Friday 12 February 2010

Eliminate the negatives

Photo by Dr Neil Clifton

The hearse pulled up, the conductor opened up the back and one of the mourners whipped out a camera. Something gave her pause. She turned to me (I was the celebrant) and said, “Is this not good in your country?” She was German. I told her that convention counted for nothing, but... Then I got some nods from the others so I told her to go ahead. She got some good pics, and I am sure they all cherish them.

We snap away from dawn to dusk but we stop when we get to a funeral. Why so? Because we want it to leave no visible trace? Perhaps. If you want to shut your eyes tight to something, why on earth would you want to take photographs of it?

If you engage with a funeral you’re bound to want to commemorate it, and take away visible and material reminders. What better than photos?

I’m really pleased when I see cameras at a funeral. It doesn’t happen nearly enough. How many professional photographers out there specialise in it? Well, there isn’t the demand, is there?

I don’t know about that. I think that supply can create demand. Give people the idea, show them the way, and they’ll run with it.

I hope that’ll be true of In Our Hearts Images. Here’s a brave new venture. Remembrance photography, they call it. I like it. Good luck to you, Esther and David. I hope you will soon be flattered by many imitators – none near you, of course.

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posted by Charles Cowling at 12:29

3 Comments:

Blogger gloriamundi said...

Yes, why ever not? If we mean it when we talk about celebrating a life as well as mourning a passing, why not have a few really nice photos of the ceremony? Of course, all too often you might not want too many of the crematorium interior!)

12 February 2010 at 17:28  
Anonymous Jonathan said...

I organized and conducted a funeral for a lady who was part of the Osho (pka Baghwan Shri Rajneesh) community. Her partner kindly invited me to the pre-funeral ceremony, held in a community hall, with an altar with flowers, candles and decorations. At one point in the ceremony, we were invited to come up one by one, light a candle from the original flame from which all the many candles in the room were lit, and offer her a prayer or a thought at her altar.

In prime position was a photograph of the lady lying in her coffin; it was one of the most moving moments of any ceremony I can remember. I'm always grateful to this community for their frank and fearless acceptance of the reality death - far more real, in fact, than the images on the In Our Hearts website.

13 February 2010 at 11:22  
Anonymous syncopated eyeball said...

Thanks, Charles. I find your posts quite refreshing!

15 February 2010 at 04:59  

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