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.
Seattle’s favorite summer festival, the Capitol Hill Block Party, went down during July 22-24. Featuring some of the Northwest’s most buzzed about and up-and-coming bands, the festival brought out crowds of Seattleites ready to party and jam to the summer’s best music. Luckily, block party happened to fall on one of the sunniest weekends of an otherwise cloudy and drab summer.
This year’s main stage lineup featured the likes of Les Savy Fav, Battles, Explosions in the Sky, Handsome Furs, The Head and the Heart, Ra Ra Riot, and TV on the Radio. Local favorites included Campfire OK, My Goodness, Champagne Champagne, Seapony, and more.
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.
The 4th annual Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival went down in July at the Whiteriver Amphitheater in Auburn, Washington. The annual metal bash brought out the hardcore rockers of all ages, as well as casual fans eager to watch the action from afar. This year’s headliners included Disturbed, Godsmack, Megadeth, and Machinehead. Daytime openers on two separate outdoor stages consisted of Suicide Silence, Trivium, Unearth, Kingdom of Sorrow, and a host of others. Published media coverage is up on Culture Mob, with the full photo gallery on Flickr.
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.
What do babies and runners have in common? They both wear bibs! More likely the only other time in your life after infancy when you may need to wear a bib is when you compete in an athletic competition, such as running races.
Personally, in the 10 years I’ve been running competitively, not much has changed about the bib. It’s still just a big ‘ol number printed in the middle of reinforced paper with the option of writing down emergency info on the back (just in case). Worst of all, it STILL makes little holes in my clothing when I safety pin the bib on and rustles like crazy if you don’t pin it on just right. Did anyone ever stop and wonder what the point of wearing one of these things was, or why technology hasn’t been able to modernize it? After all, look at all the progress they’ve made with timing chips–today they’re lightweight AND disposable!
I had an experience recently that gave me a BIG reason to properly wear my bib, but first, let’s go through some other reasons that I found on a Runners World forum. First, safety. On the back of the bib is the option to write down your emergency contact info, which is wise. Think about it: do you typically run with your wallet? If you get mortally injured while running, you’re hard to identify without your bib. On the flip side, I can’t think of a single time when I’ve actually filled that info out. After all, there are other options, such as running ID bracelets and my timing chip, that has my name printed on it. Still, not a bad option for those who’d rather have the info on their bibs.
The second reason aligns with the first: identification. People who run races usually pay at least $50 if not more in registration fees. Part of the benefit is in the complimentary water, snack, and aid stations along the course of the race. Typically, the race is charted on public lands, meaning unregistered runners can feasibly hop in and join the race for free. Moochers! This is bad practice, and one way to help prevent it is to look for those running without bibs, and call those suckers out. The bad? Some registered runners don’t bother wearing bibs, or maybe theirs fell off. Small room for error.
My third reason is one that most runners will probably concur with. Bibs are kind of like medals or race shirts, in that you can collect a bunch and make a huge wall display out of them. Maybe some just crumple them up and recycle them, but I have to admit to being part of that crowd who secretly likes my stash of bibs. Also, you’ll always know where to find spare safety pins.
Finally, my last reason is the one I stand by the most, having had first-hand experience with it. Not long ago, I photographed a race, rather than ran it, and I gained a huge admiration for those camera-wielding guys I used to avoid. Now I’m not a huge fan of getting my photo taken as I’m running a race, but it’s a job that someone has to do. Not only is it challenging to stay positioned and snap as many photos as you can, but there’s the post-processing that is by far the hardest part, and this is where the importance of bibs comes into play.
[/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]I have no idea who you are! Unidentified runner 🙁
To my knowledge, there’s not an affordable software out there that identifies runners based on their face alone, so until then, your bib is the only thing that gets you identified in race photos. And guess what? If your bib number isn’t visible in the image, you don’t get identified. So runners, make sure that bib number is front and center on your body, not pinned to your back, or so low on your shorts that your shirt covers it. Race photographers everywhere will thank you.
[/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]Thank you #838. You rock! Enjoy your photo![/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
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.
American alternative rock duo Panic at the Disco brought their infectiously fun music to Seattle’s Showbox SoDo in June, fresh off their newest release Vices and Virtues. The packed, sold out show also saw New York based indie pop band Fun and indie punk-dance band Funeral Party out as support. Peep some colorful pics from the show below, with more on Flickr and the official post on Another Rainy Saturday.
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.
This past weekend was dedicated to gay pride in Seattle, firing off on Saturday with a festival on Broadway and a Dyke March in the neighborhood of Capitol Hill, and culminating in the downtown Pride Parade on Sunday afternoon. It was colorful, fun, and well, gay.
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.
The first weekend of June saw the long-awaited grand opening of blockbuster film Avatar‘s exhibition at Seattle’s Experience Music Project | Science Fiction Museum (EMP|SFM). Festivities began Friday afternoon with a blue carpet event that welcomed the likes of actors Laz Alonso, Giovanni Ribisi, and director James Cameron himself. The next day, back-to-back panels allowed Avatar fans to listen in on discussion panels with actors (including CCH Pounder) and graphic designers as museum curator Brooks Peck moderated. Perhaps the most interesting topics included the actors’ testimonies to Cameron’s authenticity and thoroughness as a friend and professional, and how that played a role in developing a fictional yet scientifically logical alternate world.
The Avatar Exhibit at the EMP is open from June 4, 2011, to September 3, 2012.
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.
Local Seattle fashion designer Jamie Von Stratton‘s newest project was to design the uniforms for the Justin Mev’s new The Lucky Diner of Belltown. The uniforms are sassy and of the 50’s style, which Von Stratton modeled in a shoot at the diner before its grand opening. Read the full article here on Eater Seattle.
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.
This year I was privileged to once again attend the Sasquatch Music Festival at The Gorge in WA. It was my third Sasquatch experience, the second as a part of the media, and my first as an accredited photographer for Prefix Magazine. For the festival’s 10th anniversary, Sasquatch expanded from three days to four and boasted an impressive lineup that included Foo Fighters, Death Cab for Cutie, Modest Mouse, Death From Above 1979, and The Flaming Lips, just to name a few. Other notable acts included Fitz and the Tantrums, Noah and the Whale, Givers, Dan Mangan, Archers of Loaf, and Foster the People’s show that flooded the tiny Yeti Stage.
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.
Whidbey (Whidby) Island (nicknamed “The Rock”) is located about 48 km north of Seattle in the Olympic Peninsula. It is one of nine islands, and especially gorgeous in the spring and summer. We took a day trip up to Whidbey, beginning early in the morning with a stop for brunch at the famed Patty’s Eggnest in Mukilteo, before boarding a ferry to the island. Beginning our day in Langley, we stopped by a beach to observe a scuba diving class and take some photos down by the water. We then headed north on the island, stopping at the picturesque Greenbank Winery for some wine tastings and pie, before heading to a farmer’s market in Coupeville. Late in the afternoon, we stopped at the beautiful Fort Casey Park, and walked along the beach. Luckily, the weather was on our side, and the sun shined brightly throughout the entire day. Just before sunset, we entered Oak Harbor and made our way to Deception Pass, where we grabbed some gorgeous sunset shots.
I highly recommend Whidbey Island as a great day trip for residents and visitors of Seattle.
Peep some photos below, with hi-res images available for download here.
Like what you see? Work with me! More info here.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
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.
The iconic Seattle musician Chris Cornell, most famous for his work in the bands Soundgarden and Audioslave, is embarking on a brief solo tour before Soundgarden goes on tour. Cornell played solo for one night only in Seattle at the Moore Theater before a sold out ecstatic crowd. Photography rules for this shoot were stringent: we were only allowed to shoot songs #5 and #6, and restricted to the soundboard. This was my second soundboard shoot (the first was at the Showbox SoDo for Ke$ha), and in comparison, soundboard shoots at the Moore are much easier. The main auditorium floor slightly slanted, making it easy to shoot above people’s heads, and the lighting was decent. However, for a solo show, Cornell remained seated and largely in the same area for the two songs we were alotted, so there weren’t many angles to play with. Some results are posted here, with the full post on GeneStout.com and the Seattle P.I. After Dark Blog.
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.
[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]
