Torredembarra in Monochrome
There’s something about arriving at the coast out of season that sharpens everything.
Arrival - Leica M11 Monochrom with 35mm Summilux ASPH. f1.4 ©Kieron Beard
I was in Torredembarra in March. The air still carried a chill, but the sun had weight to it. Not harsh, not soft… just enough to pull contrast out of the scene without forcing it. Light and shadow weren’t competing. They were sitting alongside each other.
I had the Leica M11 Monochrom with me, paired with the Leica 35mm Summilux. It’s a combination I don’t think about too much when I’m shooting. It just gets out of the way and lets me see.
The beaches were wide. Open in a way that doesn’t give you much to hide behind. You either commit to the frame or you don’t take it.
A small orbit - Leica M11 Monochrom with 35mm Summilux ASPH. f1.4 ©Kieron Beard
One moment stayed with me.
A family walking across the sand, a small dog moving around them like it had its own rhythm. I almost didn’t take the shot. It felt too simple at first. But the longer I looked, the more everything settled into place. The town sitting quietly to the right. The Mediterranean fading into a soft horizon on the left. Nothing dramatic, just balanced.
That’s where the lens really showed itself.
There’s a way the 35mm Summilux holds the subject in place while everything else gently falls away. Not exaggerated, not distracting. Just enough separation to give the scene a kind of depth you don’t immediately notice, but you feel it afterwards. The centre stays grounded. The edges loosen.
It’s difficult to explain, but it changes how you look at the frame.
Crossing lines - Leica M11 Monochrom with 35mm Summilux ASPH. f1.4 ©Kieron Beard
Away from the shoreline, the pace shifted.
A quiet moment - Leica M11 Monochrom with 35mm Summilux ASPH. f1.4 ©Kieron Beard
I found myself in the town square, sitting with a glass of wine and something small to eat. The camera stayed on the table longer than usual. I wasn’t looking for a frame. I was waiting for one to interrupt me. When it did, it felt quieter than the beach. More contained, but just as open in its own way.
Later on, the streets began to thin out. People moving without urgency, passing through the frame rather than filling it.
Evening drift - Leica M11 Monochrom with 35mm Summilux ASPH. f1.4 ©Kieron Beard
And then the lighthouse.
Watchtower- Leica M11 Monochrom with 35mm Summilux ASPH. f11 ©Kieron Beard
Standing on the edge, doing nothing but watching. It didn’t need to be photographed, but it was impossible to ignore. It felt like the right place to stop. Not because there was nothing left to shoot, but because there was nothing left to add.
Torredembarra doesn’t ask much of you.
It gives you space, and it waits to see what you do with it.
Against the light - Leica M11 Monochrom with 35mm Summilux ASPH. f16 ©Kieron Beard
Don’t hesitate to come back to read more soon.