“Life in the Age of a Pandemic” photo contest

Update (April 19, 2024) – Winners announced!
First place: “No toilet paper?!” by Jennifer Atkins
“In the beginning, before reality had set in, I took my kids shopping and we were stunned to see completely empty shelves where there had once been abundant supplies of paper goods (toilet paper, facial tissues, and paper towels). This photo is my very flexible son Shay showing off the empty aisle (and nearly empty store).”
Second place: “Fenway Graduation” by Raina Levin
“In May 2021, I felt very lucky to have a college graduation at all. My graduation was held at Fenway Park on a surprisingly cold May morning. Students were spaced apart and each allowed only one guest. My aunt, who lives locally, was my guest of honor. While subdued, my graduation still felt festive, a reminder that we could still be together while physically distant.”
Popular choice winners:
“Resilience in Solitude” by Aubrey Odom
“Street performers and musicians invigorate public spaces with their work. Central Park, a typically bustling hub of activity in New York City, experienced a significant decrease in visitors and foot traffic during the pandemic due to lockdown measures and safety concerns. At this point in time (summer 2021), performers cautiously and slowly rejoined these hubs of public life, taking precautions against COVID-19 including distancing, masking and vaccinations. However, the voices of these performers were often muted by masking, particularly for those performers who were more susceptible to acquiring viral illnesses. This photo illustrates the isolation that many of those performers must have felt who are so dependent on social interaction and entertaining the public as part of their act.“
“a new pollution?” by Stephanie Loo
“Over three years since I had last been able to see family in SE Asia, I came across a new form of plastic litter on the beach – a discarded mask encrusted with shells. A new form of pollution? How nature adapts to the challenges of the past and the uncertainties of the future.”
Contest information
Popular choice voting. Two popular choice winners will be chosen by the Boston University community!
The COVID-19 pandemic created immediate and long-lasting changes to how we live, work, gather, and care for one another. The last four years saw us facing many challenges: choosing and living in our pods, learning to use home tests, seeing empty food shelves, hunting for masks and hand sanitizers, witnessing and sometimes suffering immense loss, fearing for our health and that of our loved ones, supporting our first responders, and going to work while others were sheltering at home.
Meanwhile, the pandemic also saw us holding our loved ones closer, perfecting our sourdough recipes, creating gardens in our backyards and patios, reorganizing our work routines, reshaping how we teach and learn, lining up to receive our COVID-19 vaccinations in ballparks and convention centers, and figuring out if and how to travel safely again.
All of this played out alongside massive societal upheavals: standing up for rights of everyone in our communities, living through elections during a pandemic, and witnessing multiple wars on our televisions, and the birth of AI in everyday life.
This once in a century pandemic has changed all our lives. We all have something to share. Share with us a photo moment which marks the essence of what we have all gone through or exemplifies your own unique experience from the last four years as it relates to the pandemic.
With this retrospective photo competition, CEID invites the Boston University and Boston Medical Center communities to share their own experience shown through images.
Scope: Share photos of your, your community’s, or the global experience with the COVID-19 pandemic. The content doesn’t need to relate directly to COVID-19 but rather to the impact of the pandemic on you and your surroundings.
Prizes:
- First prize: iPad mini (64B, Space grey) ($500 value)
- Second prize: GoPro Hero10 (black) camera ($250 value)
- 2 Popular choice winners: Jabra Elite 4 Active wireless earbuds ($125 value each)
- Winners’ photos will be displayed at an upcoming CEID event and shared on our website as well as social media channel
Submission deadline: March 22, 2024
Popular choice voting: April 8-17, 2024
Winners announced: April 19, 2024
Eligibility: Open to all Boston University students, faculty, staff, and alumni, as well as Boston Medical Center employees over the age of 18. Contestants may submit up to three photos matching requirements below.
Submission requirements:
- Must be an original photo taken by the entrant
- Image (size requirement- at least 300 dpi, winners may be contacted to request higher resolution copies for display purposes)
- Accepted formats include .jpg, .png, .tiff, .pdf
- Image title, date, & location
- Photo must have been taken between December 2019 and now
- 150 word description of why this image represents pandemic experience for you
- Sign statement below on authenticity, permission and media release
Photos will be judged by a panel of CEID and COM faculty judges for technical aspects, alignment with theme, artistic appeal and universality to select the top two winners. Ten photos will be selected by CEID staff and leadership to be voted on by the public from April 8-17th to determine two popular choice winners.
Popular choice voting. Two popular choice winners will be chosen by public vote!
Click to view full contest rules. Contact ceid@bu.edu with any questions.