27 Answers

Much better to remember them as they were,ALIVE!

country bumpkin

Yes, I agree.

country bumpkin

Tommyh: Iistened to the Wallop song by T. Steele.it's funny. He sure has a nice smile.

country bumpkin

HA! I Good to listen to with my morning coffee. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HptmXm956oI

country bumpkin

LOL

When my dad passed away in 2001, I took a picture of him at the funeral (after everyone had left the church and before the pallbearers were summoned to carry him to the hearse. 
I would never take a photo of anyone who is not an immediate family member. 
I don't know why I felt compelled to have the photo, but it was important to me at the time.
Had someone else walked up with a flash, I would've felt them way out of line.

country bumpkin

Thank you for your honesty. I can't sit here and say that I would never do this myself. It's none of my business so if you don't answer back I'll understand, but, I am curious to know if you view it at times? I wonder if it brings some sort of comfort you can't receive from looking at a photo when he was alive; because what you see is a body that is no longer enduring the pain and suffering while they were alive-they look at peace.

I think it's a personal choice.I certainly would not dream of doing it. I remember picture were taken of dead soldiers on return from Vietnam but I think that is a different matter.

I prefer remembering that person in better times. Although some dead people look better dead than when they were alive.

country bumpkin

I think they all look like wax dolls. Very freaky!

If you want to....yuck...

country bumpkin

It is a little strange.

indeed very tacky.. never heard of it being done..

country bumpkin

I think it is being done a lot more than we realize.

I don't even understand why we can view the body in the casket, let alone take a photo.

country bumpkin

During the the viewing hours of the deceased the casket remains open for people to see and say their final goodbyes. Maybe I shoul not have limited my question to only while the dead or in the caskets. What I should have expressed is taking photos of the deceased at any point of time after they have expired such as if they died in their favorite recliner at home, would you take pictures of them before the body is picked up and taken to the morgue?

Yvonne57

country bumpkin, no, I wouldn't take a picture of my dead mom in her recliner or in the garden. That's odd to me.

country bumpkin

ynonne: I agree it would be strange to do this.

Vinny, My husband was a funeral director (office only) He says that people take photographs all the time. 

I think there should be a law against taking pictures of the deceased but there isn't. A surveillance camera wouldn't work because families wouldn't like being watched while they were grieving. It would cost a fortune to have someone watch over the deceased hours and hours a day. I don't see any answer except cremation.

country bumpkin

Maybe this is a subject adults should have with there parents and spouses should discuss with there significant others before death occurs.Some people may give close family members permission to take photos of them or they can tell there family members absolutely not and hope that family will respect their wishes when they die. I don't know, just a thought! I like the new hat but I can't look at it very long or I'll get dizzy! ha-ha.

we took pictures of my deceased mom 43 years ago. when my dad remarried and pssed on himself, his wife would not give me the pictures of my mom or her bible i would love to see her again. i dont remember what she looked like

country bumpkin

I'm very sorry to hear that your step mom is/was such a "B" towards you. I can't stand to see step parents treat their step children so cruely. It is usually only because they are jealous and hate the ex spouse so they take their animosity out on the children or they are just jealous of the children period. There are some psychotic step parents out there!

country bumpkin

He means after his dad passed away and not that he pissed on himself. Though he very well may of pissed himself if he regreted marrying his second wife. LOL

My Niece is a photographer and as a courtesy and way to "Pay Up" for her community, she is called upon by the hospital or Funeral Home at least once a week to take photos of deceased babies, stillborn, SIDS babies, etc.  She says it may sound morbid but in a few months when the grief has passed some, the parents are grateful for those pictures of their babies that have gone to heaven.  She made it seem right to me and a blessing for the parents.

country bumpkin

I saw a photo of a dead baby that a grandpa was carrying in his wallet. I'm sure it was the only picture any of the babys loved ones had of him/her. Without having time to build any memories or mental images to remember what this baby looked like, I can see why they would want to have a picture to keep the memory alive. ( Not trying to be cute or funny with that last sentence.)

Yvonne57

mycatsmom, it was always done with the parents permission. Never would she take it upon herself to snap a picture of every deceased child from the hospital. It's just something she does for free for the family only. She gets called by the funeral home or hospital because they have her number and it's a courtesy to the parents not to have to figure out who does it or not.

country bumpkin

I understood exactly what your niece does by your comment. I'm sorry some of what we say is misunderstood by some people. I guess you and I get ourselves in the same boat sometimes with our answers.*~*

I bet that even today, a month later, some people are reading this and they are also p...ing...Well, never mind, you know what I mean.   hahahahaha

country bumpkin

Are they still p...ing 2 years later? LOL
HA! I just reread your answer, I think I get it...People are a little miffed by my question and they do not know what to say, is this what you mean?

Ducky

Another two years later, I have no idea what I was talking about. See, nothing has changed. LOL!!

country bumpkin

LOL...I know, right! :)

I took a picture of my dad in the casket. He looked nice. He looked like his ususal self. My girlriend showed me her scrap book and it had pictures of both her mom and dad when they were laid out. ( not at the same time  )  I don't think there was a pic of her son when he died of a drug overdose.  

country bumpkin

I wonder if the reason she has no photos of her son is because she has not come to terms with his death yet. The death of our parents is natural and expected but not the death of a child.

Yvonne57

mycatsmom - I wrote you a comment above that the family always requests that a picture be taken of their deceased child. My Niece would never, ever do it on her own. See above. Sorry to hurt your sensibilities. regards/yvonne57

country bumpkin

Mycatsmom: I know you were not intentionally trying to be funny,but, I had to just pick myself up off the floor because I was laughing so hard at one of your comments. You responded to Carmaxable by telling him you did not understand about his dad "pissing" on himself and getting married all in the same breath. What he was saying, that after his dad remarried and then "passed"(died) on himself, his step mom would not give him his mothers bible.The situation with carmaxable is not funny but your misunderstanding of what he said is hilarious. Thanks for the good laugh!

No we all morn in diffent ways,

why not  the Bible says death is part of life

country bumpkin

Just not the part of life most people probably want to remember, I think.

"Why morbid You mean they looked that way in life grey not "Human realy BIG NO look at photos of them ,and see what I mean?

country bumpkin

I think I understand what you are saying. The person is just not there/ the soul is gone so it's like taking a picture of an empty shell.

Latinos love to do that and I think it is pretty sick.

country bumpkin

Interesting! This reminds me, yesterday I was driving around inside the cemetary waiting for my pizza order to get ready. I don't know why, but there is one section seperate from the rest of the cemetary named Catholic Haven, The cemetary is pretty mellow as most cemetaries go, but this one particular area was extremely colorful! These graves are decorated with Happy Birthday signs, bright flowers, flags, photographs, yard decorations etc..And some of these items all exist on one grave. What's up with all this?

your right its not pissed its passed  ha ha ha  that is funny

I wouldn't want to look back on a family member/friend death pictures/videos as remembering him/her in happier times. When someone dies, it is hard in the beginning to accept. You go through a mourning period. That image and smell of all those flowers at the church/funeral home seems like it will last forever. But it don't!  As time goes on, we are able to speak of the person who passed with fond memeries. You would say something like, "do you remember when he/she did this"?  

country bumpkin

I understand. The fond memories are what gets us through some of these difficult times.

When my Dad passed away i went to the undertakers a few times to see him but he didnt look like  my  Dad. if that makes sense.I wouldnt have wanted photos of him like that and at the time would probably have lynched anyone who suggested it.When i arranged my own funeral i made it quite clear i am not going in the obituary column of the local paper either.I think my late husband put his finger on it when he said"dont let people stare at me when im dead".He died in ICU and though we(me and my son)were with him when he died we didnt go back into the ward after the machines had been disconnected though his children from his first marriage did.at least WE respected his wishes.11 years down the line and i still resent the fact that they didnt

country bumpkin

Thank you for sharing this with us.

country bumpkin

Not a problem.

CB what a terribly sad story,i really appreciate your honesty.With me ,a different situation.My late husband was quite a bit older than me and as such his kids were closer to my age than i was to his.He was also an alcoholic(thats what ultimately killed him).Hed tried to keep in touch with them but they werent interested until that last few days when the hospital staff told us this time he wasnt coming home.Thank you again for your openess,take care xxx

Everyone handles death differently. I believe if having a picture comforts you take one.

country bumpkin

Thank you and welcome to aka.

No, not morbid but if you feel this way in case one of your family members is in the casket you should let the viewers how do you feel abou this before hand.

I would rather remember them alive than dead..>>>>>>>><<<<<<<<..

country bumpkin

My uncle died night before last and my mother emailed me of a pic of him in the hospital a day before he passed and I wish she wouldn't have because he looked horrible and this will be the last image I'll remember of him. I would not have minded so much if the pic was of him in the casket because he would have been spiffied up a bit.

country bumpkin

Same here, Terry. My aunt and I stayed all night in the hospital with my grandmother and we were both present when she died.

My brother in law passed on four weeks ago. He was my wife's brother she wanted to go and see him with his wife, and I went with them. It didn't look like him at all, I've seen others before my mother, mother in law and father in law, I found they all looked like a younger version of them.

I certainly wouldn't take a photograph of any one who had passed on, I think that is distasteful , and an intrusion.

One should do what they & their family feels comfortable with.

i see no harm whatsoever if take photos of your loved ones in casket they look lovely and look at and just sleeping