I truly have to admit something: I didn’t hate the COVID era of NYC. I majorly enjoyed the fact that tons of Janice Sopranos and Sarah Jessica Parkers left the city because they realized how privileged they really were. Covid Diary by photographer Beth Galton doesn’t quite share my perspective — instead, it shows how a photographer can turn inward and make some of the most beautiful and human work that I’ve seen in a while.
During the pandemic, the Phoblographer was still working and testing cameras in as safe as way as possible. We did coverage that helped others understand how some photographers were working. Some of our favorites:
Covid Diary by Beth Galton provides us a glowing lantern to view how she handled staying creative during this dark time. It started with doing stuff like shooting food and trying to be safe. But then it turned into a full on art project that now resembles a bit of a dream from that time period.
Physically speaking, the book spine is one of the most unique I’ve ever seen. Because of the design of the spine, you don’t need to prop it up at all — but I still recommend that you look at the book with diffused window lighting. The book, no matter what, will always be flat down. This means that when images are split down the middle, they’re a bit more acceptable vs having part of the page pop up. Don’t get me wrong, though, because that still happens. It’s still a tad annoying as many beautiful photos are otherwise ruined by the seam in the middle. However, this is an attempt by the publisher and Beth to address that otherwise well known issue in the photo world.
Half of the book recounts specific times in her life. And for this, I wish that the text were larger. There’s so much negative space on these pages and it’s such a waste. However, the words are very impactful — Beth speaks of times like January 6th, and how horrific that was for so many of us. In my imagination, I see and hear the author’s voice saying that the small text was done intentionally to make people get closer to the book. But the execution comes off as lazy not inclusive to those of us with poor vision. And the truth is that most people these days are staring at screens and developing astigmatism. To that end, I’m living proof that glasses and corrective lenses don’t always help unless you’re willing to get surgeries that aren’t approved by the FDA.
I also wish that the photos were larger in the sections with text. There are sections of the book with well laid out images that are large and central. Then there are photos that are landscape oriented and that should’ve been centered to a single page. Many of them are hypnotically stunning long exposures made at home, which are the types of things that generative AI couldn’t do with prompts. To that end, this work is particularly unique. It’s sad that she didn’t do any work during the pandemic because many would’ve seen how incredible she can be when she flexes her creative muscles. The sad truth of commercial work is that often, a client doesn’t want you to flex your muscles.
It’s a fascinating read and a window into a pretty recent time. However, I don’t really believe that every photographer needs to get their hands on this book. The work, and the layout, feel more like the photographer is saying, “Look what I did! It’s the same as everyone else!”
