I think that is very sensible; In my case, I'll nearly always be around when he uses it, so can keep an eye on him. If I wasn't (and I have only just got used to the idea of having childern, so the prospect of grand children is a bit mind-blowing!), I'd be tempted to leave a 'proper' camera until he was a bit older.

I bought an Optio E50 for the princely sum of £17, got it today and was quite impressed. It seems suitably straightforward, with familiar ergonomics and is fairly well screwed together. The pictures are better than expected, too.

Actually, for £17, it's amazing. Time will tell how it stands up to use by a 5 year old, though...

Sold (subject to payment). Thanks for looking.

I'm having a clear out of some of my lenses to make space and raise funds for an FA77 ltd.

For sale is my Samyang 85mm f/1.4. I've had it for just over a year; and it's a lovely lens and one of my fastest. I will miss it, but am planning to upgrade to a FA77 ltd.

It's in excellent condition and shows hardly any sign of use. The optics are in excellent shape, with no scratches, marks or fungus.

As is common with these lenses, the only slight issue is that the diaphragm doesn't quite close evenly at smaller apertures, as shown in the pictures. The unevenness on this copy is very minor and doesn't affect performance as far as I can see, but seemed worth mentioning. Cosmetically it's in excellent condition, as shown in the pictures.

It is supplied with the original hood, box, pouch and rear cap, but I have replaced the original front cap (which is often criticised) with a centre pinch model that is easier to use while the hood is in place.

Looking at the going rate on eBay, I think that £185 delivered within the UK is reasonable and I'd be happy to investigate postage options to send it further afield if required. Payment by bank transfer or PayPal (with the buyer covering the fees) please.

I have an S-M-C takumar 35/3.5, which is optically identical, I believe.

It's in excellent shape - I don't really use it, so would be happy to sell it (and also have a spare, genuine Pentax M42 adapter, if you need one). Let me know if it's of any interest - I haven't looked in to pricing, but imagine it will be significantly cheaper than a K35/3.5.

Sold (subject to payment). Thanks for looking.

I'm having a clear out of some of my lenses to make space and raise funds for an FA77 ltd.

For sale is my Sigma 400mm f/5.6. I've had it for a year or so, but haven't used it as much as long teles aren't really my cup of tea. There are a number of variants of this lens; this one is manual focus, PK/A mount and non-APO.

It's in excellent condition, although not quite mint as it has one or two specks of internal dust and externally shows hardly any sign of use. The optics are in good shape, with no scratches, marks or fungus (the dust mentioned previously is normal for a lens of the age and nothing that would affect the pictures). Cosmetically it's in excellent condition, as shown in the pictures.

It is supplied with the original front and rear caps and tripod mount.

Looking at the going rate on eBay, I think that £85 delivered within the UK is reasonable and I'd be happy to investigate postage options to send it further afield if required. Payment by bank transfer or PayPal (with the buyer covering the fees) please.

It's worth bearing in mind that all of the options you have identified are pretty good so comparison between them will be subtle and quite subjective. In practice, I'd be happy with any of them.

However, given what you want to do with it, I'd suggest getting two lenses:

The 35/2.8 limited is excellent for landscapes and gives you the bonus of being able to take macro shots if you ever want to.

For portraits, I'd suggest getting hold of a comparatively cheap manual focus prime, like an A50/2 or A50/1.7, as these will give you a more shallow depth-of-field and nicer bokeh than the DA35/2.8.

I have a DA35/2.8 and it is an excellent lens, but portraits aren't its strongest suite as it is bitingly sharp and the bokeh can be quite busy on some backgrounds.

+1, I've got a Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 and find that the distortion at the wide end away from the centre of the frame precludes portrait use. I'd second the suggestions that the 16-45 or kit lens would be worth trying. The Sigma 30/1.4 is excellent for individual portraits, but not so good for groups due to edge performance and narrow DoF.

If you want a fast, wide, unobtrusive prime, I can recommend the Kiron-made Vivtar 24mm f/2 if you don't mind manual focussing. It's about as small, fast and wide as I've found. The DA limiteds are smaller and wider and other lenses of equivalent speed/focal length are equally fast but bigger.

Some of the Tamron Adaptall Zooms are also excellent and can be bought for under £10; just about anything from their SP range is pretty good (although a bit more expensive).

I have the 19AH 70-210mm f/3.5, which is regarded (in some quarters) as one of the best zoom lenses ever made. I've certainly been very happy with mine.