Seattle in Winter
I recently took a trip up to Seattle for work, not only was it an awesome opportunity for my day job, it was also a great chance for me to shoot in one of the Pacific North West’s most beautiful cities.
As always, the first step of any trip is packing - and I had some difficult gear choices to make! I’m lucky enough to have quite a few lenses, I wanted to pack as light as possible with the goals of focusing mainly on street photography while I was there. Given that light is scarce in Seattle during winter, I decided to prioritize my fastest primes. I packed a 35mm Sony GM 1.4, a 50mm Sony GM 1.4 (which I ended up not using at all) & a 85mm Zeiss Batis 1.8. I also threw in my 100-400mm Sigma telephoto lens to grab a quick pick of the Space Needle from Kerry Park.
[Note, in retrospect I should’ve skipped the 50mm altogether, and swapped the 35mm Sony GM 1.4 for a 35mm Zeiss 2.8 for compactness]
Pictured: The Space Needle as viewed from Kerry Park in Queen Anne
I spent a lot of my time at Pikes Place Market. There is so much going on outside the market, inside the market, along Post Alley and then some. Every day I went to the market I found new angles, frames, subjects, and stories. It was one of the most fun places I’ve ever shot, and I was grateful to be staying just a few blocks away from what appears to be a street photographer’s paradise.
Pictured: A shopkeeper surrounded by her wares at the Pikes Place Market
The next day, I decided to make my way up to Capitol Hill while bouncing between Pike & Pine st. I snagged a few captures along the way, including this one of a man ducking down in a uniquely shaped window. It almost appears as if he’s ducking the sight of some marksman given the reticle shaped glass.
Capitol Hill is an awesome neighborhood, with lots of young people and lively streets - even in the gloomy weather. I highly recommend grabbing a beer at one of the many brewpubs in the area.
Pictured: Man in reticle shaped window - Seattle
The next day I was back to the market for more street shooting. I happened to catch this amazing moment downstairs where a few men were pointing right next to a wheat-paste of a pointing hand. Does art imitate life or does life imitate art?
This one really made me smile, it reminded me of some of Mike Chudley’s work - specifically the one shot he has of the people with their hands up right in front of a poster featuring people with their hands up.
Pictured: Finger pointing at Pikes Place Market
My final day in Seattle yielded some of the best photos of the entire trip in my opinion. There was some sort of local event at the market that caused it to be even busier than normal. At most points, I was feeling overwhelmed with how much was going on around me. I kept moving looking for interesting subjects when I came across this gentleman who was looking into some locally sourced honey. His facial hair was immaculate and I loved how intensely he was studying each variation of honey. I lined up the shot and hit my shutter button, resulting in my favorite shot from the trip.
Pictured: Man shopping for honey in Pikes Place Market
Seattle’s lack of strong light during winter is an interesting constraint to work with. Back home in California it’s easy to call the day a wash when it’s overcast or rainy but in Seattle with limited time I didn’t have that luxury.
I feel like this trip taught me how to be productive without strong light. As you can tell from the shot notes, I had my 85mm Zeiss on for most of the trip, occasionally switching to the 35mm GM. At 85mm I didn’t feel like I was bruising the scene in the markets, and it was nice to not have to get too up close and personal. I’ve never minded getting up close with my 35mm Zeiss Sonnar 2.8 since it’s so compact that it rarely intimidates, but with the 35mm GM it’s a different story. The 35mm GM is drastically bigger compared to the 35mm Zeiss that you really feel like you’re shoving a large lens in peoples faces - something I’ll be thinking about next time I pack for a trip.
Overall, I’m really happy I decided to bring my camera along with me on my work trip. I managed to grab a lot of photos that make me smile, and at the end of the day isn’t that what photography is all about? Take a look at all the photos from the trip below, and as always, thanks for reading!
