Marc Kollar's Photo Blog

[Editor's Comment: As I transferred posts from Blogger to WordPress, this one showed up as having never been published. When I opened it, I saw about 3/4 of my post was missing. <sigh> So I have attempted to rebuild it and actually decided to split it up into two separate posts, one about wakes and the other about the day of the funeral Mass. Do ask questions if there is something I've missed.]

 

Following up a bit on my prior post regarding funerals …

First, my fellow Nikon Cafe denizen was very appreciative of the comments I had given her. She was very happy with the pictures she was able to get of family and friends and mentioned the close ups seemed to be a big, big plus. Needless to say (but I’ll say it anyway), I was glad to have heard my comments served a valuable purpose.

But as I thought about this topic, it gave me pause to consider the emotions that are always present at such events. Inevitably the subject of death and the the events surrounding a person’s death are dichotomous. For many, it is a somber time because of the sense of loss. The dead person is no longer here on earth. There is the sadness that comes with knowing the person is not going to be there to talk to, to share memories, be there for happy events and sad times. However, for those of the Roman Catholic Faith, there is also a sense of peace, if not a feeling of happiness. That flows from the belief that the person’s life has “changed.” No longer is the person affected by the trials and tribulations found here on earth. In the Roman Catholic Rite, it is believed the person is now seeking admission to Heaven.

To say the least, it is never easy to be involved with death. Certainly your own death is never a good thing! The death of any loved one is difficult. But even the death of a stranger can sometimes affect those who are at the wake or funeral. So how does someone approach such a difficult photo shoot? Here is my perspective.

Understanding What You Are Shooting

Obviously, this is short notice. The person dies on a given day. For Catholics and most Christians, the wake is held within a couple of days followed by a Mass or Service. For Jews, the process is even faster with no viewing or wake and almost immediate interment. Muslims also follow a simple burial practice.

To become familiar with these practices, you may want to visit the following websites:

Catholic Funeral Practice

Guide to Jewish Funeral Practice

Islamic Funeral Practice (not a fan of Wikipedia, but the only link available)

The Liaison

Certainly the photographer isn’t just going to walk in and announce themselves. Likewise, s/he can’t be a wallflower either. You need to balance your approach. The first step is to make sure the person who has requested your presence be the liaison between you and several key people: The family, the funeral director, and the priest. If the deceased was active in organizations or a veteran, getting in contact with the chief executive of the local chapter or council will be critical in making sure you know what they may be doing as part of the service. That responsibility falls on your shoulders and I’ll discuss it further later on.

Know the Events

As this post is the outgrowth of a question regarding a Catholic funeral, my comments are going to be specific to that situation. However, you can draw from this commentary to get a sense of how to approach other  funerals.

Understand each event that you will be covering. Do not make the mistake of thinking you will simply walk in and snap some photos. There is a solemnity and decorum you need to observe whether at the wake, the funeral Mass, or the cemetery.

The Wake or Viewing

In the Catholic Rite, the deceased will be laid out in the casket or coffin for a period of time at a local funeral home. The term “Wake” refers to the time when the deceased is at the funeral home. The term “viewing” refers to the actual times when the surviving family members will be present at the funeral home to receive visitors. Generally, viewing times are in the afternoon and evening, usually 2 to 4 PM and 7 to 9 PM on one given day.

It is critical to remember that most organizations, such as the Knights of Columbus, and the Equestrian Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem will hold a “wake service” for a deceased member during the evening viewing hours. For the deceased who are members of such organizations, an honor guard may also be posted. Thus it is good to talk with the guard commander to identify where they will be stationed and when they will be present at the wake.

Generally the “wake service,” that is the prayers and brief eulogy offered by the priest will be given during the evening viewing if the wake occurs on a weekday. If the wake is held on a weekend, the wake service is generally held in the afternoon.

The Funeral Mass

Unlike other Masses, this is a distinctive celebration of specific rites that are held dear within the Roman Catholic Rite. As such, it is essential for your liaison to make sure you have adequate time to speak with the priest who will be celebrating the Mass.

You need to make it clear to the priest that your intention is to remain out of the way and innocuous during the Mass. You are only there to record specific moments for the family and not to be “seen” or “heard.” It is also critical to make it clear that you will be respectful of the solemnity of the Mass and that you are aware of what is actually transpiring at certain points in the Mass. Failure to do so will definitely get you a stern “no” from the priest.

The Cemetery

This is a significantly more personal and private portion of the funeral as it is the place where the family will say their final good byes to their loved one. The emotions here may be much more raw than at the funeral home or even the church as the finality of the loss will become much more real at this time, especially if the coffin is lowered into the grave while they are present. It is rare that this is done, but it may still be done for more traditional families.

Here you need to be aware, not only of what will take place with the coffin, but also the reverential elements such as the playing of Taps by a trumpeter or Amazing Grace on the bagpipes, or a 21-gun salute.

Know the Equipment to Use

So what you you going to take with you? Glass with high f-stops is the way to go. But keep it simple. A wide-angle lens from 24-70 or even 120 with an f/2.8 is going to be your friend. In the church setting, a 300mm f/2.8 is going to be a good option when shooting from a few of the vantage points I’ll mention shortly.

Do not make the mistake of thinking any of these venues should have flashes going off. Regardless of what the “pros” do, they are only embarrassing themselves and showing their lack of respect for what is going on around them.

Keep the kit you work with simple. Do not make the mistake of trying to stuff lots of items into your bag. You are not going to have any space to work with at any location. Funeral homes are usually going to have more than one wake taking place on a given night and preference for rooms is going to go to the honor guards and guests. In the church, even with a small number of attendees, there is not going to be time or space to switch among multiple lenses.

The Agenda

As always, get to the event in advance of the actual start time. In this case, however, it is more than just looking around so you can see the layout. You and your liaison need to be there to take time and talk with several very important people: the family (even if the Liaison is one of them), the funeral director, and the priest. In each case, you need to convey to them your understanding of the solemnity of the event and your respect for the deceased. Even at raucous Irish or Slovak wakes, your demeanor and unobtrusive behavior will go a long way to giving you greater access to people and more natural photos.

But before you even get to the funeral home or to the church, you need to know what is going to be happening at each venue. Consider the following

The deceased is a veteran of Vietnam, Grenada, and Panama
serving in the 101st Airborne. He was also a member of the
local Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and was a member of
the Knights of Columbus and a Knight of the Holy Sepulchre.

The wake is going to be held on a weekday.

He’ll be buried with full military honors.

What that means is you are going to need to ask your liaison to find out which groups are going to show up and conduct the “wake service” I mentioned above. You are also going to need to find out if there will be an honor guard at the wake and from which groups. Also, you need to know if his regiment will be attending.

For the funeral Mass, you need to find out if their will be a military honor guard, who the pall bearers will be, if there will be a bagpiper or other solitary musical accompaniment for the processional and recessional, and if the priest will even allow you to take pictures at the Mass.

At the cemetery, you need to consider what aspects of the ceremony will you want to cover. As a single person, it may not be possible to get all the shots, but you still need to be aware of them. In the scenario I gave, I said “full military honors” would be given. That means the casket will be draped with the United States flag during the Mass and at the cemetery. There will be a gun salute and Taps will be played. The flag will be folded at the cemetery and given to the immediate family member.  To get a better grasp of what takes place at military funerals, I would recommend reviewing the contents of this page.

I’m sure you probably just sat back and thought, “Wow! That’s a lot of work.” Yes it is. So how do you handle it all? Start by breaking it down into manageable chunks; the easiest way being by venue.

The Funeral Home

As I said earlier, get there before the viewing begins. Use this time to talk briefly with the funeral director to reassure him or her know that you will only be photographing the wake in the room where the deceased is located.

Spend a few moments getting shots of any displays that may be near the front of the room where the casket is located. Some of these may include memorabilia the deceased collected, uniforms, awards, and medals and ribbons as well as floral displays.

Of course the biggest question is: “Do I photograph the corpse?”

Honestly, that is at the discretion of the family. If they ask you to take photographs of the the deceased, do it. At the risk of sounding flippant about this, the body has been prepared for burial and the family who asks for the photo is seeking a remembrance of their loved one in that state. You are not going to Hell nor will you be struck down because you took the photo. Personally, I have taken photographs of deceased family members without a problem.

Returning to our example above, let’s assume there is an honor guard and there will be wake services offered. Generally honor guards are relieved in 10 to half hour intervals. Thus, make sure you talk with the guard commander to find out if they will permit a photo to be taken. Even if the family says yes, there may be other rules that govern how the honor guard may be shown.

As guests arrive, take time to quietly photograph them from a distance so as to minimize the possible shock of being photographed at a wake. You may notice groups arriving as a sort of contingent. If you can get candid shots of them as a group, it will make it that much easier to identify people later by the family. If possible, have the liaison point out who the members of the deceased regiment are. In some instances, a few photos of the surviving members may be appreciated.

The priest will usually conduct the Catholic “wake service” at the evening viewing on a weeknight. Usually he will start around 8:00 PM. For the most part, this service is finished within 15 minutes to a half hour. When he has finished, take a few moments to speak with him if you have not done so already to find out if he will be celebrating the funeral Mass and if he will permit photos to be taken as requested by the family. Make it clear to him that you will remain innocuous and will not interfere with the Mass.

For weekday wakes, most fraternal organizations will hold the “wake service” during the evening viewing. Generally they will start soon after the priest has finished. Most services take between ten and 15 minutes and conclude with either a proclamation or gift of remembrance being presented to the family at the end.

I’ll discuss the Funeral Mass and the Burial in another post.