Photography tour of Ring of Kerry
Stunning irish landscape and breathtaking views, Student Ambassador Austin DesRosiers shares his photographs with us!
Film photography is one of my passionate hobbies. In the digital age of phones that can take thousands of pictures effortlessly, the limited and tangible nature of film is very appealing. You need to take your time to think about what you want a picture of; what is worth spending a roll of film on. You need to take care in framing the picture, getting the settings correct, and only then can you take a picture. 
But you don’t get to see the result instantly; this is film. Once a picture is taken it’s stored away until the entire roll of pictures is finished being exposed. Even when the roll is finished, it still must be developed as well. All of this takes time and means you may wait weeks or months to finally see and share your pictures. But patience is virtue; there’s something special about looking back at a memory and experience from a couple months ago. If they were digital pictures, we can see them instantly while we’re still there in the moment, and we may never look back on them. It’s not the same.
Here are some of my favourite frames from October, when I went on the famous Ring of Kerry bus trip. Arrangement of this trip was provided to international students by my college, MTU Kerry, to afford international students a discount on an amazing local opportunity. The trip is a sightseeing tour of Co. Kerry where one can visit many breathtaking places all in one county. Canada, where I’m from, has many beautiful sights as well, but the distance between the sights can be quite large at times.
The trip itself was spectacular. A wonderful sunny day, magnificent sights, with tasty food and drinks all throughout. Having a group of friends to join you, however, makes the journey all that more special. My only regret is not bringing along more friends to enjoy the trip with. 
Photography has been good practice for my programme as well, as I’m taking my BA Hons in Animation, VFX, and Motion Design at Munster Technological University (MTU). I plan to do more film photography here in Ireland, and I look forward to seeing how things develop. (Pun intended!)
Austin DesRosiers is studying Animation, Visual Effects and Motion Design at MTU