In the winter of 2008, I discovered a beach in the Camargue, located not far from the mouth of the Grand Rhône. The weather conditions were terrible: a violent wind was blowing, and the sand was hitting everything fiercely, to the point where it was painful on the skin. In these hellish conditions, it was mandatory to photograph with my back to the wind to avoid exposing the camera, the front lens, and my filters to this sandblasting. Changing the lens was out of the question! Nevertheless, the atmosphere was very peculiar, with the sand acting like a fog and blurring distant objects. I kept only five photos from this first outing.
On this last photograph, you can clearly see the sand swirling and creating these mysterious kinds of spirals that give the scene an almost magical quality.
While processing the photos, I was convinced of two things: I had to go back, and I would need a wider range of filters than the single one I had at the time.
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Two years later, I returned to the south of France in winter. This time, I had two filters with different opacities, plus another one for covering just the sky, as well as boots to stand in water-covered areas. I also invited two photographer friends to join this little expedition, for which I have fond memories of the two days we spent together.
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This place has something unique; I have never felt so connected to my environment during a walk as I did there. It’s also the place where I’ve had the highest rate of published photos. Maybe I’ll return there someday…
With all my affection for my two accomplices.