Make art not war! This large concrete structure is a sound mirror. There were a few dotted around the coast of the UK and were used to detect enemy aircraft in World War Two, but made redundant soon after due to the invention of radar. What you can't see is the body of water surrounding part of the structure. The night before owain tied a length of rope across only to return the following morning to discover someone had taken it!
We had driven a long way to get here and Owain was determined not to let this get in his way, so, he stripped to the waist and waded through freezing cold water with his bike held above his head ‘army style’ and with his trousers and shoes in his backpack to change into on the other side. Bear in mind that we shot this in the middle of winter and it was freezing! Of course, riding the thing wasn't its original purpose but it's great to see this particular sound mirror being put to good use in a more positive way than its intended use during the war.
Ricky Adam

About the shot

Biography
I was born and raised in Northern Ireland and first discovered photography at the age of 16 after I took a few photos with a camera from my friend’s dad. I never had the money to buy a camera of my own until I turned 19. As soon as that happened, I was terminally hooked.
I was attracted to the immediacy of photography, I was always good at art and painted a bit at school, but found the painting process too slow. I've always been a collector of things: records, books, magazines – so taking photos is sort of an extension of this.
Being from a hardcore BMX/punk background myself, I began to shoot photographs of friends in the different scenes that I was involved with and made regular contributions to DIG BMX Magazine who are based in Belfast. The mag has a passion for stylistic BMX riding alongside a D.I.Y. punk ethic, so I could really tune into the magazine’s vision. These days, I’m the staff photographer, editor and janitor at their office in Belfast.
I'm lucky enough to be able to travel the world with fellow weirdos, documenting the many unique aspects of BMX life. What I’ve learned is that if you have a real passion for photography or anything else, follow your heart and believe in what you do. It’s 2010, let's keep the energy going. It's all about what's happening today, now.