Paper short abstract:

This paper discusses US tourists' photographs of Ireland as sources of evidence and memory through which their construction of Ireland as a tourist destination can be explored.

Paper long abstract:

Haldrup and Larsen (2012) state that photographs taken by tourists while on holiday are a source of rich data, which researchers can avail of to gain a deeper understanding of the lives and behaviours of the tourist. Indeed, photographs create a discourse between the viewer and the world which is captured in it (Badger, 2007). This paper seeks to challenge the reader to think of tourists' photographs as sources of evidence and memory, which generate rich narratives in focus group settings, which extend beyond traditional observation or illustration. This theoretical exploration of tourists' photographs in focus group settings is supported by relevant findings from a phenomenographical study of how US tourists' consume and thereby make sense of Ireland as a place through practicing photography as part of 'being a tourist'.