some girls collect diamonds, I collect photographs of lighthouses
Having grown up at the aptly named ‘Cape of Storms’ and with a father, a marine engineer who often was away at sea, I was absorbed in things maritime. My childhood fascination was awakened in these mysterious, lonely, and beautifully decorated but weather beaten lighthouses built along our wild Cape coastline.
As my interest grew and I travelled around South Africa, I began to build up a library of photographs together with a wonderfully informative book called “Southern Lights, as my reference to the unique story of each lighthouse.
cape agulhas lighthouse at the tip of africa
I discovered that each light has a unique flash sequence, pedestal design, and look in terms of the stripes, colours and height of the structure. Not only do these beautiful buildings serve as markers during the day and light beacons at night, but they sound fog horns, reflect radar signals, and, in this era of hi tech, act as radio beacons used by aircraft and ships alike.
roman rock lighthouse, false bay
There are 45 dotted around our coastline, from Namibia on the West coast to Jesser Point,in Sodwana Bay, the most northerly light on the East coast of south Africa.
My collection is far from complete, and my hope is that one day I will be able to follow those southern lights that beckon across oceans and land with their silent secret messages.