A camera for someone who walks, and photographs what they find
Light enough to carry all day, and honest in a wide view.
A landscape is not a hard subject for a camera. It stands still and it waits. The hard part is the walking: a camera that is a pleasure at the car park is a burden by the third hour.
So weight decides this one. What is below hangs off a shoulder all day and is forgotten about, which is the only kind of camera that comes home with photographs on it. It is also the kind that gets taken up the hill a second time.
So the answer is
A camera that feels like a camera
A deep grip and clear, honest controls. Nothing is hidden in a menu that needs looking up. It suits someone who wants to understand what they are doing rather than let the camera decide.
The present
Camera
Nikon Z50 II
A comfortable grip and clear controls. It feels like a camera rather than a gadget, which suits someone who wants to learn.
Lens
Nikkor Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR
Collapses down to almost nothing and is sharper than a lens this cheap has any right to be. A fine first lens.
Memory card
SanDisk Extreme PRO 128GB SDXC UHS-II
The card the pictures are saved onto. This is the right one for their camera, and it is fast enough that the camera never has to pause and wait.
What goes with it
Not needed on the day. Add one if you want the present to feel finished.
Strap
Peak Design Slide Lite strap
Clips on and off in a second and adjusts with one hand. The strap that comes in the box is the first thing most people replace.
What it gives up
It gives up the low-light ability of a bigger sensor, which matters most indoors in the evening.
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Two other ways to go
Another maker
Photographs that look finished straight out of the camera
Fujifilm puts a dial of colour styles on this camera. They turn it, take the picture, and the photograph already looks the way they wanted it to look. Nobody has to learn editing for this to be a pleasure.
Why not this one. It is the smallest of the three, and it pays for that twice. There is no grip to speak of, so a big lens unbalances it, and there is no viewfinder to hold to the eye.
Another maker
A first camera that will not be outgrown
The same size and the same small lens as the cheaper Sony, and a far better camera underneath. It sees more in a room lit by lamps, it keeps up when nobody is standing still, and it is not the thing that will be holding them back in five years.
Why not this one. Most of the money went into the camera, so the lens is the small starter zoom. A better lens is the first thing to add later, and every lens that fits the cheaper Sony fits this one.
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