by Megan As Well

Created on: June 10, 2008   Last Updated: July 03, 2008

Since the invention of the camera, photo albums have made excellent gifts. Photo albums are timeless, visual records of family memories. So a simple photo album for Dad this Father's Day is a traditional but personalized gift that will never disappoint. Plus, it's easy and inexpensive to create.

My boyfriend's father absolutely loves family photos, which is fantastic, because I take my Canon Poweshot S2IS everywhere I go. In the last six months, I've photographed my boyfriend's college graduation (from Full Sail University in Orlando, Florida), his father's retirement party, and our dogs: a Jack Russell, Boxer, and massive Chocolate Lab. I also have a bunch of candid shots from around the house and in the backyard.

All of these pictures have been uploaded to the computer, but unfortunately my boyfriend's father does not bother with computers and electronics and gadgets. But he loves family photos. Good old-fashioned in-your-hand photographs. So for father's day, my boyfriend and I sorted through the folders of pictures and picked out the best ones. We had them printed out and we arranged them in an album.

It turned out to be a really great gift, and I can't wait to see his reaction. His face will brighten. He'll be beaming all day. He'll be on top of the world. Because personal things like those really make a person feel good. Feel safe. Feel proud. Feel accomplished. Feel comfortable. But most of all, it'll make him happy.

There are so many different kinds of dads in the world, so to say that something is great for all dads is very vague. But a photo album is anything but generic. Anything but vague. It's zoomed in on him! How much more personal can you get?!

You can do the same thing for your dad! All it will take is some snapshots, a printing service like Snapfish.com, Ophoto.com, and Kodak.com, and a WalMart album. Most of those printing services offer a couple dozen free prints just for joining. So you could purchase fifty or sixty photos and it wouldn't cost you more than five or six bucks. You could get a photo album anywhere. You could get it at the Dollar Tree, or you could get it at Target, or Macy's, or some designer place with diamonds embeded and his initials engraved on the front cover. It's your dad, so it's your call. But you have infinite options.

A photo album not only makes a personal, touching gift, but it can hold so many memories. And if you fill it up for him, it'll be like taking his arm and walking with him down memory lane. Everyone will be smiling and making silly faces. Even the dogs will look ecstatic because life is good. Captured in photos, never to be forgotten. A photo album is timeless, and will always make a great Father's Day gift.

Learn more about this author, Megan As Well.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.