TIME's Best Photojournalism of 2020

A COVID-19 patient is prepared for intubation by the anesthesiologist at Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, N.J., on March 31. The plastic tent is so the virus isn’t spread while transporting the patient between units.
A COVID-19 patient is prepared for intubation by the anesthesiologist at Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, N.J., on March 31. The plastic tent is so the virus isn’t spread while transporting the patient between units.

A COVID-19 patient is prepared for intubation by the anesthesiologist at Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, N.J., on March 31. The plastic tent is so the virus isn’t spread while transporting the patient between units. Credit - Danny Kim for TIME

In news events chronicled by TIME photographers across the year, the invisible forces pushing us apart become visible: The plastic barriers built and the Tyvek worn to separate a pathogen from a human being. The truculence on the face of President Trump in the wee hours after Election Day, and the Tiki torch and pitchfork in the hands of a man who showed up at an Arizona election office the next day wearing a MAGA hat and a pistol. On a Brooklyn street corner, protesters pull a young man one way as police struggle to drag him the other.

It’s entirely too easy to forget that 2020 began amid at least the trappings of normality, with Democratic presidential candidates barnstorming snowy Iowa and New Hampshire. By autumn, photos of Elizabeth Warren raising a beer in Cedar Rapids and Bernie Sanders raising a fist in Manchester had assumed the quality of a daguerreotype, forgotten images arrived from a previous era.

Our own time existed in a state of suspension. Peter van Agtmael captured something close to its essence on an April day in Ocean City, Md., in a photograph that could serve as a portrait of 2020: A parking lot empty of cars, facing a flat sea, beneath a vaguely ominous sky that might be cloudless or might be overcast. From here it’s hard to know. —Karl Vick

Iranian women at a mosque in Tehran, on Jan. 5, <a href="https://time.com/longform/qasem-soleimani-tehran-iran-photos/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:mourn;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">mourn</a> Qasem Soleimani's death.<span class="copyright">Newsha Tavakolian—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
Iranian women at a mosque in Tehran, on Jan. 5, mourn Qasem Soleimani's death.Newsha Tavakolian—Magnum Photos for TIME
A protester, wearing a shirt that reads "Please Stop the Violence," is dragged near Brooklyn's Barclays Center on May 29, <a href="https://time.com/5845369/george-floyd-protests-malike-sidibe/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:four days;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">four days</a> after George Floyd's death.<span class="copyright">Malike Sidibe for TIME</span>
President Trump's last rally before the 2020 election in Grand Rapids, Mich., on Nov. 3.<span class="copyright">Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
President Trump's last rally before the 2020 election in Grand Rapids, Mich., on Nov. 3.Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME
A father holding a child walks by a man with a pitchfork, gun and Tiki torch at the Maricopa County election office in Phoenix on Nov. 5, <a href="https://time.com/5909201/2020-election-photographs/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:two days;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">two days</a> after the election.<span class="copyright">Sinna Nasseri for TIME</span>
President Trump during remarks in the East Room of the White House early on the morning of Nov. 4. "We'll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court," Trump said.<span class="copyright">Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
President Trump during remarks in the East Room of the White House early on the morning of Nov. 4. "We'll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court," Trump said.Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME
Artist Connor Czora breaks a ceramic MAGA hat sculpture in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 4
Artist Connor Czora breaks a ceramic MAGA hat sculpture in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 4
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, photographed at the Capitol on Dec. 5, 2019, staked the 2020 elections on impeachment. "No one is above the law," <a href="https://time.com/5762021/nancy-pelosi-trump-impeachment-gamble/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:she said;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">she said</a>.<span class="copyright">Philip Montgomery for TIME</span>
A man desperately tries to protect himself in Edirne, Turkey, from tear gas launched by Greek authorities at the border in March.<span class="copyright">Emin Ozmen—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
A man desperately tries to protect himself in Edirne, Turkey, from tear gas launched by Greek authorities at the border in March.Emin Ozmen—Magnum Photos for TIME
Mist gathers on the eastern shore of <a href="https://time.com/5913151/hart-island-covid/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Hart Island;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">Hart Island</a>, the city's "potters field," on June 26.<span class="copyright">Sasha Arutyunova for TIME</span>
Mist gathers on the eastern shore of Hart Island, the city's "potters field," on June 26.Sasha Arutyunova for TIME
President Trump arrives to speak in the East Room of the White House, one day after the Senate <a href="https://time.com/longform/donald-trump-acquitted-impeachment/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:acquitted;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">acquitted</a> him on two articles of impeachment, on Feb. 6.<span class="copyright">Gabriella Demczuk for TIME</span>
A man rides his tricycle in front of earthquake-destroyed buildings in the town center of Guanica, Puerto Rico, on Jan. 8.<span class="copyright">Christopher Gregory-Rivera for TIME</span>
A man rides his tricycle in front of earthquake-destroyed buildings in the town center of Guanica, Puerto Rico, on Jan. 8.Christopher Gregory-Rivera for TIME
Portraits and remembrances of Mary Hall Daniels at her house—now home to her grandson's family—in Hilliard, Fla. She had paid for the home with money awarded to her because of what had happened to her very first house, in an obscure rural hamlet called <a href="https://time.com/5887247/reparations-america-rosewood-massacre/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Rosewood;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">Rosewood</a>. In 1923, when she was 3 years old, a white mob burned down the mostly Black enclave.<span class="copyright">Rahim Fortune for TIME</span>
A health worker <a href="https://time.com/5822233/italy-coronavirus-photos/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:checks an elderly woman's oxygen level;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">checks an elderly woman's oxygen level</a>, after receiving a call about a suspected COVID-19 case, in the northern Italian province of Bergamo.<span class="copyright">Lorenzo Meloni—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
Laurie Halbrook, a <a href="https://time.com/collection/coronavirus-heroes/5816899/nurse-family-coronavirus/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:registered nurse;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">registered nurse</a>, holds her son Michael, 3, during a walk through their neighborhood in New Orleans.<span class="copyright">Kathleen Flynn for TIME</span>
A long-haired Lhasa Apso is wheeled down the runway to the gate of stardom at the <a href="https://time.com/longform/westminster-dog-show-photos/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Westminster Dog Show;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">Westminster Dog Show</a> in New York City on Feb. 10.<span class="copyright">Evan Angelastro for TIME</span>
Sen. Bernie Sanders <a href="https://time.com/5782619/bernie-sanders-2020-democratic-frontrunner-new-hampshire/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:raises his fist;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">raises his fist</a> at the New Hampshire Democratic Party's McIntyre-Shaheen 100 Club Event in Manchester, N.H., on Feb. 8.<span class="copyright">Tony Luong for TIME</span>
An empty parking lot in the <a href="https://time.com/5829777/governors-reopening-coronavirus/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:beach town;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">beach town</a> of Ocean City, Md., on April 16.<span class="copyright">Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
An empty parking lot in the beach town of Ocean City, Md., on April 16.Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME
<a href="https://time.com/5880129/concerts-coronavirus-taiwan/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Eric Chou;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">Eric Chou</a> walks on an extended stage that brought him close to fans sitting on the second level of the Taipei Arena on Aug. 8.<span class="copyright">An Rong Xu for TIME</span>
Black Lives Matter protesters <a href="https://time.com/5909201/2020-election-photographs/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:march through a residential neighborhood;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">march through a residential neighborhood</a> on Election Day in Portland, Ore., on Nov 3.<span class="copyright">Rian Dundon for TIME</span>
Press near the White House on the eve of the Nov. 3 election in Washington, D.C.<span class="copyright">Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
Press near the White House on the eve of the Nov. 3 election in Washington, D.C.Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME
Nurse Sarah Ladd and school resource officer Kristen Tyrseck ensure kids <a href="https://time.com/5870132/schools-coronavirus/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:keep a safe distance;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">keep a safe distance</a> apart as they enter Wesley Elementary School in Middletown, Conn., in July.<span class="copyright">Gillian Laub for TIME</span>
Soldiers from the 54th Quartermaster Company at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, which also <a href="https://time.com/5839056/new-york-city-burials-coronavirus/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:served as a disaster morgue;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">served as a disaster morgue</a> after the 9/11 attacks; by mid-May, COVID-19 had killed at least five times as many New Yorkers.<span class="copyright">Natalie Keyssar for TIME</span>
Dr. Laura Mulvey, who practices emergency medicine, in her isolation unit in the ICU at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn on March 26. "It's not easy being a patient," Mulvey <a href="https://time.com/5812495/doctor-covid-19-coronavirus/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:said;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">said</a>, "especially in your own hospital." Nearby, the ICU team holds a meeting.<span class="copyright">Benjamin Norman for TIME</span>
The transport team moves the body bags of deceased COVID-19 patients from the overflowing morgue of Brooklyn's <a href="https://time.com/wyckoff-hospital-brooklyn-coronavirus/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Wyckoff Heights Medical Center;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">Wyckoff Heights Medical Center</a> into the improvised morgue set up outside on April 27. Three refrigerated semitrailers, capable of holding more than 150 bodies between them, were brought in as an emergency solution during the height of the pandemic. The transports often occurred at night to avoid upsetting neighbors of the hospital.<span class="copyright">Meridith Kohut for TIME</span>
Sen. Elizabeth Warren holds a meet-and-greet at a pub in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Jan. 26.<span class="copyright">September Dawn Bottoms for TIME</span>
Sen. Elizabeth Warren holds a meet-and-greet at a pub in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Jan. 26.September Dawn Bottoms for TIME
Lydia Yang says goodbye to her father Noh Park during a <a href="https://time.com/5856736/fathers-day-la-nursing-home-coronavirus/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:socially distant Father's Day;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">socially distant Father's Day</a> event at a Los Angeles nursing home.<span class="copyright">Isadora Kosofsky for TIME</span>
On May 31, a demonstrator in New York <a href="https://time.com/5845369/george-floyd-protests-malike-sidibe/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:spray-paints;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">spray-paints</a> a poster of Derek Chauvin's knee on George Floyd's neck. "Out of nowhere, this guy pulled out a purple spray can and just started writing on it. These ladies were walking by and paused to look at it. They were looking at it, like, 'Is this to attack us or to stop us from being silent?'"<span class="copyright">Malike Sidibe for TIME</span>
Hundreds of fans gathered near Staples Center in Los Angeles to mourn the death of Kobe Bryant, who died in a January helicopter crash in Calabasas, along with eight others, including his daughter Gianna, 13.<span class="copyright">Alex Welsh for TIME</span>
Hundreds of fans gathered near Staples Center in Los Angeles to mourn the death of Kobe Bryant, who died in a January helicopter crash in Calabasas, along with eight others, including his daughter Gianna, 13.Alex Welsh for TIME
The <a href="https://time.com/longform/clean-water-access-united-states/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:remains of a water­-storage tank;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">remains of a water­-storage tank</a>, razed because of uranium contamination, in Red Mesa, Ariz.; for decades during the Cold War, mines in the Navajo Nation produced the uranium used for nuclear weapons.<span class="copyright">Matt Black—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
Bernie Sanders speaks at a campaign rally in Cedar Rapids on Feb. 1.<span class="copyright">Devin Yalkin for TIME</span>
Bernie Sanders speaks at a campaign rally in Cedar Rapids on Feb. 1.Devin Yalkin for TIME
A sign for the Bernie Sanders campaign in the snow in Concord, N.H., on Feb. 8. Sanders <a href="https://time.com/5745490/bernie-sanders-ends-campaign/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:ended;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">ended</a> his 2020 presidential bid in April.<span class="copyright">Tony Luong for TIME</span>
Joe Biden in Osage, Iowa, on Jan. 22. At the time, his crowds in the state had been smaller than those of his top rivals.<span class="copyright">September Dawn Bottoms for TIME</span>
Joe Biden in Osage, Iowa, on Jan. 22. At the time, his crowds in the state had been smaller than those of his top rivals.September Dawn Bottoms for TIME
Supporters at Pete Buttigieg's <a href="https://time.com/5793275/pete-buttigieg-ends-campaign/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:rally;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">rally</a> in Nashua, N.H., on Feb. 11.<span class="copyright">M. Scott Brauer for TIME</span>
Supporters at Pete Buttigieg's rally in Nashua, N.H., on Feb. 11.M. Scott Brauer for TIME
Two girls are <a href="https://time.com/longform/qasem-soleimani-tehran-iran-photos/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:pushed in a double stroller;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">pushed in a double stroller</a> in a crowd of people in Tehran mourning the death of Qasem Soleimani.<span class="copyright">Newsha Tavakolian—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
Michael Fowler, a <a href="https://time.com/collection/coronavirus-heroes/5816891/coroner-georgia-coronavirus/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:coroner;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">coroner</a> in Dougherty County, Ga., responds to a resident found dead alone in his apartment.<span class="copyright">Christopher Morris—VII for TIME</span>
Sarah Rugendyke, 7, sits on a play castle that was <a href="https://time.com/longform/australia-wildfires-bush-pictures/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:burned on her family’s property;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">burned on her family’s property</a> in Cobargo on Jan. 20; an out-of-control bushfire devastated the tourist town about 240 miles south of Sydney on New Year’s Eve.<span class="copyright">Adam Ferguson for TIME</span>
A gathering of a right-wing militia in Louisville, Ky., on Sept. 5.<span class="copyright">Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME</span>
A gathering of a right-wing militia in Louisville, Ky., on Sept. 5.Peter van Agtmael—Magnum Photos for TIME
A woman takes a knee as George Floyd's <a href="https://time.com/5851608/george-floyd-funeral-photos/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:funeral procession;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">funeral procession</a> enters the cemetery in Houston on June 9. "People were chanting George Floyd's name and 'no justice, no peace!'"<span class="copyright">Ruddy Roye for TIME</span>
Supporters of President Trump demonstrate, argue with press and become hostile at the Cuban restaurant La Carreta in Miami on Nov. 7.<span class="copyright">Ruddy Roye for TIME</span>
Supporters of President Trump demonstrate, argue with press and become hostile at the Cuban restaurant La Carreta in Miami on Nov. 7.Ruddy Roye for TIME
With punching bags and dummies overhead, instructor Javier Sola <a href="https://time.com/5901726/police-training-academies/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:teaches frisking and handcuffing techniques;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas" class="link ">teaches frisking and handcuffing techniques</a> to recruits at the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission facility in Burien, Wash., on Oct. 22. Washington State is one of the few places in the U.S. that requires all recruits to go through the state-run Basic Law Enforcement Academy, except for those becoming state patrol officers, a system that advocates of police reform support.<span class="copyright">Jovelle Tamayo for TIME</span>
Joe Biden speaks with a supporter at a Town Hall with John Kerry in Cedar Rapids on Feb. 1.<span class="copyright">September Dawn Bottoms for TIME</span>
Joe Biden speaks with a supporter at a Town Hall with John Kerry in Cedar Rapids on Feb. 1.September Dawn Bottoms for TIME