The seaside resort of Berck-sur-Mer, in northern France, has one particular resource in abundance: wind. The same sea breeze that made the town a centre for aeronautical experiments in the early 20th century is also the driving force behind the town's annual international kite festival. Along with the competitive elements, including world-championship kite-racing and synchronisation, a long stretch of beach fills with a colourful array of more than 50 inflatable animals: 40m giant squid, tigers and floppy-eared dogs.
"It's an amazing sight to watch them slowly fill up and then float off," says the British photographer Will Sanders, who spent a day at last year's festival, capturing a menagerie of animals and cartoon characters swaying in the drafts, including Sanders' favourite, the crocodile that proved difficult to get off the ground. "It's normally particularly windy on that part of the coast," he adds, though at this moment, perhaps not enough to make the big pink pig fly.
The international Kite Festival at Berck-sur-Mer runs until 16 April. For more from Will Sanders: willsbook.com
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