Let’s get the party started…

Fishing boats have a way of announcing themselves well before they reach the harbour wall. The sound of the engine carries over the water, but it’s the birds that really give them away — a moving cloud of wings and calls, circling, swooping, waiting for the scraps that will inevitably be thrown overboard. This shot catches the “Nuova Zita” in that precise moment of return, driving straight toward me, bow cutting through the water, foam rising in a perfect V.

I chose a dead-centre composition, a choice some might consider too rigid, but here it felt essential. The boat’s symmetry — red trim framing the white hull, the vertical mast splitting the scene — plays well against the chaos of gulls in flight. The breakwater in the background is just enough to anchor the scene geographically without distracting from the subject. The low angle, almost at water level, lends a sense of immediacy, as if the boat might surge forward and soak the viewer.

Technically, the shot demanded a fast shutter to freeze both the splashing water and the erratic flight of the birds. The light was kind — soft but clear, with enough contrast to keep the whites crisp without blowing out detail. That said, managing the reflective glare off the hull required careful exposure compensation, and a touch of post-processing to rein in the brightest highlights. The result retains the subtle texture of the painted metal rather than losing it to pure white.

Colour here works in my favour: the deep blues of the water and sky set off the red accents of the boat and the warm, pale tones of the breakwater. The gulls, caught in varying degrees of sharpness, give a sense of motion and life without cluttering the scene.

This image sits somewhere between documentary and portrait — it’s a working vessel, coming home from a day at sea, but framed in a way that gives it presence and dignity. And for the gulls, it’s not just a boat; it’s the start of a feast. The title writes itself.