[pathdoc]

The available window light was quite good, my subjects did not fidget or blink, I worked on a tripod and could take as long as I wanted. I got some nice images. It was a nice break from the usual babies and brides that were my bread and butter.

Hatch, match and dispatch.

Along with telling us about it, he also showed pictures from the investigation. I would rather see photos from a natural death than photos from those investigations.

Being a pathologist, it is my official duty to take photographs of people who for the most part have met untimely ends (occasionally I do routine post-mortems on elderly people who had no general practitioner to sign their certificate). Some of those pictures have been quite graphic. If my K-5 and *istDS could talk, there is no way in hell I could ever sell them on to anyone else; they'd be haunted by the memory of what they had seen. Fortunately it is not in my sphere of responsibility to do murder investigations, but some of the road accidents and other such violent accidents I have seen have been more graphic than any murder could ever be.

[Lord Lucan]

An old thread, but not dead yet it seems Some of those pictures are very sad : a lot of younger people, little girl with her dolls.

In the UK it seems not to be the done thing to take photos at funerals (I mean not even of the guests). It is OK at weddings, but hardly anyone seems to get married these days; in the last few years in my wider family there have only been four funerals and a gay wedding. As the wider family only ever gathers at weddings and funerals it means that there is a dearth of photos of them.

[pathdoc]

four funerals and a gay wedding. .

Sounds like the premise for a film script...

[pichaser]

A friend at work talked about doing autopsy photos of combat casualties in Vietnam with large format cameras ( 8x10 and bigger) . He was scarred by a jeep crash in a rice paddy and a devout alcoholic .

[lesmore49]

I'm a great fan of the British TV series Midsomer Murders, that starred John Nettles. In many of the early John Nettles editions, the police photographer used a Pentax 6 X 7 SLR to take photos of crime scenes, invariably murders in the small English villages where all the mayhem happened. To me it made sense that a medium format camera like the old Pentax would be used...the need for sharp crime pictures being blown up for use in investigation and of course during court. Now, I'm not a lawman, just a serious fan of English detective novels, movies and TV series so the type of photographic equipment used is my opinion.

An aside...is it just me or have others noticed that there doesn't seem to be too many English detective novels, TV series as there once was. The only new one in the past couple of years that I can recall...and it is very good...is Endeavour.

[Lord Lucan]

... In many of the early John Nettles editions, the police photographer used a Pentax 6 X 7 SLR to take photos of crime scenes... To me it made sense that a medium format camera like the old Pentax would be used ...

Some UK police forces certainly did use Pentax 6x7s at one time; in the UK I sometimes noticed them in the background of on-the-spot TV news broadcasts. Makes sense as the 6x7 was probably the best of the larger medium format film cameras for field use.

[lesmore49]

Some UK police forces certainly did use Pentax 6x7s at one time; in the UK I sometimes noticed them in the background of on-the-spot TV news broadcasts. Makes sense as the 6x7 was probably the best of the larger medium format film cameras for field use.

I agree . I rented a Pentax 6X7 and 90mm F 2.8 Leaf Shutter lens one weekend. What a camera and the photographs were very impressive. Had the Pentax Rosewood handle. I wanted one. Too expensive, eventually got a Mamiya Pro 220 F 6 X 6, which was also a good medium format.

I went to a local historical site with the large 6 X 7 in hand and I recall the young, history guide at the site, running out, upset that no one had told him the press were coming out to take pictures of the site. I quickly assured him I was not press, just an average guy who had rented a large pro camera.

[Pete82]

I don't know, I might have felt honoured for taking someone's post mortem picture.

[NiftyFifty]

When I was a college student in the early 1960s I worked at a camera store which did a thriving business in film processing. Every week or so someone would display to us the pictures they'd taken of their deceased loved one at the funeral. They often commented how lifelike the body looked. I wondered at the time if this were a Southern US custom, since the store was in Richmond, Virginia. Anyone else encounter this?

I do believe it's a Southern thing and, more specifically, probably an Appalachian thing. Both Richmond and the area I'm from in South Carolina are in Appalachia. To this day, my family members still take pictures of loved ones in their caskets before the funeral starts. I grew up thinking this was perfectly normal. I also thought only black people did this, that it was one of our little "peculiarities" (LOL), but it's good to know that I'm wrong.

[Helios 1984]

My dad has an old photo of my grandmother (I think that's who it was) at her funeral. That was in Stokedale, North Carolina a real rural farm town outside Greensboro. He took that around the late 1990s.

One of my cousins recorded my grandfather's funeral, back in the 90's. Apparently, she wanted to show it to her son when he'd be older...

[ASheffield]

One of my cousins recorded my grandfather's funeral, back in the 90's. Apparently, she wanted to show it to her son when he'd be older...

Of all of the funerals I have been to, I have never wanted to relive the experience or share it with others.

[Helios 1984]

Of all of the funerals I have been to, I have never wanted to relive the experience or share it with others.

Me neither, I've never even considered the possibility.


It was the one and only time that I've seen someone with a camcorder or a camera at a funeral.

[NiftyFifty]

Of all of the funerals I have been to, I have never wanted to relive the experience or share it with others.

Me neither, I've never even considered the possibility.


It was the one and only time that I've seen someone with a camcorder or a camera at a funeral.

My cousin had me video her father's funeral (we're related on her mom's side). But, many of our funerals (Black Americans) are actually celebrations of the deceased's life, that we call "Homegoing" ceremonies, and can end up being more like a charismatic church service, LOL.

[bigdavephoto]

Of all of the funerals I have been to, I have never wanted to relive the experience or share it with others.

You need to remember that back when this was done, late 1800's into the early 1900's, post-mortem photography was not to relive the experience or share with others. It was to have a photograph of a loved one who has passed away.

Photography at that time was very expensive and not everybody could afford to have pictures taken. And people wanted something to remember their loved ones by. It's not like today where everybody carries a camera in their pocket.

As an example, my father and I was having a discussion about photography and he told me a story about something he said to my mother one time. I do not recall what he and my mother was talking about at the time (or if he even told me), but he said to my mother that her family was rich compared to his when they were both young. He told me that my mother said back to him that they were not rich and how did my dad figure that they were. My father told me in reply to my mother, "Because you (her family) has pictures." My parents were both born in 1935, so even then, photography was expensive.

As I am setting here writing this, my moms side of the family has hundreds of picture, both snapshots and pro done, back to the late 1890's and I have not seen more than a dozen pictures before the 1960's from my dads side of the family.

To put it simply, I can understand why in the time from 1890 to the 1920's or so, if a family member passed away, the family would forgo the Sunday meal to have a photo taken of that family member. It might be the only photo of that person.