How Does Chase The Light Work?
Registration is a $25 suggested donation that helps cover our cost to produce the event, and anything above that amount helps us raise critical funds that support scholarships and our annual calendar of free public programs. However, to remove financial barriers, you can register for free. If you’d like your own personal print of your selected Chase The Light image you can add $20 to your registration.
Join participants across the globe in 48 hours of image-making worldwide. Make photographs between Saturday, June 14th and Sunday, June 15th. Use hashtags #chasethelight2025, #pcnwchasethelight, and #photographiccenternw when posting to social media.
Submit up to five photos taken during the photo shoot to be looked at by a panel of jurors. One image will be selected from each participant to be featured in a pop-up exhibition and print sale. Submission dates: Monday, June 16th by 12pm (noon) for digital and Wednesday, June 18th by 12pm (noon) for analog (all times are PST). Details about the submission process can be found here.
Join us Saturday, June 21st for the pop-up exhibition, print sale, and community celebration. All participants that submit will be included. This event is a great way to discover new photographers, expand your collection, meet other artists and support PCNW.
Erin Spencer
Gallery Manager, Photographic Center Northwest
Judy Lee
Artist/Founder, weBelong
Amyia Chea-Carroll
Programs Coordinator, Seattle Art Museum
Lex Nikol
Photographer and Creative Director, citizenM
Thom Sempere
Associate Curator of Photography, Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at University of Oregon
Kris Graves
Photographer, publisher, and board member of Blue Sky Gallery
Alanna Edwards
Curator of Art & Education Initiative, Surrey Art Gallery
Wondering what you’re going to do for your Chase The Light adventures? We have you covered with a myriad of different workshops and photo walks around town that will inspire your creativity. The catch is you have to be registered for Chase The Light to learn from these talented teaching artists, so don’t delay as the global photo weekend is less than a month away! These programs are meant to help you make photographs to submit to Chase The Light while having fun with your peers!
We have an exciting range of programs that include:
The Art of Photo Bookmaking: A Lecture & Demo by Blurb– FREE
June 7 | Saturday 1pm – 3pm- Capitol Hill Photo Walk with Kate Hailey– FREE!
June 14, 2025 | Saturday 11am-1pm - Steel Wheel Farm Photo Walk (Fall City, WA)with Jake Nelson –FREE!
June 14, 2025 | Saturday 12-3pm - Lumen & Chemigram Printing Workshop (Seattle, WA) with Leah Freed -$145
June 14, 2025 | Saturday 1-5pm - Waypoint Park: Bellingham Photo Walk (Bellingham, WA) with Elizabeth Ransom– FREE!
June 14, 2025 | Saturday 2-5pm - South Park Photo Walk (Seattle, WA) with Annabel Clark– FREE!
June 14, 2025 | Saturday 3-6pm - Image Transfer Workshop (Seattle, WA) at Seattle Light Room with Jenny Hansen Das– $145
June 15, 2025 | Sunday 1-5pm - Polaroid Photo Walk (Seattle, WA) with Annie Reierson– FREE!
June 15, 2025 | Sunday 4-6pm
Want to explore Seattle at your own pace during Chase The Light weekend?
Check out our list of inspiring spots that we recommend to guide your adventure and spark creativity along the way:
- Start off at the Seattle Waterfront. Pier 66 or the new park at Pier 62 are great launch points. Stroll along the water to the Great Wheel, a perfect place to capture the city’s energy.
- Next, head to TASWIRA Gallery (open 11am -6pm), or Solas gallery (open Saturday only 1pm-5pm) and check out some art and photography to leave you inspired.
- Wander through the brick-lined Occidental Park, in Pioneer Square.
- Make your way to the city’s hidden oasis Waterfall Garden for dreamy photographs of water in motion.
Finally, stop by Chatwin Arts Gallery from 2 – 5:30pm on Saturday June 14 to rest, hydrate, and chat with Adair Freeman Rutledge. Her exhibition, The Royals, is on view June 5 – July 5.
PCNW’s labs are open free of charge this weekend* to work on your Chase The Light analog prints and digital files that you plan to submit: Saturday, June 14th from 12-6pm, and Sunday, June 15th from 12-6pm. There is limited space, so please reserve your spot today!
*Must be registered for Chase The Light.
To reserve your space, please call 206-720-7222 or email the front desk at frontdesk@pcnw.org.
Chase the light in black and white! This year’s hashtag contest encourages you to think about tones, textures, and contrast in black and white. During Chase The Light weekend, take a photo and convert it to black and white. Upload an image(s) to Instagram, and make sure to use the hashtag #CTLinBlackandWhite.
A panel of PCNW staff members will select the top three creative images, and winners will receive a tote bag filled with swag, books, and goodies. Winners will be notified via Instagram by June 30th, 2025. You must be registered for Chase The Light to receive your prize. Good luck!
Our 12th Avenue neighbor, Rhein Haus, is offering 10% off your total tab on June 15th until 11pm! Celebrate at PCNW, discover new artists and then pick up a coupon to take next door.
Our friends at Lucky Rabbet Framing are offering 10% off custom framing* so you can get your Chase The Light prints framed after the pop-up exhibition!
*Does not apply to gallery sales of Lucky Rabbet featured artists.