{"id":57243,"date":"2018-04-15T21:18:42","date_gmt":"2018-04-16T01:18:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ontarioexploration.com\/wp\/?p=54972"},"modified":"2024-08-26T16:14:24","modified_gmt":"2024-08-26T20:14:24","slug":"cemetery-photography-from-big-paul-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/2018\/cemetery-photography-from-big-paul-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Cemetery Photography from Big Paul"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\tThis post is originally from Big Paul<\/a>, on his photography site which has gone offline. I had listed the link in the ODP (now Curlie) and I tried to find another source for the content, but other than a Flickr group, there was nothing else to be found. So I am reposting this post, about cemetery photography, from the original site, as an archive. I did not repost images, they were not loading and the text is what I really wanted to keep. The instructions and advice are good and time isn’t likely to change that.<\/p>\n

I love a good cemetery. That probably sounds morbid, but it\u2019s not. They\u2019re peaceful places, for one thing; hardly anyone ever bothers you. Besides, I figure that since one of these days I\u2019ll be going into one and not leaving, it\u2019d probably help to start getting used to them now.<\/p>\n

On a more serious note, cemeteries have a unique sense of history about them that not many other places do. You learn a lot about an area \u2013 the way its demographics changed over time, mortality rates, the people who settled and built an area \u2013 by who\u2019s buried there. You also realize that for all the expense associated with the death industry (and it is that), we just don\u2019t do mourning like we used to. Don\u2019t believe me? Compare headstones from the 1800\u2019s or even the early part of the last century with what you get now; we used to send our dead out in style, versus sending them out in the equivalent of a Happy Meal container.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Bring bags with you. Most cemeteries are well-kept. Some, however, aren\u2019t, or they\u2019re located in areas where people tend to use them as shortcuts (or, worse still, dumping grounds). If you see trash, pick it up, and don\u2019t ever leave trash of your own behind.
\n\u2022 I say the following as someone who smokes a pack a day: Don\u2019t smoke in the cemetery. It\u2019s just tacky.
\n\u2022 Likewise, if you\u2019ve got an MP3 player, mobile phone, or anything else on you that makes noise, shut it off.
\n\u2022 Bear in mind that many cemeteries are private property. You may be asked to leave; if you are, do so, since you\u2019re trespassing if you don\u2019t.
\n\u2022 You may also be asked what you\u2019re doing in the cemetery. If that\u2019s the case, be honest and respectful.
\n\u2022 Speaking of respect, a little goes a long way. If you see a family nearby visiting a loved one, or if there\u2019s a service going on, put the camera away. The photo\u2019s not so important that you have to be an asshole to get it.
\n\u2022 Some cemeteries actually have photo policies. Some may explicitly state that you\u2019re not allowed to take photos (rare, but it happens), while still others will allow picture taking as long as you don\u2019t sell the photos, or may require a special arrangement if you want to sell what you\u2019ve taken. It can also be helpful to call ahead to find out.
\n\u2022 Watch your step. For one thing, you don\u2019t want to walk over someone\u2019s floral arrangements, flags, and the like. For another, you may come across uneven ground, or even sunken graves, from time to time.
\n\u2022 Disturb as little as possible on or around a gravesite. It\u2019s one thing if a stone or plaque has a layer of leaves and dirt on it; there\u2019s nothing wrong with cleaning someone\u2019s resting place.* If, on the other hand, the marker is partially obscured by flowers, toys, or anything else left there by loved ones, leave it as it is.**
\n\u2022 One last rule of thumb: if you\u2019re not sure whether you feel right taking pictures in a graveyard, ask yourself one simple question: how would you feel if someone were taking a picture of your or your loved one\u2019s tombstone? I\u2019ve thought about this from time to time, and I think that as long as someone\u2019s being respectful, I wouldn\u2019t get bent out of shape about it. You may feel differently, and therein, I suppose, lies your answer.<\/p>\n

If you want to learn more about cemeteries themselves, there are two great resources. The first would be a local church or historical society, who can tell you a lot about the town and its families (especially useful if you\u2019re not familiar with an area). The other is a book that you can easily find online, called Stories in Stone: A Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism and Iconography\"\" which explains burial customs, iconography, and the significance of certain types of grave markers. It\u2019s not a photography how-to, but it\u2019s invaluable if you\u2019re as interested in the history of a place and its dead as you are in the photos themselves.<\/p>\n

*One exception would be stones, since it\u2019s common custom to leave stones on or near the grave marker when you\u2019ve visited. This is most common in Jewish cemeteries, but I\u2019ve seen it done elsewhere as well.<\/em><\/p>\n

**One site goes so far as to suggest moving anything that\u2019s in the way of your photos and replacing it afterward, which strikes me as a step too far.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This post is originally from Big Paul, on his photography site which has gone offline. I had listed the link in the ODP (now Curlie) and I tried to find another source for the content, but other than a Flickr group, there was nothing else to be found. So I am reposting this post, about […]<\/p>\n<\/a>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[930],"tags":[295,28,540,102,103],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57243"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57243"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57243\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":74495,"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57243\/revisions\/74495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57243"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57243"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thatgrrl.com\/site\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57243"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}