Gorilla O’Clock Helps Train Nkuringo Walking Safari Guides in Photography
In Nkuringo, skilling has always been part of the story. Since 2007, when Nkuringo Walking Safaris first began training local youth as professional guides, the aim has always been the same — to help the people who know this landscape best earn a living by guiding others through it.
That same spirit of empowerment continues today, in new and creative ways — this time, through the lens of a camera.
Earlier this year, the Gorilla Junction Foundation partnered with Gorilla O’Clock to host a hands-on photography mentorship for local guides and youth in Nkuringo. The program was led by photographer Christian Del Rosario, who stayed at Nkuringo Bwindi Gorilla Lodge while trekking with the mountain gorillas.
Ten students took part — a mix of aspiring guides, school leavers, and community members curious to learn a new skill. For many, it was their first time holding a camera.
They learned to frame a shot, balance light, and wait for the right moment — but more than that, to see familiar hills, faces, and forest paths with a new kind of attention.
“At first, I didn’t know what to photograph,” said one trainee. “Then I realized the stories are all around me — in the people, in the trails, in how we live here.”
Christian had come to Nkuringo not only to photograph the gorillas but to share what he’s learned over a lifetime behind the lens. His calm, practical approach turned the training into a space of discovery rather than instruction. By the end of the week, the students were photographing the world they’ve always known — but through new eyes.
After his trek, Christian created a collection of gorilla portraits now available through cdrgallery.com — quiet, powerful images that capture the same patience he shared with the students. A portion of each sale goes back to the Robert Brierley Community Centre, helping fund equipment and resources so the learning he began here can continue.
For Nkuringo’s walking guides, who have long spent their days leading travelers through misty ridges and ancient forests, photography opened another way to connect — not just with visitors, but with their own stories.
Tools That Keep the Story Going
For the young photographers of Nkuringo, the training didn’t end when the mentor left. To help them continue practicing, Gorilla O’Clock donated a camera to the Robert Brierley Community Centre — a tool that now passes from one pair of eager hands to another, capturing everyday life long after the lessons ended.
Each photo taken since then tells a story: portraits of market days, children walking home from school, the morning light settling over Bwindi’s ridges. What began as a workshop is slowly becoming a movement of quiet documentation — a record of how the people of Nkuringo see themselves and their home.
The CEO of Gorilla O’Clock, Paul Karanja, also donated a bookshelf to the Centre, helping establish a small Media and Learning Corner. It’s a modest space — a few shelves of books, notebooks, and guides — but it has quickly become the quiet center of the program. Here, students browse photography manuals, review their images, and plan community exhibitions.
Simple tools, real ownership — that’s how lasting change begins.
Why Photography Matters
Photography may seem like an unlikely skill in a rural village on the edge of the forest, but for Nkuringo’s walking guides and young people, it builds on something they already know deeply: how to observe, how to tell a story, and how to share the beauty of their home with others.
Back in 2007, Nkuringo Walking Safaris trained its first guides to interpret nature for visitors. Nearly two decades later, those same instincts are finding new form — not just through guiding, but through storytelling. The camera, like the walking stick, becomes a tool for connection.
“When you take a photo, you start to notice things again,” Richard, one of the participants said. “It’s like learning to see your home for the first time.”
Each new program builds on the one before it — from guiding to tailoring, from computer skills to photography — all designed to give Nkuringo’s youth more ways to earn, express, and belong.
Help Us Keep the Lens Open
The Gorilla Junction Foundation continues to grow this creative program with partners who share one belief: opportunity starts when people have the tools to learn. The next steps include expanding the Media and Learning Corner with additional cameras, editing software, and training materials.
You can help keep the lens open — supporting the next class of Nkuringo photographers as they learn to capture, share, and sustain their world.
Support the Media & Learning Corner →
Because what they’ve started here will keep growing, frame by frame. With your help.
