Cap Ferret, France

Cap Ferret is the spit of land that separates the Atlantic Ocean from Arcachon Bay on France’s south-western coast. It’s now an up market holiday resort, but its western side reveals a different history; a history of occupation during the last war and its small part in the Atlantic Wall, Germany’s sea facing defences that ran from Norway to Spain.  Now strewn across the beach these fortifications have now fallen victim to shifting sands, tide and time, and become canvases to artists to show off their talents. 

On the eastern side of the spit, looking into the bay, there’s a different, more peaceful history that goes back hundreds of years and continues today, oyster farming. 

Both the fortifications and the oyster beds, aided by a clear blue sky, were wonderful opportunities for creating simple, minimalist, compositions and the best bit, for me at least, was a total ignorance of their existence and therefore their discovery, whilst taking a morning  run on the beach when we visited this winter.  

A conscious decision not to take my “proper” photography gear, but to instead rely just on the Sony RX1r made the whole thing more spontaneous and rewarding.