This ancient cistern is part of a citadel that was built by the Portuguese in the 16th century on the Atlantic coast of northern Africa. The citadel is now part of the Moroccan port city of El Jadida. Located about 60 miles southwest of Casablanca on the Atlantic coast, the Portuguese section of the city is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It was the first site I visited on a tour of Morocco in 2015.

This place is a popular tourist attraction, especially for photographers. Who can resist the reflections made in the thin layer of water on the floor and the light from the sky entering through an oculus in the ceiling? I suspect hundreds, if not thousands, of photographers have uploaded their images of the Portuguese cistern to the internet. So how could I expect to make an image that would be different and distinctively mine? I could not. My image looks a lot like other photographers’ images. The only difference is that I chose to make my image black and white with some subtle toning added instead of the usual color image. (I posted a color image earlier here.) I do not feel that the cistern image expresses much of my unique vision or way of seeing. But I had seen images of the cistern before I made the trip and felt that I just had to see it — and photograph it — for myself. I don’t regret the time spent at the cistern, but I realize that my pursuit in this case was to get the trophy shot (I was there!) rather than to make the personally expressive image.

My wife and I arrived at the cistern during the midday break and we had to wait for it to reopen for the afternoon. While waiting, I made the image below. I was standing on the ramparts of the fortress and stopped to watch the street scene below. In many ways, this image is more satisfying to me than the cistern photo. It captures a unique moment and invites the viewer to linger on the scene and create a story about what is happening.

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