Sheffield photographer reaches 50 portraits in bid to create a lasting document of community during lockdown

Danielle Richardson has been photographing families outside their homes in Dore and Totley, creating a visual record of the unprecedented situation her community faces during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The project has gained momentum, meaning Danielle has amassed dozens of pictures. She has been uploading the images to Facebook for the subjects to look at – but the ultimate aim is to create an emotive collage of the photos once the crisis has passed.

“I think it’s really important to remember what we’re doing and what’s happened," said Danielle, aged 40. “If I can somehow document that as unpoised as possible then I want to try and do that.”

The photographs were taken from the end of people’s driveways, or across the road, to comply with social distancing rules. The families involved were advised to be photographed in as natural a state as possible, in order to create a record of what isolation was truly like.

They were also encouraged to donate a small sum for the photograph, which Danielle intends to donate to Sheffield’s Grace Food Bank.

Dr Parya Rostami was one of the subjects who agreed to be pictured. The 29-year-old, of Totley, recently had a baby – she and her family were eager to have a portrait to show to those who hadn’t met the new arrival.

“I think it’s great,” she said. “Obviously, it’s quite a strange and scary time so anything like this that brings people together I think is really nice. We’re physically self-isolating but that doesn’t mean we have to mentally self-isolate from other people.”

Natalie Clarke, 39, has also been involved. “It’s a bit of positivity in a time when it can be quite dark and scary,” she said. “One thing that has come out of this experience is the community aspect. It’s very much a community area and I think this is a nice way to show all the different families coming together.”

The project began with parents Danielle knows from her children’s school, and have attracted further attention via Facebook and through word of mouth.

Danielle was originally inspired by wartime photographs, in particular the unforgettable images of people queuing for food rations.

“It’s bringing everyone else on their doorsteps, and it’s lovely to see all your neighbours that you’ve not seen for a long time,” said Charlotte Harris, 38, who was photographed too.

Anna Hughes, 36, explained her involvement by saying: “I just thought it was a really nice way of recording such a unique point in our lives. It feels like it’s going to be historically an important time, and this felt like a nice way to document it.”

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