ATLANTIC FASCINATION

This is Nazare, Portugal.

Nazare is a wonderful place on the coast of Portugal, right at the edge of Europe facing the mighty Atlantic Ocean.

In Nazare the worlds highest waves appear, once in a while, 2-3 times every winter, depending on waves, low-pressure, wind and luck. 30 meters or 100 feet is the record.

For me the fascination started in 2005, during a holiday with my family. I grew up by the north sea, and of course I believe that a lot of my photographic subjects originate from that period. I blaim my mother for being, not affraid, but more than needed respectful of water, and maybe I just photograph things my mother was afraid of, I don't know.

During the holiday in 2005, I managed to take a nice picture of people on the beach and that picture hang in my sommerhouse for years.

In 2014 I made another summertrip through Nazare, and I remembered why I fell in love the first time. I also learned more about Nazare and the wave world record and the reasons why it is like that.

Just put of the coast, a very long, deep and narrow underwater canyon ends. This canyon transports wave energi from lowpressures in the Atlantic Ocean to shore.

When the normal wave direction is optimal canyon waves and shore waves meet just in front of Nazare.

To grow really large the wave also has to be met of outgoing currents and not being pushed over by wind, and that is why giant waves don't just occur all the time during winter.

I have been travelling to Nazare 5 times now, just for big wave chasing, without being really fullfilled.

So, this serie is a story about a man chasing what he can't have, but who is having a nice time trying to get it.

More info: www.nazarewaves.com