Floodscapes for Inland Waterscapes: Floods do not need to mean disasters

The objective of this article is to provide a photo essay of inland waterscapes in which a floodscape remains or is created with the aim of preventing disasters. The theory of a flood being different from a disaster is long established with many empirical examples, but neither visualisation nor how to visualise effectively across audiences is always evident. Images by the author accompanied by brief captions from the author’s experience aim to fill in this gap. Framing, analysis, and discussion examine the nuances and limitations of photo-word combinations. Key points are that images affect the interpretation of accompanying text and vice versa, a certain literacy level is required in the language(s) of photo-related text, and images are not seen or interpreted equivalently by everyone. The overarching challenge for visualising how floods do not need to mean disasters for inland waterscapes is that many measures to avoid floods from becoming disasters do not appear to be flood-related, instead being enfolded into day-to-day life, often being ordinary and unexciting.