Bear-based photographer Krista Connor began a documentary-style photo series focusing on what life is like for Delawareans practicing social distancing.
The everyday tasks of making dinner, walking the dogs and reading a good novel might seem too monotonous to document.
But Bear-based photographer Krista Connor thinks differently. She began a documentary-style photo series in late March focusing on what life looks like as people around the state practice social distancing.
“It’s a project about ordinary, intimate moments at home amid the backdrop of the pandemic, showing—from a distance—a range of feelings we’re all dealing with right now: anxiety, tension, boredom, concern, humor—mostly through people’s doors and windows,” Connor posted on Instagram below a photo series of a woman peering out the window while her toddler plays in the living room.
This is the first personal project for Connor, a photographer for about 15 years. She says documenting people at home right now is important—especially the ordinary moments—because it’s another effect of the pandemic.
So far, Connor has photographed family and friends, communicating with subjects through text and shooting from 10 to 30 feet away.
“[I ask them to] do whatever they do normally and try to capture it from there,” she says.
The candid images—shot in about 10 minutes—capture subjects through doorways and windows, or in the backyard.
One Instagram post shows a woman working from home in her pink bathrobe and slippers. Another depicts a family reading on their screened-in porch. And another shows only a person’s gloved hand through a doorway holding a leash as a dog poses for the camera.
Connor says shooting from a distance has helped her improve her skills as a photographer.
“We have to be more creative with how we go about capturing the image,” she says.
While America’s healthcare workers risk their health and others battle the virus, another segment of the population waits at home for the day they can walk outside their doors freely again.
“That’s what I want to capture,” Connor says. “I think one day we’ll look back and fully realize the enormity of what we experienced.”
Follow Krista Connor on Instagram @kristaconnor.
Published as “From a Distance” in the June 2020 issue of Delaware Today magazine.
