Hindsight 2020: 20 Pictures From the Year That Tested All
1. Starting the year off with promise. Elizabeth was the first person I photographed face-to-face in 2020. She was in the processes of switching careers and looking forward to what lay ahead in the year to come.
There’s not much that can be said about 2020 now that hasn’t already been written. History will place a different lens on the past 12 months of events in the years to come. For people like myself, it feels like several decades of harsh life challenges were crammed into nine months. Our relationships, livelihoods and even our our sense of place in the world has been pushed to the limits.
Since I started my career as a photojournalist, it has long been a tradition for me to take a look at the year in photos on New Year’s Eve. Those images took a different tone when I started my own photography studio, but this year seemed to demand I search for images more documentary in nature. These aren’t necessarily the top 20 images I created during the past year, they do help to tell the story. I hope you have more health, happiness and togetherness in 2021. Happy New Year!
2. Personal touch. Moments like this realtors’ awards ceremony in February were commonplace for all of our lives. Many took for granted the ability to share a room with hundreds of colleagues and share a celebratory embrace for a job well done.
3. A sign of things to come. By the time this business network meeting came around on March 12, 2020, we had started to greet each other with elbow bumps instead of handshakes. The following month this business group had moved to 100% virtual meetings.
4. Born into a changed world. On March 14, 2020, I worked with a couple for a feature with Northfield Hospital highlighting some new equipment in their birth center. Less than a week later the State of Minnesota was largely closed with a shelter-in-place order in the hopes of ramping up supply of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) for health care workers and first responders.
5. Learning to adapt. On March 30, 2020, my son started off his first day of distance learning finding a laptop and his bedroom desk as the replacement for the classroom and third-grade teacher he had grown accustomed to being with over the past several months.
6 Silenced. Playground equipment sat idle in the warm spring air as many public areas were closed for concerns of surface contamination from COVID-19.
7. Together but apart. My first photography assignment out of the Minnesota shelter-in-place order was for a program and ceremonial groundbreaking for a home that would provide transitional housing for veterans in need. Ten people, including media members, were allowed at the event, which also required those in attendance to maintain a minimum 6-foot distance between one another. “Social distancing” became the go-to phrase of 2020.
8. Hats off, class of 2020. Mass gatherings of family and friends were paused, including the commencement ceremonies for graduating high school and college seniors. Ellie had an intimate celebration with her immediate family at her home in Farmington and wore her cap and gown to commemorate earning her high school diploma, which was delivered moments prior to this photo by one of her favorite teachers.
9. Back to business. Construction crews were able to keep projects moving forward in 2020 without disruption, including this siding project at a multi-family townhome development for Hoyt Exeriors.
10. Finer details. A manufacturing facility employee fine tuned a milling tool in the privacy of his own indoor workspace in Red Wing. Having a space all his own meant he could work without a mask.
11. A sign of new business. Salons made major shifts to their day-to-day business in 2020, including limiting the number of patrons and staff indoors at one time as well as making investments into better clean air and ventilation systems.
12. The face of the company. There was rightfully a lot to take serious about 2020, but there were also times to take things in stride. For my July photo session with Sol-IS Technology Solutions the staff wanted to take a group photo with their branded face masks to document this time in their company history — a few frames included some attempts to show emotion with the eyes only.
13. A birthday party out of this world. When Roman turned 7 his family did everything in their power to make the celebration extra special hosting a “drive through” gathering for friends to safely make their well wishes from a distance. And since face masks were already in order, participants were encouraged to don their favorite Star Wars costumes to add to the festivities.
14. Paying tribute. A World War II US Air Force veteran was honored for his service during a service in recognition of the North St. Paul Veterans Memorial Fifth Anniversary in August. By this time, outdoor gatherings of 250 individuals were allowed in Minnesota.
15. Changing stripes. For many, 2020, was a time to reflect on their careers and pivot to a business or occupation more in line with their true passions, including this crafty Lakeville resident who turned her passion for quilting into a new online business in 2020.
16. Put to the test. A student receives a COVID-19 test upon arrival on campus Sept. 8, 2020, in Northfield.
17. There’s no place like home. People spent a lot more time at home in 2020, making traditions like the Parade of Homes more meaningful this past year for those looking to make a change in the months ahead.
18. Back to school. By fall 2020 many had moved back into the classroom in one form or another, though the look had largely changed since the year prior. Students and teachers wore masks, desks were spread farther apart and fewer students were in the classroom in order to accommodate social distancing.
19. It’s the little things that matter. The pandemic couldn’t sap the joy of Cooper as he indulged in a snowball fight when Southern Minnesota received its first snowfall of the year in October 2020.
20. I do … look to the future. A young couple saw each other’s full face (replete with giddy smiles) after they had completed their nuptials for a very intimate group gathered for their courthouse wedding ceremony in December 2020.
