Posts tagged with “graveyard”
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Cemetery Photographer Interview Questions

Two of the interview questions from the Cemetery Travel site. Read the interviews and find more questions on the site.

What’s your favorite thing to do in a cemetery?

What would your epitaph be?

If I were younger and still more romantic, my favourite thing to do in a cemetery would be a picnic. You would need to come prepared, not just the usual picnic things. You might check in with the people who maintain the land and be sure a picnic is welcome there.

Next, once you are there, find a good spot. Cemetery land tends to be knobby and bumpy. You might think its all manicured, perfect cared for lawns, its not always the case. Usually they are knobby due to insects, weeds, and no doubt other things I don't know about. You won't want too much shade or sun and a sunny day will at least save you from mosquitos.

I would not plan it as a Gothic looking thing. I don't see it as a gloomy event.

Now, at this age, I like visiting cemeteries just for photography. Finding the oldest stones, even those I can't read due to weathering or plant growth. Sometimes I can read them better from the photograph I take. I also look for ornate carved or sculpted stones. I especially like those with stone flowers. Its nice to see what people have planted around the stones too, or if they have left pennies, pebbles or other little mementos on the gravestone.

I'm not ready to write my epitaph. I'd like to visit, as a ghost or whatever is available, and read what others have written.

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Would you Travel to Explore a Cemetery?

I think the idea that walking through a cemetery is scary is created by the media. In reality, its usually quiet, tends to be damp, among the trees, or windy if there are few trees. I've photographed an old cemetery which was on the edge of a farm field, only one tree. It was very cold and windy. That was perfect atmosphere for a movie. But, they would have needed a story to make it creepy. The reality was just bitterly cold, not scary at all.

I found this post, which included a quote from Loren Rhoads, about travel and exploring cemeteries.

“I look at them as open-air sculpture gardens,” Rhoads said. “There are some places in the world where it’s museum quality, and it’s just there for anyone to visit and take a look.”

Source: A Guide to the World's Most Intriguing Cemeteries

Loren has written, "Wish you Were Here" and "199 Cemeteries to See Before you Die". The first is about US cemeteries and the second about cemeteries around the world.  Also, her site Cemetery Travel.

You can also find her Cemetery Travels Notebook, for your own exploring and notes, from her Etsy shop, CemeteryLibrarian.