Union Station

It was the last week of July and I had the luxury of time on my side. I was in between jobs and taking a well deserve break. Most of my days I spent wandering around the city with my camera, something I absolutely love doing. I made my way to my favorite places buying things I didn’t need and lingering around for the perfect photo opportunity. Time goes by quickly when you’re enjoying yourself and before I knew it, dinner was approaching. I started making my way to meet up with my beau in Pioneer Square when I walked by Union Station. I’ve passed it a number of times always in a rush but with my luxury of time, I decided to take a peak.



Union Station is in the middle of two busy transportation hubs: the train station, King Street Station and the transit tunnel, International District / Chinatown Station. I learned it once was a train station. Today it holds the headquarters of Sound Transit. The grand hall remains empty during the day and from playing bridesmaid, I know this place is available to host weddings. The empty space all on its own is already so beautiful, imagine it decked out.

I make my way into the building through the entrance on Jackson street. I’m quickly made aware of a couple of things. First, I noticed the quick change in temperature; the cool AC breeze on my sweaty skin. This is a great place to seek shelter from the summer heat. Second is the silence. The sound of the congested traffic and people chattering is faint. As I make my way inside the grand hall walking around and observing it all I quickly take notice of the sky light illuminating the space. The shiny mosaic tiles make a statement on their own. The old school furniture reminds me so much of grade school. People are scattered sitting on a bench or at a table, buried in what seems like a good book, reading in silence. This is definitely my kind of place.



I had been wandering around the city all day and along the way photographing things here and there. I was on my last roll of film and had seven exposures left; I had to pick my shots wisely. During my walk around the grand hall, I was also imagining all the photographs I would take. Lately I’ve been trying to see an image the way my camera would frame it. There will be times I will look at a space mentally photographing it only to find, when my eye is in the view finder, that choice in composition doesn't really work. I just don’t know how to see the way my camera does. This is something I’ve been more mindful of.

I use my last seven exposures here and was sadden by this limitation. Each frame was carefully thought out. I took my time playing with my composition and metering for the shadows and then doing it all over again to confirm it’s accuracy before hitting the shutter. Everything was slow and purposeful. Here you have it, all seven frames.