I was just looking for a birthday gift for a family member who likes to be “surprised” and doesn’t want “stuff”, he wants “experiences”. LOL. I get it! I love surprises too! And, Lord knows that I don’t need more things!
Sometimes it is hard to buy gifts for someone. I think I had a great find this morning, though! This person has taken some really nice photos on his various adventures, and doesn’t want to carry a lot of “stuff”, so he uses his iPhone.

And as a veteran member of the Viewpoint Photographic Art Center in Sacramento, I saw an upcoming workshop in July for learning about iPhone photography! EUREKA!
- A short class or workshop on photography is surprising, and interesting
- It isn’t stuff
- The knowledge goes along with all kinds of adventures or experiences
- It is a common interest I share with my gift recipient
- I love helping other people find their photographic “sweet spot”!
My next thought was, what if he can’t make the date? So I broadened my search looking for other iPhone photography classes in Northern California, and I found one right away being held on a different date at Point Reyes National Seashore! My conclusion was to give him a birthday card (made with my own photo) that offered him a choice of photography workshops.
- The iPhone – In the palm of your hand by Point Reyes National Seashore Association
- Unlocking creativity in mobile phone photography by Viewpoint Photographic Art Center, taught by Betty Sederquist

My take-away
Don’t forget to think about photography classes and workshops as gifts for special people in your life if they like taking pictures even if it’s only for social media!
By signing up for a workshop or class, you are helping support artists and artist organizations at the same time as giving a gift! It’s a Two-For-One!
And who knows, maybe you will decide to go along too!
Note: Both images in this post were taken with an iPhone 11 Pro.