If you are anything like me, your bookshelves are sagging under the weight of too many underwater coffee table books.  So why should we bother with another one?  Well, Alex Kirkbride’s American Waters is different.  His novel concept: travel throughout the 50 United States and photograph at least one water feature in each state.  He’s from Britain, so he would be looking at our waters through the eyes of a foreign visitor*.  It’s a great idea; I wish I’d thought of it.  But brainstorming ideas is easy; executing them is hard.  And Kirkbride’s execution is, for the most part, brilliant. 

Alex’s journey encompassed three years, and 945 dives, in venues ranging from a cattle trough in Kansas to the open ocean off Hawaii.  He and Hazel, his wife to be, towed an Airstream trailer for 108,000 miles around the country.  Along the way, they encountered rain and snow, flat tires, an ice storm, and hurricanes.  Among their most difficult operations was backing the giant rig into tight parking spaces.

Thumbing through this book’s pages hardly gives the reader an appreciation of the work and logistics it took to shoot the photos.  Alex and Hazel had to plan their visit to each state during the time of year that produced the best conditions for weather, visibility, and creature behaviors.  Kirkbride connected with local shops and divers for access and information.  His underlying task was to stretch himself creatively and to make things happen.

This may be one of the last books shot exclusively on film.  Kodak was one of Alex’s sponsors, and the odyssey ran from 2002 through 2005.  By that time the digital revolution was in full force, but he persevered despite the 36 shot limit. 
 
The book is organized into four parts, each of which seems quite random. Images on facing pages often share a shape and or a silhouette, like the bow of a New Hampshire shipwreck and the back of a Hawaii humpback whale. A Texas catfish appears next to New Jersey horseshoe crabs.  Sometimes the juxtaposition is ironic, like a Hawaiian wave shot from below, next to moss covered trees shot over and under in the tranquil opaque waters of a Texas bayou.

The layout is about design and creativity, not geography.  At the start of each section is a two page narrative recalling incidents and adventures from their three year expedition.  And accompanying each image is a brief story of how it was made.  I’m not talking about f-stops and shutter speeds, but interesting anecdotes about the place, the creature, or obstacles overcome.  This book can be enjoyed on two levels, as art photography and as an adventure story. 
     
Of course, a landlocked state like North Dakota doesn’t get as much coverage as California, Hawaii, or Florida, but it’s there nonetheless.  Around 20 years ago, a poster made the rounds showing a diver crawling over a field of corn stubble in ankle deep water, wearing full gear, with a shit eating grin on his face.  The caption read, “Dive North Dakota.”  Well, Kirkbride not only dived North Dakota, he nailed an outstanding shot of a crayfish ménage au trios.  In Memphis, he shot the steps of Elvis Presley’s swimming pool .  In Lynchburg, Tennessee it was autumn leaves with motion blur.  In Carver, Massachusetts it’s backlit cranberries shot from the bottom of a bog.  The traditional images are there as well: a garibaldi from California, a sand tiger shark from North Carolina, and a manta night feeding off Kona.  The manta shot is curiously free of backscatter, showing that, despite his reliance on film, Alex is no stranger to digital techniques.

 
The difference between a journeyman photographer and an artist is that the artist has a different way of seeing things.  That’s a trait that Kirkbride shares with such masters of the craft as David Doubilet and Douglas Faulkner. 

It’s taken a Brit to show us what’s in our own back yard.*

- Eric Hanauer

* Alex Kirkbride replies:

Well just to let you know that I am actually an American (born in NYC) from an American family, but grew up in England from the age of 6 to 22 (hence the British accent!), and have lived and worked in the states for the last 22 years. It was only last year that I returned to the UK.

Just thought I’d mention this to you ... because I don’t consider myself truly foreign when it comes to my “eyes”. Upon reflection, I feel they are American with European cultural influences.

Alex Kirkbride’s photographs are on display at the Plus One Gallery in London between December 5, 2007 and January 5, 2008.  In the USA, you can see 16 of Alex’s prints at the Hammer Galleries in New York City until the end of 2007.