Zambujeira do Mar is a quaint little village located a few km South of Cabo Sardão, in the Alentejo coast. Together with Milfontes and Almograve, it completes the trio of the most famous beaches in the Odemira municipality. Similarly to the other coastal towns in the area, during the Winter there are hardly any tourists or visitors around, which makes for perfect and quiet conditions to visit. During the Summer, the small village receives a significant number of vacationers, plus a dedicated crowd during one of the most famous music festivals in Portugal.
The principal attraction is of course the beach, secluded between rocky spurs, that provide protection against the often rough sea and northerly winds. The topography is familiar to those that know the area – the coast in the region offers a string of several beaches separated by cliffs of Palaeozoic rock formations of variable colour. While in Cabo Sardão to the North the dark rocks dominate, here the prevalent colour is yellow, which makes for a nice contrast with the blue sky and blue green water of the sea.
I am preparing an image portfolio of the most interesting locations in Odemira’s municipality, and I was surprised to see that I had very few photos of Zambujeira. I normally shoot more often between Cabo Sardão and Milfontes to the North. This was something I needed to correct, so I arranged for a short trip during the weekend. My plan was to take a walk between Zambujeira and Alteirinhos, the first beach south of the village. You can see the map for a simple location.
I wanted to photograph during golden and blue hours, that is, around and after sunset. The scenery is beautiful, and suitable for long exposures of the sea against the rough cliffs. It also helped that there were some clouds to provide some colour and interest in the sky. For this trip, I simply took my Fuji kit (Fujifilm X-T2 and Fujinon 14 f2.8 lens) and tripod plus Lee Big Stopper filter. My first stop was at the Alteirinhos beach, where I was surprised to find a waterfall; the tide was coming in, but I was able to set up my tripod and take a few shots, testing several exposure times to see how the water flow would come out. I then spend some time exploring different viewpoints from the beach, and was happy with the results.
It is easy to loose track of time, and sunset was approaching quickly. I made my way back to Zambujeira, as I wanted to photograph the village and the beach. I shot several compositions and different exposure times, well into the night, as the Moon had risen and was bright in the sky. I ended my trip simply seating near the small chapel of Nossa Senhora do Mar (Our Lady of the Sea), at the top of the cliff, and looking West, into the ocean. A perfect way of finishing a wonderful photographic session.
