all in: seattle film club’s aqui studio takeover

on april 19th and 20th, we took over aqui seattle for a full weekend of making photos and turning up the energy in the space. four sessions, two each day. if you walked in at any point, you’d catch a blur of activity: folks bouncing between sets, models getting wrangled, someone shouting “try that pose again!” across the room, and people swapping gear or offering up extra film. there was no single way to move through the space—some people dove straight in, building new setups, while others hung back, watched, learned, or got pulled in by a friend. it was the kind of energy that only happens when a bunch of people are actually excited to be in the same room making something together.

honestly, this was a reminder of what the seattle photo scene can be when it’s firing on all cylinders. everyone just locked in—film shooters checking their meters, digital shooters peeking at screens, people hyping each other up, models leading the charge half the time, not just standing there but bringing their own ideas. shout out to the crew who came out and really showed up: tamika, halley, sonja, erica, chase, shawntel, misty, shannon, devin, peixi, maxine, javier, zoe. y’all brought the energy and patience, especially as we rotated people through non-stop.

it wasn’t just about the photos—though let’s be real, the work that’s gonna come out of this will hit. it was about people crossing paths who might never otherwise meet. someone trying studio portraits for the first time and getting hyped by everyone around them. two strangers deep in conversation about their favorite black-and-white film. a bunch of folks trading tips on lighting, or just laughing at whatever random chaos was unfolding in the back.

huge shout out to aqui for giving us the space to make this happen. this is the kind of thing that makes seattle feel less like a bunch of silos and more like an actual community. everyone left with something: new connections, ideas, rolls to get developed, maybe even a new favorite camera they got to try for a minute. we’ll do it again soon—and if you missed it, pull up next time. you never know who you’ll meet or what you’ll make.