The castle on the beach - Sarzeau - Bretagne

When we went to the beach we discovered that on the seaside, overlooking the ocean was a castle.

Here are some shots of this castle.

Nature in Vannes - Bretagne - France

Here are some nature shots taken in Vannes and its surroundings.

I particularly like this black-headed gull which posed for the shot.

Banksy on the beach - Barneville-Carteret - Manche - France

When I took this photo I didn't realise this child flying a kite on the beach. It's only when I opened it on my computer that I realised the similarities with one of Banksy's graffitis. 

I chose to only keep the kite in red to reinforce and emphasis the resemblance.

Click on the photo to see the resemblance!

Banksy - Girl with a balloon

A french Whitby...

This summer, I went to visit Honfleur a little port town in Normandy. When I went there I was reminded of Whitby, though architecturally different they give off the same kind of atmosphere.

On this picture, you can see the old architecture of the town as well as the kind of boats that land here.

 

The Yorkshire seaside

 I lived for two years in Leeds in West Yorkshire and I made the most of the county by visiting as many town, cities and places I could. 

 I went to Whitby where Bram Stoker's Dracula's legend came to life and enjoyed one of the few sunny days available in the north of England. 

 Whitby is a little seaside town on the east cost of North Yorkshire. It offers touristic as well as historical places and make the visit quite interesting. 

 Here are a few photos I took when I was there:  

The Whitby harbour

In the Whitby harbour, there are a few fishing boats, a lot of seagulls and very nice seaside houses.

 

Of boats and masts

As you may have notice while exploring my blog that seaside landscapes are something I like to photograph. I've always lived not far from a sea and an attachment for its winds and smells formed over the years. 

In this articles, I'll publish photos of Whitstable on the Kentish coast in England.

Whitstable fishing harbour

I like this shot of the Whitstable harbour. I digitally altered to tone down the garish colours of the fishing nets and boats. The shot is balanced between the two boats on the left hand side and the fishing nets on the right. The eyes wander from left to right and may pause on the seagull which flies over the scene.

Seaside moments

 Capturing people on film, even on digital film is quite a difficult process. If you want to make sure that the scene remains natural and intimate, you must make yourself disappear in the landscape in order not to disturb the authenticity of what happening in front of you. 

Here are a few shots I am proud of. I was able to capture those moments without any interference on my part.

I really like these two photos of the children playing by the sea. The first one is a particularly favorite of mine. You can almost hear them whispering secrets to one another unaware that anyone is watching.

Setting suns

Still in Whitstable. I've chosen to show you several photos of the sun setting on the sea, always a beautiful experience to witness and to immortalize.

I particularly like the way the sun rays pierce the sky on this shot and how the different levels of the wooden fence mark another division in the shot.

Sheep and Wales

A couple of years ago, I went to visit a friend in Wales, in Swansea. Another city bu the sea. I seem to be attracted by the sea. 

Unfortunately, despite the fact that it was spring, the weather was ghastly. Not a ray of sun could pierce the thick clouds that were overrunning the sky that day. As you will see on these photos, a very thick fog was also here to dampen our spirits.

We went to visit a small town on the seaside and we were welcomed by this thick fog that prevented us for seeing anything further away than our feet. On the cliffs, you could see sheep scattered all over the wet, damp grass. Some of those sheep were dangerously close to the edge but none of them seemed to fall on the beach.

Wind turbines, seagulls and beach huts in Whitstable

I was born near the sea and therefore I feel a very profound bond to its smells, colours and landscapes. Now that I live near Whitstable, I go there often and never without my camera. Therefore, it will probably not be my first or last post with photographs of the Whitstable landscape.

On this photo, you cannot clearly distinguish the sand from the water as it is a low tide. however, the persons walking are an indication of where the sand seems to be.

A Christmas at the beach

After a very filling Christmas lunch, we took a stroll on the beach watching the sunset. Even though we were in Normandy, the day was perfect for this, fresh enough to help digestion yet not too cold that you had to stay in the car.

A very hot day

One spring day, some friends and I went on the seaside to have a drink in a pub overlooking the sea. I live in Kent and it's the most sunny place in Britain. But I never thought that the warmth would cause the seas to evaporate!

Nevertheless, it created very interesting shots. On the two following photos, you can see this strange fog  covering the Pegwell bay.

Jurassic park on the Isle of Wight

During the summer half-term, I went to the Isle of Wight and discovered that it is the home of the long disappeared dinosaurs. On the beach, you can still see their footprints.

 

Here is the proof...

 

Wight is Wight...

Here are a few pictures of the seaside of the Isle of Wight. The cliffs are particularly interesting. The fact that they're made of limestone give nice colours to the photos.

Here is a picture of a beach where we went to see the famous Neddles. The little boats on the right hand side of the shot counterbalances the dock that streches away from the focal point. 

A victorious visit...

On the way to the Isle of Wight, we stopped in Portsmouth where we visited the Historic Dockyard. The HMS Victory, Nelson's flagship is docked there and you can come on board for an interesting visit.

On this picture, we can see the dockyards of Portsmouth harbour. I particularly like this shot because of the colour of the sky and the effect it produces.

Greecian calanque or Norman sea?

As you may have read before, I was born in Normandy and there is a very nice place to visit called Etretat. We went there in May and the weather was wonderful. 

On these two pictures the colour of the sea clearly show that it was a particularly beautiful day. If I didn't know that I had taken those shots in Normandy I could say they were from Greece or at least the south of France.

Seagulls

As you can see with the deep blue colour of the sky, those two photos have been taken at Etretat on the same spring day as the other photos from there.

The deep blue sky offers a very nice background to the whiteness of the seagulls' feathers. 

The world's end - Etretat

When I went to Etretat, we went for a walk on the cliffs and I took the opportunity to take several pictures.

Chalky cliffs

These pictures are of the chalk cliffs in Etretat. On several of them you can see the needle that detach from the cliff.

On this first photo, the boats and people on the left hand side counterbalances the cliff. The way people lazily leaned on the boats give this scene a tranquil atmosphere. The tint also suggests an old postcard.

Sunsets over the Channel

I went to Barneville-Cartert a little port town in La Manche in France. As you may have seen on this blog, I particularly like taking photos of the seaside. I find that it creates both dynamic and poetic shots whichever the weather.

I chose to show you these several photos of sunsets as they offer different sets of colour.

On this first shot, the sky has a nice pink tint that's being reflected on the withdrawing tide. The sea is a nice purplish colour which perfectly associates with the colour of the sky. I find this photo quite harmonious.