Pike Place Market is one of those iconic, albeit touristy, parts of Seattle that I just can’t fall out of love with. No matter the season, it’s always a vibrant and bustling part of the city that I just love strolling through to sample some fresh cut fruit, chat with vendors, listen to buskers, and of course watch the crowd gather around for the famous fish throwing.
Throughout my last three and a half years as a restaurant and events photographer in Seattle, I’ve done my fair share of photo shoots at Pike Place with a particular concentration on the restaurants including the one made famous by Sleepless in Seattle. However, I’ve never had a photo assignment centered on the heart and soul of Pike Place: its vendors.
That all changed in late summer 2014 when I collaborated with the fine folks at Visit Seattle to do my dream assignment: spend 2 days hanging out at Pike Place Market chatting with vendors and capturing photos to document all of the fun and unique things that happen at the market. This was one of my absolute favorite photography assignments to date as it was the perfect blend of photojournalism and what I deem to be travel photography: capturing images that (hopefully!) entice others to want to travel to the location in which they were taken.
The result was a spread of images in the Winter/Spring 2014-2015 issue ofVisit Seattle, the official visitor’s guide to our city. The issue is available on news stands throughout the city, the easiest to find likely being the information desk at Pacific Place, and it is also available for viewing online here. Scroll down for a few screenshots from the issue as well as some outtakes.
Suzi Pratt is a Seattle event, food, and travel photographer available for hire. She is also a contributing writer at Digital Photography School and runs a blog teaching others how to start a photography business.
