Portraits of Mandated Isolation

Here is a great photo series by St. Louis-based photographer Lou Bopp.

“I started shooting Portraits of Mandated Isolation in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic crisis. Beginning March 21st, Saint Louis County residents were ordered to stay-at-home. There were exceptions, of course, journalists being one of them. 

This is a never-in-a-life-time event and I knew that I had to capture and document the mood of this scary, unchartered and bizarre crisis. I’m an ex photojournalist, I still am at heart. Currently, I shoot stills and direct video for commercial brands, but the photojournalist in me remains. 

Rather than enter the front lines of the battle, I wanted to show a different side of the story. One that highlights the emotion of what it is like to have been essentially told that we are all grounded and that we have to go to our room. And we don’t know when we can come out. 

My goal was to capture the raw emotion of people through glass, through screens, on their porches, from far away, at home or at work. To make images that capture the spirit that highlights our current predicament. 

Shooting through the various substrates created a lot of maddening challenges…and happy surprises. Obviously, every location is very different; from the light, to the barrier between me and the subject, limited communication etc. I have always taken pride with being able to connect with my subjects. That was nearly impossible now, at least the way that I was used to. 

On the flip side, I ultimately used the barrier between us as an advantage. There were great reflections in the glass, the screen barriers at times added a beautiful textural element to the photos. In some ways, the barrier added an extra element that allowed subjects to express themselves a little differently. It’s hard to describe, since I’m still in the midst of the project. However, I do notice an authentic, emotive, introspective quality in many of the photos. I believe that is due to the nature of the world in which we live…and folks staring into the unknown. “

-Lou Bopp St. Louis 9:54a April 9th.   

Artist Statement

I'm an on-location photographer and director. My aesthetic approach is driven by real, textural, compelling moments, whether shooting stills or motion.

I specialize in capturing authentic imagery depicting lifestyle, work and industrial scenes for corporate and agency clients and have years of commercial experience including large global image brand libraries, advertising campaigns, editorial and short form motion assets for web & broadcast, as well as one full length documentary.

Partial list of clients and project partners include:  ebay, Mississippi Tourism, Marley Coffee, Microsoft, Morgan Stanley, AMD, Deutsche Bank, Intel, Nike, AMEX, American Airlines, GE, Disney World, Time Warner, Time Magazine, Sports Illustrated, J. Walter Thomas, People Magazine, AG Edwards, CDW, Y & R, Fleishman-Hillard, McCann-Erickson, FutureBrand and more.

I have had the unique privilege of having one of my images selected for a USPS First-Class Forever stamp. I have 2 published books: Hidden History of Mississippi Blues (History Press) and Mississippi Juke Joint Confidential: House Parties, Hustlers & the Blues Life (Arcadia Publishing).