Stranded on the beach

The chance arrangements of items left stranded on the beach at low tide can provide interesting patterns.

Jewel of the Ocean

 

A casual glance might identify this  as a photograph of an attractive and highly decorative brooch.  But look again.  It is, in fact, a seashell to which fossilised growth of various kinds has become attached.  It was found when we were walking along a beach in Morocco.

The Man in the Iron Mask

The object in the first picture began life, I believe, as part of a fishing boat.  Obviously it has outlived its original purpose and, because of its weight, now serves as a mooring point for a rowing boat.  I was attracted by its colour and texture, its shape and shadows and the contrast between the rope and the rusty metal.

 

 

But somehow my photograph didn’t give me the buzz of success I’d anticipated.  I viewed it numerous times and experimented with different ways of cropping.  Eventually I inverted the image and found a face staring at me.  By changing the Mode and flattening the colours the Man in the Iron Mask was born.

 

Doodling again!

Some of the ‘seaweed doodles’ are figurative in character, such as those below.

It is worth repeating that nothing has been added to these images and nothing removed  –  other than the sand!  Removing the colour and texture of the sand gives clarity to the shapes.  A little colour saturation has sometimes been used for artistic purposes.  All of the photos were taken in the small Periglis Bay on the island of St Agnes in the Isles of Scilly.

African dancer

The Conductor

The Speed Skater

The Face

The Scorpion

Seaweed Doodles

The beach at low tide is a treasure trove for the photographer.  Along the high tide line, fragments of seaweed form natural, abstract patterns.  This is nature ‘doodling’!

In the images below nothing has been added and nothing taken away, other than the sand!  Removing the texture of the sand gives clarity to the design.  A little colour saturation has sometimes been used for artistic purposes.