It was partly this that intrigued me about the Mud Horse fishermen, who go onto the dangerous mudflats to retrieve fish from their nets. They can only do this because they know the area and tides very well, and have their sledges — known as Wooden Horses — that keep them from sinking waist-deep or more into the concrete-like mud.

Twenty years earlier, I’d captured an environmental portrait of another of the fishermen, but now only two survive. I called Adrian Sellick to see if I might be able to capture him for this project. A time was arranged, and I met up with Adrian a week later, along with his father Brendan, who was busy mending nets a stone’s throw from the beach.

To my amazement, Adrian said he’d drive us part of the mile or so out to where his Horse was anchored, in his small 4×4 — and I have to say I was pretty nervous about that, having seen so many vehicles devoured by the mud. Thankfully I had nothing to worry about, and with Adrian’s advice, I managed to avoid the wrong type of mud and got the shots I wanted before the tide turned.

The final image shows Adrian with his Wooden Horse, with Hinkley Point Power Station in the background.