For so many, COVID has resulted in an altered and/or halted day-to-day swing. Our work and the way we go about it has had to, both flex and rest with the strain on our current society. Often times though, our moments of difficulty are what produce new ways of seeing our world and interacting within it.

Photographers Jamie Kripke and Michael Prince were thankful when Forbes presented them with a project that was within reach. Unlike their usual work, which requires crew and close contact, this assignment allowed for a lone exploration of the current world around them. Jamie with only a camera in hand, and Michael operating his drone, they each traveled within the confines of their community, visually noting the various effects of the pandemic on businesses of all sizes. From vacant parking lots to deserted mom-and-pop shops, the aerial emptiness of these once bustling streets calls each viewer to sit inside the surreal times. The article is aptly titled, America, Closed For Business.

As Jamie biked around his town of Boulder, CO, past the small cafes and other local storefronts, the disparity of impact became clear. “The big players were fine— the smaller, independent stores are the ones that are really getting hit the hardest.” he noted. In addition to his shared awareness of economic upsets, Michael also found himself welcoming a clear in the air. “I can see Boston. I can see a lighthouse miles away that I had never noticed before.”

Their honest images and respective commentaries on COVID quietly display and mirror our daily attempts to balance two opposing feelings: the pangs of loss and the hope of new beginnings.