Ever been asked to photograph a funeral?

Balmiesgirl · Mar 16, 2012

It's one of those awkward things....

katerolla · Mar 16, 2012

No, but I had someone at my mums funeral, it's been 2 years and I still haven't seen the photos and I'm not sure if I want to at this stage.

Balmiesgirl · Mar 16, 2012

I did it as a favor for a friend.... I don't regret it.... But it was new territory for me so it was uncomfortable. Odd thing was I got a call from some of the family members the same day wanting to come see the pics...my turn over for an event is usually a week. Do I tell them to wait or do we get it over with?

FattyMcJ · Mar 16, 2012

Balmiesgirl said:
I did it as a favor for a friend.... I don't regret it.... But it was new territory for me so it was uncomfortable. Odd thing was I got a call from some of the family members the same day wanting to come see the pics...my turn over for an event is usually a week. Do I tell them to wait or do we get it over with?

Do what you need to do in order to provide the best quality. It's really no different than a wedding, in terms of importance...if not more so. Quality should be top priority IMO.

On that note, I applaud you for doing it. I don't know of I could.

tailofspence · Mar 17, 2012

There actually was an article in Popular Photography recently regarding this and I found it really interesting. My mom passed away in January and I actually had my girlfriend's sister taking photos. It helps to have them around just in case I ever want to look back at the event itself and just contemplate things. I think it's key to set ground rules though, which is what we did (no photography of inside the coffin, etc.) Photos turned out "okay" since she's not pro or anything. I did have another friend's dad pass away and I offered to take photos, but there was no response so I didn't pursue it. Again, just be respectful and I think it's no different than shooting any other event.

Forkie · Mar 17, 2012

That's little bit weird if you ask me. What do you do, get them to all stand around the coffin? What if it's an open coffin, do you shoot the corpse? It's all types of wrong!

sleepwalker · Mar 17, 2012

its a very interesting subject.....i remember my grandmas funeral there were no pics taken it just isnt done in my family
now my granddad i couldnt bear to see him dead let alone being buried (i did not go)
do as high a quality as you normally do they can wait a week if thats what it takes they will understand in the long run
bravo for doing it

Balmiesgirl · Mar 17, 2012

I was very careful to be respectful and unobtrusive. It was for a 22 yr old guy with a huge extended family. His mother is the client. She asked for photos of all of the extended family and photos of her standing next to the coffin... Yes it was open. Most all of the family thanked me for being there and let me know that they appreciated my services. I didn't do many during the funeral but did a ton of family groups at the cemetery. I think they realized how much they mean to each other and some members hadn't seen each other for 15 years.

Forkie · Mar 18, 2012

Balmiesgirl said:
She asked for photos of all of the extended family and photos of her standing next to the coffin... Yes it was open.

So now she can look at her dead son whenever she fancies it...

It takes all sorts to make a world I guess.

imagemaker46 · Mar 18, 2012

I find it disturbing having an open casket anyway, not the way I want to remember the person. Some 40 years my brother was once asked to shoot pictures of the recently expired, the family wanted to send out copies of the photo to the family and friends that couldn't attend. He asked me if he should shoot it in black and white, or living colour, after we had a good laugh, he called his friend and said it couldn't shoot it.

raider · Mar 18, 2012

i was hired to video one.

fokker · Mar 18, 2012

The whole concept of documenting a funeral seems a bit odd to me. It sort of seems to detract from the significance of a funeral as a memorial for a loved one, when you have all these photos to look back. To me you should just remember the person, not try to remember the moment they were buried.

tailofspence · Mar 18, 2012

fokker said:
The whole concept of documenting a funeral seems a bit odd to me. It sort of seems to detract from the significance of a funeral as a memorial for a loved one, when you have all these photos to look back. To me you should just remember the person, not try to remember the moment they were buried.

I think the memory of the loved one being of utmost importance and not the event itself is absolutely true. I wanted it done at my mom's as a "just-in-case/cover all basis" thing for my own mental support; extremely hard to explain, but it was something that was actually brought up in my second year of medical school (I'm studying for my USMLE boards right now) and I decided that it wouldn't hurt to have on hand to help with the grieving process. To be honest I haven't really even looked at them other than a few pics of the floral reefs so I could find the names of people, to write thank you letters.

Also it would be good to point out that although it certainly isn't in my custom, BUT it is part of Filipino custom to have family members take massive amounts of photos (w/ open casket and all, and even with the deceased). It's just a cultural thing I learned... weird to some people, but again we should be respectful of each other's views.

mommy-medic · Mar 23, 2012

Weddings and funerals are sometimes the only thing that brings large extended families together. I've seen several "family shots" that were outdoors in park-like settings, only to find out later they all happened to be there for a funeral.

A fellow firefighter recently died of cancer at 46 years old and the family hired a photographer to document the service, procession, friends, love and support all gathered for Mark.

Also, the family is often in such a blur if the death is unexpected that six months or a year from now they will have little to no detailed recollection. Unfortunately I had to go to a funeral today for a coworkers wife. She was in a bad accident a month ago, the at-fault driver died on scene. She was flown to the trauma center and put back together. She had been home recovering about two weeks and got a blood clot in her lungs and died- leaving her husband and their adult son and 15 year old daughter. The husband looks like a zombie- I bet he hasnt slept since she died. There's no way he will remember (in great detail) today's events. Though they didn't have a photographer, I can see the value of it.

It's not about shooting just the deceased or posing in front of a casket. Just throwing a different perspective out there.

IgsEMT · Mar 23, 2012

I got a call for it once, but turned the job down. It wasn't death its self that was bothering me, I spend over 6yrs in EMS so it isn't new to me, but something about shooting a funeral and capturing all of those painful emotions and then editing them - I apologized to the caller and turned the job down. I try not to take on assignments I can't handle and this was one that I knew I couldn't handle.