my mother recently passed away and a family member started taking pictures of her at the rosary or visitation.

Question

it was an open casket, is it me or was that kinda creepy and inappropriate ????

Answer 1

By modern standards, it would seem creepy and inappropriate to take pictures of the deceased, but such an action has a long-standing tradition in American culture. Photographing the dead has often been a way of simply taking pictures of a loved one at an important time in their lives, so to speak...death, though much of the person is gone IS still a part of life. It is a closure, and so some people may feel somewhat compelled to record this in some way. This doesn't make it right or wrong, and I think ultimately, it depends on the stance that the closest members of the family take in regard to this. There is, after all, a macabre element to it, but if the actions of the photographer in question were at least indicative of some form of discretion, then I don't see how there'd be too much to worry about.

Also it depends on whether or not this person actually has photographs of the deceased person while still alive. Maybe it was someone who was close to your mother, but had no pictures of her?

Also, though I don't know you or your mother, I'd like to extend my condolences.

Answer 2

I did that when my sister died and it was done when my cousin died..for my sister the only reason i did it was to comfort my little cousin..(she was 9 at the time)she wanted a picture of her and her casket(she had put a teddy bear in there and wanted the picture to include that)I think as something to remember her....she was pretty young at the time....but i didn't do it when a bunch of people were around...got there early so i could do it...(my other sister probably would have thought it was freaky)well i thought it was a wierd request too....but different people deal with grief in different ways.Me personally i would not want to remember the person(for last picture ever taken to be one in there casket!)I would want to remember them as they were alive...yeah if they wanted a picture they could have choose a more appropriate time to come and take one(like getting there early)so yeah i think it was in appropiate if the family member was doing it during the funeral or when a lot of people were around..

Answer 3

Eww! That is creepy....maybe they have a 'thing' for dead bodies? Or perhaps, they're right....they didn't have any photos of the deceased and just wanted something to remember them by? But I can't imagine how good the dearly departed would have looked in those photos.

I can remember going through my grandmother's photo album years ago and there were pictures (about 5 8X10's) of my great grandfather in his casket...I couldn't believe my eyes...My grandmother said that it was traditional to take the last photo of your loved one and she then said that when she was a little girl it wasn't uncommon to POSE them like they were alive (i.e. in a chair with a book on their lap or holding a bouquet of flowers) to take the photo. Now that's bizarre!!

Personally I'd rather remember them how they were not as I last saw them.

Answer 4

It does seem weird and creepy but death is anyway. It's not inappropriate, sometimes people have this idea that people are beautiful in death. That they are peaceful and pain free. They want to have their last memory of her . My mom had an open casket when she died, I personally don't think anyone looks that terrific when their dead. I keep my memory of my mom when she was alive and what an awesome woman she was.

Answer 5

yes it is creepy, but a lot of people do it.
My Mom had a whole photo album of all her dead relatives laying in their coffins. The last photo in that book, before we burned it was of her in her coffin.
I think the concept of this practice is to feel closer to the loved one who has passed. In the case of my Mom, she used the album to help her remember these people. But she always cried when she looked through it. She was mourning their death and the loss of them in her daily life. For her, death was a tragic event.
I believe that grief is a selfish emotion, but one which we all must go through in order to put closure to the passing of the loved one.
Once past the grief, we should celebrate the life of that person, not mourn their death.
My condolences on the death of your Mom. Please know that you have not lost your Mom, you have gained another Spirit Guardian. She can still be contacted through your prayers and dreams.

Answer 6

The New York Times loves to print pictures of dead American soldiers in Iraq.

Answer 7

i am very sorry about the loss of your mom ! i to have lost both my parents at a very young age and to me to take a picture of the dead is unusual but i think whatever it takes to get a person through the loss of one they loved so much may be be weird to some but it may be what this person feels they nee to have or do to get threw it all !! everyone deals in a different way and no one should look down their nose at another person way of dealing with grief ! in my own case i sent a can of beer and a deck of cards with my dad so he would have his favorite things with him when he got to the other side lol ! but whatever gets u threw go for it ! again i am sorry for your loss!!

Answer 8

It's been done before. Don't make a big deal out of it.
What's creepy to one person is perfectly normal and
okay to another so just forget it and move forward.

Answer 9

Creepy to you, but obviously not to the person taking the picture. I have heard of many instances where people take pictures of their dead- one last way to have a visual momento of their loved one.

Answer 10

I have been to several funerals that pictures were taken of the deceased. I thought it was inappropriate, but I guess I was wrong.