I was working on a project of black and white images of Batham Beach in Devon for a book. Bantham is "next door" to Bigbury – around the bay.

Having taken many images of Bantham Beach while wandering its dunes on several occasions, I decided I wanted some shots of it looking inward instead of outward. So, after checking the tide times – this is important because as the tide comes in, you can get cut off – I went to Bigbury.

The shot above was taken just before we left—in fact, it was probably the last shot of the day. I hadn't gotten what I wanted for my project, but I noticed the sky was turning a subtle shade, giving the wet sand a golden gleam as the waves withdrew. The tide was just starting to swirl around the large, lonely rock, and so the scene was set.