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Pictures Of The Year 2006

Photo Gallery

THOMAS JAMES HURST / THE SEATTLE TIMES

Carrying empty suitcases, Scott Wilson and his wife, Erica Fisette, prepare to wade across Tolt River Road on Nov. 7. They planned to fill the suitcases with belongings and evacuate their home.

From the other side of the planet to right here at home, we confronted catastrophic earthquakes, homicidal rampages and worsening violence in Iraq. Over the past year we all have struggled to come to grips with the cacophony of events unfolding around us.

At The Seattle Times, photojournalists have been challenged to tell these stories visually, in fleeting moments captured with grace and dexterity.

To examine the emotion on the faces of the victims' friends after a shooting spree on Capitol Hill is to be among them, to feel the shock and horror of what happened. And to encounter the pool of turquoise glass that is Diablo Lake, a canoe seemingly suspended above it, is to connect in a spiritual way with the Pacific Northwest's timeless loveliness, with the idea that the Earth will sort itself out, no matter how much mayhem humans wreak.

In 2006, people carried cameras seemingly everywhere. They sent digital images flying around the Internet, snapped pictures with their cell phones and sent them to friends within moments. They took us up close and personal on myspace.com.

And yet the work of photojournalists was more important than ever.

Times journalists journeyed to the icy Bering Sea to offer us a glimpse of Arctic life and research. They amazed us with the rare spectacle of a pelican hurtling into Puget Sound for a snack.

Feast your eyes on this remarkable array of photographs and marvel for a moment at what it takes to create them.

These professionals met the challenge.

— Heidi de Laubenfels, assistant managing editor, visuals & technology