What began as a routine photography outing near the Golden Gate Bridge turned into an unexpected act of kindness for Bay Area photographer Stu Berman.

Berman was hiking a trail while capturing images of the iconic bridge when he noticed something unusual on his way back to his car.

"On the way back up the trail towards my car, I saw a wallet on the ground, and I picked it up and looked at it and recognized the person in the wallet was someone I had passed about 20, 30 minutes before," Berman said.

Inside the wallet was a Vietnamese identification card, prompting Berman to begin searching for the owner. He later learned the man worked for VNG Games, a Vietnam-based technology company, but initial efforts to contact him online were unsuccessful.

Separately, Berman had plans to spend time with an old friend. During their conversation, she mentioned she had previously lived in Vietnam — a detail that unexpectedly helped move the search forward.

"I was like, you lived in Vietnam, and she's like, I did," Berman said.

He asked whether she spoke Vietnamese.

"I don't," she replied. "But I know people who do."

When Berman shared the story of the lost wallet, including the connection to VNG Games, his friend realized she might be able to help.

"So, I proceeded to tell her the whole wallet saga, including VNG Games," he said. "And then she said, 'I think I know somebody who works at VNG Games.'"

That connection led to a friend of a friend in Vietnam who personally knew the wallet's owner and helped link the two while the man was still visiting the Bay Area.

"I got a message on WhatsApp saying, 'Hey Stu, I hear you might have my wallet,'" Berman said. "And I said, 'I do. Where are you right now?'"

The two met shortly afterward, and Berman returned the wallet to its relieved owner.

Berman said the experience reinforced his belief in the importance of everyday kindness, especially amid ongoing global tensions.

"You know there is so much anger and violence in the world right now," he said. "And I feel like I can feel helpless at times, not knowing how to respond to all the horrible things that are happening. And yet I feel like if I can try and change my little corner of the world, just a little bit, make it a little bit brighter, and inspire others to do the same, then, hallelujah."

In the end, it was a small moment with a big ripple effect. A reminder that sometimes the most powerful images aren't just the ones we capture, but the ways simple acts of kindness can change how we see images in the world.