The Case for Hiring a Professional Funeral Photographer
Photo by Duane Knight
When funeral photographer Duane Knight attended the wake of a childhood friend last December, he was relieved to see a man there taking photographs. But when Knight later learned that the photographer was the father of the deceased, he was devastated. "Oh, I felt so sad that he was taking the photos instead of just being present at his own daughter's funeral." Knight believes as a matter of principle that every end-of-life service should be photographed by an empathic but distanced professional with the eye of a photo journalist. If we employ such people to shoot weddings, why not funerals?
Yes, immediate family members may be crying and not looking their best, but Knight isn't interested in capturing images of their faces in that moment. It's everybody else there in attendance--friends from the office, relatives who've traveled long distances--and all the small loving gestures and tender moments going unnoticed that should be documented, he says. "A good funeral photographer has to learn to be invisible. You have to know where to stand. You can't use a flash. It's a very delicate thing." Two to three weeks later, Knight presents the family with an 8X8" book of photos he has created. "They look at it and thank me through their tears," Knight says. "I give them a healing record they can keep and browse through forever."
Photo by Duane Knight
Photo by Duane Knight
As a freelancer photographer for "Gospel Today" magazine, Knight photographed the funerals of numerous famous gospel singers including Bishops Walter Hawkins and G.E. Patterson. Upon taking some particularly excellent photos of his own uncle's funeral in 2008 and turning them into a book, it occurred to Knight that he had a pretty good business concept. Thus, the Brooklyn-based firm Between-the-Dash Photography was born. Knight has package rates; coverage of a simple wake or viewing starts at $750. For more information, write betweenthedashphotography@gmail.com. Funeral and post-mordem photos were vitally important to the American grieving process from around 1840 through the Victorian period until the late 1920s. Knight strongly feels he is modernizing a tradition that deserves greater respect. Let me know how you feel about this, and what your experiences with funeral photography have been.