I photographed the funeral of a 9-11 victim, a military officer at the
Pentagon. To photograph funerals at Arlington National Cemetery you
must have permission of the family so they knew I was there. Even with
that, after the main service a high-ranking officer walked over and
asked that I stop taking photos. I did, the funeral was pretty much
over and it was near time to leave anyway.
The widow saw the photos in the newspaper and called me thanking me for the pictures. The whole day for her was a blur and she did not remember much of the service or who was there. She asked for more photos so I printed a few and gave her a CD of my take. She thanked me profusely and said she was putting the CD in her safety deposit box so she would never lose it.
At the 1-year anniversary at Arlington Cemetery I stopped her and introduced myself as the families were leaving. She came back later to talk, gave me a hug and thanked me again.
Covering grief, loss, etc. at a breaking news event does not bother me. It is what is happening there, it's important, it tells a story. However, I always feel a bit uncomfortable at funerals. Yes you are there with permission, but it is a very private moment you are being let in on. But this instance gives me faith that we are doing some good at those times.
The widow saw the photos in the newspaper and called me thanking me for the pictures. The whole day for her was a blur and she did not remember much of the service or who was there. She asked for more photos so I printed a few and gave her a CD of my take. She thanked me profusely and said she was putting the CD in her safety deposit box so she would never lose it.
At the 1-year anniversary at Arlington Cemetery I stopped her and introduced myself as the families were leaving. She came back later to talk, gave me a hug and thanked me again.
Covering grief, loss, etc. at a breaking news event does not bother me. It is what is happening there, it's important, it tells a story. However, I always feel a bit uncomfortable at funerals. Yes you are there with permission, but it is a very private moment you are being let in on. But this instance gives me faith that we are doing some good at those times.
George Bridges, in a SportsShooter thread.
That remind me when I photographed the funeral of RCMP officer Mark Rancourt, killed during an ambush in Haiti. We (the photographers) were in front of the Church, on the right. Just between the widow and the priest. At one point, my camera was pointing right to the widow. In my viewfinder, I saw her turn her head and look straight at me. It felt really weird inside. I pointed my camera down. I will never know what was in her head at that very moment. Was she angry? Was she happy to see us there? I will never know.