

 

[Paladin3]

When I was a kid I had a Kodak 126 camera with flash cubes. I even used it to take slides at the La Brea Tar Pits for a class report in 4th grade.

I had a 110 camera for a while and even a Kodak disk camera.

My first 35mm was a Minolta X-370 with a 50/1.7 and an 80-200/4-5.6. I later got a Vivitar 28/2.8 and a Minolta 135/2.8.

When I started shooting at a newspaper it was a Canon FD F-1n, T-90, 24/2.8, 50/1.8, 135/2 and 300/4.

Switched to Nikon later and then to Nikon digital eventually.

 

[jmai87]

In middle school I started out with a Nikon Coolpix 9xx or something. Then the photo bug bit me and I've had countless cameras and lenses since haha.

My favorites however have always been the Nikon F3 and Canon 6D. But if there's one thing I've learned, it's never about the gear. I still have a couple of photos I took with that old Nikon Coolpix that I use in my adult life portfolio.

 

[iGas]

In middle school I started out with a Nikon Coolpix 9xx or something. Then the photo bug bit me and I've had countless cameras and lenses since haha.

My favorites however have always been the Nikon F3 and Canon 6D. But if there's one thing I've learned, it's never about the gear. I still have a couple of photos I took with that old Nikon Coolpix that I use in my adult life portfolio.

Wow, a lurker post in my thread.

I agree that there is much more to photography than gear. I also have countless number of cameras and lenses since I started out and it included medium & large format, but my favorite has to be the Canon AV-1.

The images that I made with the AV-1 still remain as some of my favorite (I won 2 photo contests with it; Pentax PZ-1 & 28-80mm powerzoom, 100 rolls of 50 & 100 Velvia prepaid processing & mount in the 1992 national contest, and $750 in a local contest in 1987).

 

[shortylickens]

The included 18-55. I usually buy something better later on.

Normally a 55-200 or in that range. With image stabilization or vibration reduction or whatever.

 

[jhansman]

First analog-Canon AE1, 50mm, circa 1972.

First digial dSLR-Nikon D60 with kit lenses. Great little body to re-learn what I thought I knew about photography. Sold it to another rookie who is having a ball with it.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

First DSLR was the Canon Rebel XT with the 18-55 kit lens. Prior to that, I had a Kodak digital camera (maybe a DC280?) of some sort. Current is an EOS 70D with the 18-135 kit lens and a couple of other lenses.

 

[Imp]

Just P&S now, but I think I'm on the verge of getting a Canon T3i with kit 18-55 lens as a starter.

 

[ElFenix]

some 110 something or other that took flash cubes. looked like the one above (but that's not saying much because they all pretty much looked like that).

then started using my parents' AE-1p.

first digicam was a a canon S40. first digiSLR was a Rebel XTi.

 

[biostud]

See sig D5100 + 35mm f/1.8

 

[BarkingGhostar]

Hmm,

Minolta 2000
Canon AE-1 (non-Program)
Nikon FE-2
Nikon FM-2
Nikon N90
Nikon D70
Nikon D5000
Canon 5D Mk3

 

[NAC]

I had two or three different film cameras as a kid - both 126 film I think. One I got free with a magazine subscription I think. They used the rotating cube flash. I thought my older sister's cameras, which were 110 film I think, were cooler because they had a stacked flash with about 8 uses, as compared to the four uses on the rotating cubes. Thinking of them reminds me of the smell when they went off. Eventually I think I got a 126 Yashica camera with a built in flash!

For college graduation I got my first digital camera - a 1.3 megapixel Olympus D360. That was stolen, I replaced it with a 2.1 megapixel Olympus D510.

Meanwhile, my girlfriend/fiancé/wife didn't like digital, so I got her a Canon EOS Rebel 2000 35mm camera. Got a superzoom Tamron for it. Also an APS Minolta camera - a Vectis 300 I think.

The second Olympus camera broke, and I think I replaced it with a Canon SD1000, which I still have. A few years later I got my wife a T1i. Then when I took up the hobby a couple years ago I upgraded to a T4i and now a 70D.

Funny - in the beginning of digital pictures - they were less used than film, at least in my experience. Digital pictures just sat on a computer, you couldn't easily share them or use them. You could of course, but it seemed so awkward compared to pulling out pictures or a photo album. Now - the exact opposite is the case. Developed film just sits in a box somewhere. I can access any digital picture I've ever taken in a few seconds from anywhere. No need to wipe dust off the box. I've had about half my film negatives scanned in, I'll send the other half in next year probably.

 

[NAC]

So I just looked up the first picture I took with my first digital camera. It was May 17, 2000. Me and my girl friend (now wife) in front of my computer at the time. Wow we look young. Clearly a flash picture, but almost no red-eye.

 

[Carson Dyle]

Pentax MX with 50mm f1.4, 28mm and 100mm lenses. Circa 1978.

 

[dkm777]

Mine was the legendary(?) Zenit-E in the early 90s with some Helios lens. it was my dad's but by that time he pretty much quit photography and it lay unused for a few years. I didn't shoot much and didn't learn anything and eventually quit as well. There was no one there to teach me, but plenty to discourage me. That was the reason I never touched a camera again till the digital era when the internet enabled me access to learning material and willing teachers.