Avenida Atlântica

The camera looks along Avenida Atlântica, the wide seafront avenue that runs beside the beach in Balneário Camboriú. The view takes in the sand and the Atlantic on one side and a dense line of tall apartment towers on the other, with cars, buses and pedestrians moving along the road. The contrast between the busy avenue and the open ocean makes the spot easy to recognise.

Mornings are usually quieter, with walkers, joggers and people exercising on the promenade before the traffic builds. Afternoons and evenings bring heavier movement along the avenue and more activity on the sand. In summer, the beach fills up and the light stays bright late into the day; in the cooler months the scene is calmer. Weather fronts off the Atlantic change the colour of the water and the sky quickly.

Balneário Camboriú sits on the coast of Santa Catarina in southern Brazil, between the sea and steep hills. It grew from a small fishing settlement into a resort city, and its skyline of high-rise buildings along the shore is a well-known feature of the region. Visitors come for the beach, the promenade and boat trips, and the seafront avenue is the main route along the coast.