Business Life in Lockdown

When the first lockdown was implemented in New Zealand last year, it was more of a novelty. Our studio was closed for six weeks and it felt ok because we are doing it for the greater good. Bernie and I treated it like a short sabbatical. We tended our garden and improved on our video skills among the few things we did to keep ourselves busy. Once we got out of lockdown, life went back to normal and we became busier with lots of headshot sessions. Even with two short lockdowns that followed, life was still smooth-sailing. 

Then came the Delta variant. New Zealand was locked down again as soon as the first case was reported. As of this writing, we are now on our 8th week in lockdown and it is not funny anymore. I now feel what my wedding photographer colleagues in Melbourne felt. Eight weeks and counting of zero income. Whatever momentum we gained for this year has grounded to a halt. 

The silver lining came with the relaxing of the lockdown rules. With the rule changes, we can do a session in our studio by achieving social distancing from our clients. We can still do the photo deliberation at a distance from each other. We can do a headshot or portrait session outdoors. What we can't do though is fix our client's hair. In a way, our fate is tied to the fate of our friends in the hairstyling industry.