An independent photography project · Tampa Bay, Florida
Working Water.
The bay is familiar. The work behind it is rarely seen.
By Austin Strickland In development · Welcoming conversations
The project
The waterfront we pass. The work we rarely see.
We see it while driving around Tampa Bay: ships beyond the roadway, cranes against the sky, working docks, and vessels under repair. Behind that familiar landscape are people and processes that keep the region moving.
Working Water moves closer. Through photographs of crews, tradespeople, researchers, and conservation teams, I’m exploring the relationship between the water, the work, and the people who know it.
Tides against steel. Hands on equipment. A person beside a ship’s hull. The story lives in the photographs, with brief captions for context.
The series is being developed toward a possible exhibition or photo book. Photography visits are currently being explored with local organizations.
A personal connection
My family. My service. This bay.
My family’s immigrant roots run deep in Tampa Bay. Our names are on the immigration wall in Ybor City, and generations of my family have been tied to the sea and this bay.
My great-grandfather, Joel Ansotique, was a tug captain for Maritrans. I carried that connection to the water into my own life through service in the U.S. Navy. Today, I’m returning to it through photography.
I’m based in Apollo Beach and study Fine Arts at Ringling College of Art and Design. Working Water is a way to look more closely at the place my family calls home—and the people whose work shapes it today.
View my photography →What I’m looking to photograph
One bay. Many kinds of work.
- 01
Water and Steel
The bay as a shared natural and industrial landscape.
- 02
The Working Waterfront
Crews, cargo, and the coordination behind vessel movements.
- 03
Steel, Fire and Salt
The trades and repair work that keep ships in service.
- 04
Beneath
Underwater labor and the people supporting it from the surface.
- 05
Harvest
Fishing boats, dockside work, and the people bringing in the catch.
- 06
The Bay at Work
Construction, energy, rail, and the work beyond the water’s edge.
- 07
Keeping the Bay
The everyday work of marine science and conservation.
- 08
After Shift
Crews returning, equipment at rest, and the quieter waterfront.
For participating organizations
A small start. A closer look.
A short initial visit around one suitable activity is a useful place to begin. I’m interested in real work as it happens, environmental portraits, and details that help people understand what they’re seeing.
I work with a small photography setup and coordinate timing, access, safety requirements, crew participation, and publication permissions with each host. Any underwater photography would be discussed separately.
“What’s something about your work on the bay that you wish more people could see?”
It could be a person, a process, or a moment in the day that usually goes unnoticed. Your perspective can help shape what I photograph.
Working Water · Form and Fire Studio
Help tell the story of the working bay.
For access conversations, introductions, or questions about the project, contact Austin directly.
Email Austin →hm.astrickland@gmail.comApollo Beach · Tampa Bay, Florida