We thought it might be fun to share some of the personal photos we took during our last couple trips in September/October.  The first stop was Seattle to shoot Flo & Brad’s wedding. Neither of us had ever been there before so we were very excited to see the city in between shooting their wedding and bridal session.  It rained A LOT, but we still managed to do some sight seeing here and there.  We discovered right away that there are about a million different ways to photograph Seattle’s most recognizable landmark, the Space Needle.

The majority of our time at Pike Place Market was spent scouting locations for the bridal session and then shooting there.  By the time we got around to doing the “tourist thing” we didn’t take many photos of it.  You can’t do a post about Seattle though without this iconic view.

I almost had a heart attack when I noticed this little guy as we were wandering through the market.  Looks pretty real, huh?

While visiting the “Emerald City”, Ryan had the chance to accomplish part of #80 on his 101 list: “Lick a dolphin, the Space Needle, and part of the titanic (not at the same time)”.  Yes, the goal is threefold.  And yes, it’s probably the strangest goal on our list.  That’s Ryan for you.  Always on the lookout for ways to make life a little more entertaining.  One of the many reasons I married him :-)  After lunch in the Space Needle restaurant, we made the trek up to the top to check out the awesome views and let Ryan “get his lick on”.  I laughed pretty hard when he pulled out a disinfecting wipe to “prep” the area.

TA DA!  (Seriously, what else can you say about this shot?)  It was certainly memorable!

Here’s a shot of the view from the top of the Space Needle.  Doesn’t quite look like the Seattle skyline without the Space Needle in it though, does it? (I think I see our hotel)

After the licking adventure, we goofed around in the gift shop for a while.  Love this shot of me :-)  It recently became my facebook profile pic.

Our next stop was Kerry Park in the Queen Anne Hill section of the city.  Hands down, the best views of the Seattle skyline, not to mention being a super charming area with gorgeous homes and great architectural elements.  We had a hard time getting directions there since most people had never heard of it, but it was totally worth the time we spend climbing uphill and asking strangers for directions!

My handsome hubby workin’ the long lens.  Sometimes you just gotta pull out the big guns :-)

And yes, we bought a souvenir at the gift shop.  Little known fact about the Gotchers: we really like to visit big buildings that serve as landmarks . . . and then buy metal replicas of them.  It’s sort of our thing.  Our collection includes the Eiffel Tour, Big Ben and the Empire State Building.  And the Sears Tower is sadly MIA :-(

Have you ever wondered what the Space Needle tastes like?  Ask this guy.

Throughout the course of our trips, I discovered that I’m kinda obsessed with photographing flowers and leaves . . .

… and Ryan’s a little obsessed with taking photos of birds.

It was so fun to see all the colorful fall leaves since we don’t get much of that in Arizona.  I’m totally in love with this next shot.  Just might have to frame it and hang it on our wall somewhere to remind us of what the rest of the world gets to see in September :-)

 

A couple fun detail shots of the Experience the Music Project/Science Fiction Museum (EMP/SFM) building that’s located near the base of the Space Needle.  We didn’t take a great shot of the entire structure, but it’s a very cool building.  Supposedly it’s modeled after a smashed guitar.

Love the little Space Needle cameo as it’s reflecting in the side of the building.

We stayed in a really cool boutique hotel called the Hotel Max. Now, if you’re planning a visit we should warn you that the rooms are pretty small.  In fact, we had to ask for a bigger room so that our bride would have enough space to get into her gown for their day after session, but the staff was really cool about it and was totally happy to move us when a bigger one became available on our second night there.  What the Max lacks in size, it certainly makes up for in ambiance.  The incredibly unique, artistic decor and overall styling of the hotel is pretty amazing.  It is totally unlike any place we’ve ever stayed.  Every floor has a music related theme and the door to every room has a different black and white photo image on it.  The dark walls and door frames paired with the overhead spot lights give a very cool and unique visual effect .

Here’s a detail of our door.

If you can get past the need for space, the rooms do have great modern decor and original art throughout.  It was very close to transportation and just a block or two away from Pike Place Market, so we would still totally recommend it as a great starting point to explore the city.  Overall, we had a great time there and would be more than happy to go back.

Thanks Seattle!  We love and miss you!