Before you buy a gift for a photographer, there’s one thing you have to know; they’re extremely picky!
It’s not an insult, it’s just a fact I learned since it was the primary time I noticed it in myself. But I do know the key to finding the proper gift for the photographer or videographer in your life. So read on.
Looking for the proper Christmas gift for a photographer? Maybe it’s a birthday gift for someone who loves photography, or simply a thank you gift for a photographer. What would they like?
Think about it.
If you still don’t think me, read some discussion forums about photography. You will quickly learn that photographers have a tendency to be stubborn. Although if you know the photographer, you may already know this 🙂
Jump to our list of one of the best gifts for every photographer
Don’t get me fallacious, I’m NOT saying that photographers are narcissistic or all the time perfectionists. Personally, I’m quite shy and like to maintain it to myself. While other photographers are more adventurous and charismatic. There is not any specific personality model that matches all photographers.
This also implies that there is no such thing as a one gift that is ideal for all photographers. But no matter your personality type, you can find the proper gift for a photographer using considered one of the three category types below.
If you want, you can skip ahead to those lists or read on to essentially understand select the proper gift:
The secret to finding the proper gift for a photographer/videographer
So you need to know the key to purchasing a gift for a photographer? It’s really easy be picky!
That’s right, it’s just like the old saying, “if you can’t beat them, join them.”
I’m not a mind reader, but when you took the time to research something like this: “What to give to someone who loves taking photos?” Or “What do you buy for a nature photographer?” then you’re having a hard time finding a gift for the photographer in your life.
Maybe it’s a mom or dad who loves photography. A boy or girl who started taking photos. Or you have a friend who is a photographer and helped you with something, so you want to buy him a thank you gift.
Whoever it is, I promise they will appreciate a thoughtful gift instead of some flashy gadget.
To put this article together and create a list of gifts for photographers, WeI looked through hundreds and hundreds of items and other recommendations. They are good there. However, there are also long lists filled with almost everything that can be associated with photography, so that you can say something like: “Over 100 best photography gifts…”
All I found was a slow loading site, annoying pop-up ads, and a long list of gift ideas that had me guessing whether they would be any good or not.
Remember that the secret to finding the perfect gift for a photographer is to be picky. This means that they have something in mind that they would really like.
To help you “filter out” the hundreds of items you DON’T want to buy, we’ve found that these three categories really make it easier to “focus” on what you do want ().
How to decide on the proper gift for a photographer
By using these three gift categories, it’s really easy to choose a gift that your videographer or photographer will love. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking for a birthday gift for a photographer, a unique holiday gift, or just a meaningful thank you gift. We’ll quickly go over the reasoning behind each category and then move on to the lists for each.
Photography equipment and filming equipment
This is truly the gift every photographer dreams of! But wait, isn’t this a photography gift ideas post?
Remember that we were learning photographers. This is especially true when it comes to their equipment.
They want it, but they want to choose it.
So just go with it. Unless they have specifically told you they want to.
This means no cameras, lenses, studio lighting, camera bags, etc. If you bought them these things, I’m sure they’d be grateful, but they’d also wish you’d bought them “the opposite one” that does things a little differently.
This doesn’t mean you should skip this gift category, just that you can support their “photo gear accessory” in other ways.
Again, this category is the gift they really want.
Although it sometimes has the reputation of being a “gift because you cannot consider anything”, .
In most cases, your gift budget will be modest, so you’re not going to spend money on a $1,500 lens anyway. So the gift card helps reduce the costs they were going to pay for it anyway.
It doesn’t have to be boring, so the list of gift ideas below includes some creative ways to approach this problem, as well as some proven gifts that they will surely like.
Practical gifts for a photographer
Many lists of photography gift ideas include many gadgets that claim to solve various problems. These are often hits and misses.
Finding a practical gift for a photographer is a little more difficult because you need to know a little about the type of photography they do.
If you’re not a photographer, this might not make any sense, but you wouldn’t want to buy an ND filter for a portrait photographer. However, an ND filter can be a great gift option for a landscape or nature photographer. However, at this point you need to make sure you get a filter that will fit their lens. That’s why we mentioned above that we don’t recommend purchasing specific equipment.
Our list of practical photography gifts below describes what type of photography they would be best for. This will help you determine if this is a good fit for the photographer you know.
Since we’re getting a little more specific here, we also provide free equipment advice. So if you have a query about what to buy, don’t waste hours searching, just ask us.
Gifts that stimulate creativity
This category is a bit looser than “practical gifts” because the idea is that buying them something they wouldn’t have thought of themselves.
For this list, we’re focusing on unique gifts for photographers. A gift they won’t buy for themselves, but they’ll still have fun with.
For this list, we will focus more on budget. We’ve selected cheap gifts for photographers under $25, right up to more expensive gifts for photographers for an anniversary, Christmas or birthday.
All of these options are quite versatile and will spark creativity in the photographer you love.
Although Best Photography Gear will receive a commission if you purchase a specific product/service through our affiliate links