With Joyce and Mark Simmons ft. Jackie Alvarez

Today was Easter Sunday. I’ve always loved Easter. Maybe it’s nostalgia, could be the deviled eggs, I don’t know, but I do remember Nonna being extra generous one fateful Easter Sunday. I got a buck and some change. Oh a buck and a quarter maybe. What a whimsical day of joy it was. The mass was extra brief too. If only I invested that 1990 bucks in Apple. Eh – win some ya lose some.

I remember having endless energy and eating biscotti like popcorn. Today, or yesterday at this point was unlike any of the Easters of years gone by. Today was depressing. Today there was no sunlight or optimism in the sky. Nonna has long passed on and the memories of biscotti are fleeting. I have raisins – biscotti has raisins – thank God for an imagination. I feel that today is an appropriate time to share a photo series I’ve been shooting in Los Angeles documenting the Covid-19 pandemic and the impact on families, friends, and our neighbors. The series is dramatic, poignant, and has given me a touch of humanity to stay sane during such a traumatic time.

Today Pope Francis said the Coronavirus Is ‘Testing Our Whole Human Family’

I believe this test has given me new inspiration to create. And create from a safe social distance. It’s intentional that all of these shots are composed from afar on a long 135mm f/2.5 Pentax Super Takumar lens. I believe this vintage lens will give this project the right character and aesthetic I’d like to document this period of time with. What do you think?