Photographer William Lounsbury recently moved to Paris and worked on a personal project photographing the artificial beaches in the city.

Since getting to Paris I’ve been looking for something interesting to photograph, an interesting visual project to keep my brain active and just to have some fun…as well as overcome a creative block.

I was drawn to the Paris Plages because it seemed so unique. To explain, Paris Plages are artificial beaches created in the city for Parisians and tourists to relax in the sun, play foosball, have a beer or just stare at people. The beaches lasted a month, from July 20 to August 19.

Although there were several across the country, the one I photographed was in the center of Paris on the Seine River between the Louvre and Hôtel de Ville.

See more photos on William’s blog.