Sun star throne
- 📍 Location: Pilon du Roi, Simiane-Collongue, Provence, France
- 📅 Date: 2024
The limestone tower sits on the end of the ridge like something placed there rather than grown, and the ridge itself falls away to the west in a long scrubby slope. I framed with the rock on the right and the sun landing at the far left of the horizon, as far from it as the frame allowed.
That separation is the composition. Put the sun behind the tower and you get a standard silhouette; put them at opposite ends and the light has to travel the whole width of the picture to reach the stone, lighting the scrub on the way.
A small aperture gives the star clean rays and keeps enough detail in the lit face of the rock that it still reads as limestone rather than as a shape. The shadowed side stays dark, which is what gives the tower its volume.
The walk up is short and steep and busy at weekends, and at this hour it was completely empty. Provence in the off season is one of the most generous places I know, and almost nobody goes there in the month when it is at its best.
Limited-edition fine-art print from the Skywaven Studios collection, available in several sizes, papers and framing options.
