Picutures of death, yes or no?

[bmicklea]

I wonder if that story was true or "dramatized". If it is true, it is a horrible thing to do to a loved one. I would be a low thing to do, even for a tabloid reporter, much less a (loving?) spouse.

He may have captured the genuine emotion, but was it worth the consequences?

I guess I look at things a different way. I've taken photos of my family and friends grieving - either after hearing the news of a death or during a funeral. In most cases the people involved are happy to have the photos. Death is a very important part of life and is, along with birth, the most momentous occasion we are allowed to witness. I understand that some would not wish to remember but for others the remembering is key.

If the story is true then I would think that the photographer's wife would be used to and accepting of this inclination to photograph everything. Personally I would respect that.

 

[RdEoSg]

I was thinking... I am working on a project right now that I think will be something that goes on for my whole life. I've decided to do some sort of project on Auschwitz. I don't know what will come of it, a book, a website, etc. I am not sure where it is taking me, I only know that I have to do it. I decided last year that to enter some of my photos in the Orange County Fair not because I wanted to win any awards with them, but because I figured what better place to ge them seen than at a fair where a million or so people will walk past them in the couple weeks they are up.

Well much to my shock I actually won 2nd place in the professional landscape division. The bigger issue I ran into though was that even though I specificly put not for sale on the prints because I didn't want to make money off of Auschwitz, I had two people ask to buy the winning print. A lady and her sister both asked that I reconsider because the photo had moved them. They had some family that died there, and others that fled and spend the war in hiding.

It took me a while to decide what to do. Do I sell the print and make money off of one of the most evil events in world history? I was the artist. I took the photo in a manner that moved them, did that mean I should be compensated for my work as any other artist should? In the end I finaly decided to sell them two framed prints, and even though they insisted I should keep the money all for myself because I am the artist, I am going to donate a portion to something.

My fiance is Polish and for those of you that don't realize it, Auschwitz is not in Germany, it is in Poland. It started off not as a camp to exterminate Jews, but to hold Polish captives. After much discussion with her, I decided that as Auschwitz is actually a Unicef protected site and not in any real need of funding, I am going to take a portion of the sale money and donate it to a smaller group of some sort that deals with the healing process between Poles, Germans, and Jews related to the holocaust.

 

[Bryan Lee]

Wow, these are some great answers so far starting with the very first response. I will get back to this later and write a little about Cambodia and my experiance there.

 

[gb hill]

I was asked by my wifes family to photograph her father in law when he died. There were other times, and at funerals when I didn't have a camera with me and now looking back I regett not having it. When I come up on an accident the first thing that pops in my mind is...where's my camera, and where can I park. Now if the person was injured or dying and the rescue personel haven't yet arrived,and I can help or comfort in some way, then thats where I would have to draw the line and not photograph. My oldest stepson was in a bad car wreck 2 years ago and in a coma for nearly 2 weeks and in intensive care. We asked if we could take photos and of course after the hospital said no, I snuck in my camera and did it anyway. Now that he has the photos, my stepson couldn't believe how swollen he was and all those tubes they had running in him. And he never would have believed it if I hadn't put it all on film. He's glad I did.