The Raleigh Downtown Farmers Market has returned! I photographed Opening Day for the Downtown Raleigh Alliance again this year and was loving the new layout and new vendors. :) I also love seeing the old vendors… most of whom I know at this point. They’re awesome people and sell awesome products. Aside from produce, you can find fish, peanut butter, honey, eggs, spices, and all sorts of other goodies… all produced within 90 miles of downtown Raleigh. :) Visit on Wednesdays from 10am-2pm in City Plaza on Fayetteville St.

i photographed my second farmer’s market for the downtown raleigh alliance recently, but this time the toyota farm-to-table tour was present! toyota picked a handful of farmer’s markets across the country and organized various local chefs and farmers, paired them together, and had the chefs create dishes based on the ingredients from the local farmers. they then handed out free samples (yum!) while attendees had the opportunity to test drive a prius and receive free cutting boards from toyota. :) it was pretty awesome that they chose raleigh for one of their stops!

raleigh event photographer raleigh downtown farmer's market toyota farm to table tour

the kids made vegetable puppets after the veggie puppet show and it was just about the cutest thing i’ve ever seen. who doesn’t want to put googly eyes and straw hats on vegetables?!

raleigh farmers market raleigh farmers market happy dog

this was one of the chefs from the busy bee cafe preparing some of the samples. diggin’ his salt tattoo on his left arm. paired with his picture is the samples of yellow tomato soup that the mint handed out.

toyota farm to table tour pumpkins farmers market raleigh event photographer toyota farm to table tour

also – don’t worry. most conferences with our mayor don’t end up like this. i think.

mayor meeker raleigh event photographer toyota farm to table tour

the band american aquarium played at this farmers market and was awesome. i already liked them, but then they did a cover of thunder road and i was totally won over.

american aquarium

farmer’s market ends at the end of october for the year, so make sure if you’re out and about on a wednesday downtown that you stop by and visit them!

i love shooting for the downtown raleigh alliance! they’re a great group of people who do awesome work for the city. last week i shot grazefest 2010 for them, a special event happening at the raleigh downtown farmers market. this amped up their weekly farmers market (every wednesday from 10am-2pm) to include an ice cream eating contest, local music by the old habits, and an “eggstravaganza” egg race for the kids. it was good times! i met a lot of awesome and interesting people selling everything from fresh flowers, fruit, and veggies, to shirts, earrings, and cupcakes shaped like farm animals. :) i highly recommend going down on a wednesday to check it out!

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