Photos: As state of emergency ends, what the pandemic has looked like in the Sacramento region

With California ending its COVID-19 state of emergency Feb. 28, CapRadio Visual Journalist Andrew Nixon reflects on what covering the ongoing pandemic for the past three years has meant and some of the images that stuck with him.

The onset of COVID-19 pandemic immediately changed how photojournalism was done. It made it more challenging, especially at first, to do the work and minimize risks at the same time. I was always weighing risks even for a simple assignment. 

COVID-19 states of emergency are ending. Here’s what’s changing.

There was a risk, obviously, of getting sick, but also a risk of infecting others. There was always a chance of getting infected at work and then bringing that home to family, too. The first month of the stay-at-home order was not only difficult professionally, but also a tough adjustment to a lonely lifestyle. 

With the end of California’s emergency declaration, I reflected back on the course of the pandemic and just how much it disrupted and reshaped life in our region.

The bear statue outside the Governor's office, nicknamed “bacteria bear,” is surrounded with messaging to wash hands and practice good hygiene, at the California state Capitol in Sacramento on Thursday, March 12, 2020. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

The day this photo was taken, California had just restricted gatherings of more than 250 people. One week later, Newsom would issue the state's stay-at-home order.

A Target in Arden-Arcade is out of toilet paper on Friday, March 13, 2020. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Due to the concerns over shortages and the panic-buying of goods, stores started running out of staples like toilet paper when COVID-19 became a concern in the Sacramento region.

Specialists Neslyn Cubangbang of San Pablo and Yadira Izaguierre of Riverside pack boxes for Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services clients, March 21, 2020. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Newsom called in the National Guard to assist food banks since many of the volunteers were elderly and considered at risk for severe cases of COVID-19.

Certified Medical Assistant Carolyn Bailey takes the temperature of Jon Peters at the Ampla clinic's drive-through COVID-19 testing in Yuba City on Wednesday, March 25, 2020. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

This was the first time we could get images of the testing procedure for COVID-19. The tests were in short supply and medical workers had to triage which cases would receive a test.

Mark Lytal finishes spraying disinfectant after a patron uses a mobile shower in Midtown Sacramento on Friday, April 10, 2020. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Support for unhoused residents was scarce at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Early on, Mark Lytal set up a mobile shower trailer at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Midtown, serving more than 100 people a day.

Protesters demanding an end to the stay-at-home order face CHP at the California state Capitol Friday, May 1, 2020.Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Tensions were high and 32 people were arrested at this event defying California’s stay-at-home order, one of multiple protests at the Capitol over the state's stay-at-home order.

Grant Union High School Senior Brianna Diaz attends a socially-distanced drive-thru graduation Tuesday, June 2, 2020. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

The 2020 school year was finished with distance learning, and the tradition of high school graduation adapted with help from the school and community. 

Program Manager Ryan Saechin checks Luke Henley's, 5, temperature before allowing him onto campus at John Cabrillo Elementary School, Thursday, April 8, 2021. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

The return to in-person learning took a little over a year for some schools in the region, though with new rules like temperature checks, mandatory masking and social distancing.

Alejandra Gonzalez wipes away her daughter's tears, Valeria Ugalde, 9, after getting a COVID-19 vaccine at the Pannell Center in Sacramento, Friday, Nov. 19, 2021. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Vaccines were approved for younger children in November of 2021, and at the time Newsom announced plans to eventually require it for all public school students. That plan was dropped last month.

In-person learning continues at Rio Americano High School in Sacramento County on Feb. 15, 2022.Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Over time, schools relaxed COVID-19 guidelines, as did many other spaces. The state eventually dropped a school mask mandate in March 2022. Nearly one year later, Newsom ended California’s COVID-19 state of emergency.