for a 17 year old, entry level DSLR with manual settings

Spend as little money as you can on the camera body. It's a very common mistake for newbies to think camera(body)-centric, when in reality you'd need to think lens-first. Most camera bodies are more same than different, so I'd say - don't buy anything more than 5 years old and try not to buy anything used for photojournalism.

Also - if your son wants the real deal photographic experience an older (X-E1, X-Pro 1) Fujifilm mirrorless body with the cheapest prime lens is a good option. It has actual control knobs for most important options and he will be able to see realtime how they impact the resulting picture.

 

Just did a bit of reading and that d200 does seem to be a really solid camera available for very cheap these days. Snag that and the 35mm f1.8 and call it good for not a whole lot of money.

 

Well, fair point about AF, it isn't stellar on current gen bodies as well. Though if you aren't shooting anything too move-y, you can make do with little that there is. My main point was that OP shouldn't get too carried away with camera bodies, when in reality the lens is where the money needs to be spent the most.

 

Easy way to get good gear for little money:

• Get analogue kit with body and lenses that includes a good 50mm. (If you are lucky the previous owner has bag of gear left.)
• Decide on DSLR-body that is compatible with old and new lenses.
• Go for "used" in "good" or "excellent" condition and properly negotiate with the seller (to avoid a bad buy).

That has been my method for years, even when I was a beginner. So much good gear can be picked up for so little money.

Also, Ken Rockwell's website really helped me to recognise what to look for in lenses. I love a good manual focus lens.

 

My first suggestion still stands if you want just a beginner style camera. You can point and shoot but can also adjust the parameters manually.
At $124 you can have a 20MP camera than can do 720p video. 35X optical zoom (875mm equiv). And works with 4AA batteries.

Like others suggested, with a bit of more $$ you can buy better cameras used. But we don't know what budget you have. You only stated "$100 is already much" (hence the $124 recommendation).

A little dollars more you could have:
A. Body
Nikon D80 $149 http://www.adorama.com/us 813822.html
Nikon D200 $180 https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/801451811-USE/nikon_25235_d200_slr_digital_camera.html
B. Lenses
18-105 f/3.5-5.6G ED DX VR $89 http://www.adorama.com/us 811421.html

 

Between D80 and D200 I'd get the D40, D60.

 

Does your son have any idea what camera he wants or what type of photography he is interested in?

While I would tend to agree that learning with a camera with easy to use manual controls (i.e. external buttons for shutter speed, aperture, iso) is the best option, I wouldn't want to scare him away by making it too complicated. Some people don't like things to be too technical and forcing them to use a manual camera with crummy auto modes will just scare them away. I am sure you know if your son is like that. Just something to consider.

 

Interesting point.

When I started with photography I was 17, bored and had time and money. A Nikon F65 with 28-80mm lens followed. The F65 was easy and then I found the F100 and F90X.

The learning curve with the F100 was steep because that camera can do many things so well already. I took many bad pictures and had to learn many things the hard way. After a while though I began to understand how to compose, observe light, check certain settings and carefully select my timing. Even with a fast 50mm F1.8 I became very aware of how to expose correctly and kept in mind that the picture would look a certain way. That is what learning with film does with you.

As a beginner you need to learn from the things that might scare you. That way you appreciate the things that work well and over time you develop the right skills to just pick up any camera, turn it on and find the right settings. No matter how good you become you sometimes make a mistake.

To baby new-comers in the photography hobby sounds nice but you end up with people who lack skills and character to develop themselves. f**k up a few times and learn because that is how life works.

That is photography in a nutshell, you capture a moment in life and you learn from it.

 

"Enjoy and Learn" rather than "Learn and Enjoy"...

That's why we're here right? If the kid sees our arguments we might have just scared him/her of taking the class.

 

Pretty much any DSLR will have manual controls that could be used for the class. He doesn't necessarily have to forego a camera that has better autofocus or auto-exposure modes in favor of a camera with easy to use manual settings.

I agree that for the purposes of a photography class, easy to use manual controls is the best option. I just don't want OP to buy his son a camera that he will never use after the class is over because he would have preferred a camera with better automatic settings.

 

You might as well ask what came first, the chicken or the egg?

Kids get scared, adults get scared and life goes on. A camera is a tool to capture a moment in life and that can be challenging. Challenges can be fun so what if a challenge seems daunting?

I really do not like this attitude that everything has to be made as easy as possible for beginners. Then you might as well only make DSLR's with "Auto" on it and assume the photographer is too stupid to comprehend the basics.

A bit of difficulty enables the beginner to develop talents and skills. Why else learn something new?

If you want "easy photography forever" keep your smart-phone and selfie-stick...

 

It seems arbitrary to decide what level of technological involvement constitutes real photography. We might as well recommend getting a camera with a broken meter so he can learn to judge exposure the old fashioned way.

Remember, only Sith's deal in absolutes.