Gallery: Monochrome Madness, seeing the sea in black and white

Break, break, break,

On thy cold grey stones, O Sea!
Alfred, Lord Tennyson: Break, Break, Break

Perhaps because Britain is a relatively small island, many of us are drawn to the sea. After all, we nearly all live within a few hours drive of the coast. We grew up with seaside holidays, day trips to the beach. We are known as a ‘nation of seafarers’, based on those days when ‘Britannia ruled the waves’.

The sea draws us in many ways. Of course there is the fun of being ‘beside the seaside, beside the sea’, as a popular British music hall song once put it. But there is much more to it than that. There is something primeval about the sea and its constancy. Its vastness, its constantly changing colours and movements. It is at the same time very familiar and yet totally mysterious. Even though scientists have been able to fully map the surface of the moon, they still haven’t been able to do the same for the ocean floor. More than eighty percent of it remains unknown.

It is also a place of myths and legends. Many cultures tell of strange creatures that live in the sea: mermaids, selkies, the kraken. But even if we dismiss these as myths, it is almost certain that there are forms of life still waiting to be discovered there.

For this week’s Monochrome Madness I’d like us to share photos of the sea. And I mean of the sea itself, with an emphasis on the waves, the patterns in the water, the ever-changing light. I’m happy for you to include other features of course: rocks, cliffs, beaches perhaps. But the main subject of your image should be watery!

I’d love to see what you come up with for this challenge! Do please remember to tag your post Monochrome Madness so it is easy to find in the reader. And check out Leanne’s Monochrome Madness page to learn more about this fun challenge. Maybe you’d like to host a theme from time to time? If so, do contact Leanne via her page.

All my images were shot originally in colour and converted using Nik Silver Efex Pro. My feature image is of waves off the coast in Hanga Roa, the only town on Rapa Nui (Easter Island).