I have been driving by these water towers for the past few years and they always remind me of Bernd and Hilla Bechers who own the topic. The Bechers first collaborated on photographing and documenting the disappearing German industrial architecture in 1959. They were fascinated by the similar shapes in which certain buildings were designed. In addition, they were intrigued by the fact that so many of these industrial buildings seemed to have been built with a great deal of attention toward design. Together, the Bechers went out with a large format camera and photographed these buildings from a number of different angles, but always with a straightforward “objective” point of view. The images of structures with similar functions were then displayed side by side to invite viewers to compare their forms and designs. These structures included barns, water towers, storage silos, and warehouses. Bernd taught at the Düsseldorf Art Academy and influenced students that later made a name for themselves in the photography industry. Former students of Bernd’s included Andreas Gursky, Thomas Ruff, and Candida Höfer.
I can not help but think of them when I see such water towers. As much as I wanted to photograph them, I put off shooting them for a long time. But as the Bechers never worked in panoramic format, my image is a divergence in at least one direction. Background on the Bechers from wikipedia. Photograph by Seattle Photographer Daniel Sheehan specializing in photojournalism, portraits and photography for publications and corporations, and a wedding photographer, candid wedding photography with a photojournalists style.