I was fortunate to get to the beach at Dawlish Warren on Saturday. It was almost low tide. The sand stretched out for ever and then the deep blue sea to the horizon. The waves were gentle with the rippling white surf ruffled by the breeze.
Earlier in the morning I had watched a video by Kim Grant https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NP8qjiVWpJc , who talks about earthing and the difference it makes to her approach to outdoor photography.
Kim suggests that taking off our shoes and walking barefoot in the environment, opens us up to experiencing different textures, temperatures and surfaces through our feet, which grounds us and changes our perceptions, feelings and responses to the natural world. Taking time to note these reactions, we slow down and become more mindful as we capture images in a place.
As I walked barefoot from the warm, soft fine sand on the dunes onto the firmer, grittier sand of the beach, I noticed the change. As I got gradually closer to the shoreline, the sand first got colder and firmer, then moist and sludgy to walk in, my toes sinking and disappearing when I stepped forward. And then the joy of the water washing over my feet, leaving them tingling with cold but so alive.
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