This post is part of my Cemetery Appreciation Month series.
As someone who runs a year-round Halloween blog, you might make a few assumptions off me right away. Some of them are wrong, like the fact that many people think I'm a horror movie expert.
(I'm not. At all.)
But others are correct, like how much I love cemeteries. Writing Spooky Little Halloween has given me the chance to explore that love more over the last five years, and one of my favorite things to do with a free afternoon is to find a new local cemetery and wander it with my camera.
Exploring a cemetery for photos is such a great way to learn more about them, and I'm sure you're like me and want the perfect shot for Instagram. I still have a lot of room to grow when it comes to photography, so I recruited my friend - and professional photographer - Sonja to share some of her best tips for taking amazing photos in cemeteries. Keep reading for more!
Cemetery Photography Tips
By Sonja Quintero, squint-photography.com
There is something alluring about cemeteries. They often make my heart race, but it’s not why you think. It’s not from fear or foreboding. Quite the opposite. It’s their quiet, solemn beauty that stirs me and turns my face feels flush with excitement. The ancient, stone sentinels with their haunting serenity, absolutely thrill me. Always have, and I suppose always will.
My interest in photography started while working as an interior designer. Combined with my knowledge of architecture and love for all things spooky, I naturally gravitated towards cemeteries as some of my first photographic subjects. I think cemeteries make perfectly divine subjects to photograph!
So if you’re anything like me, and I assume you are if you’re reading Miranda’s spooky little blog, you might be “dying” to give cemetery photography a try! Like all types of photography, there are many ways to approach it. Here are a few tips that I recommend. And actually, these tips can apply to more than cemeteries…
TIP #1: Try starting with some black and white.
If you know a bit about film, try some monochrome to capture a solemn, vintage vibe. If you prefer digital, lots of cameras (and phones) come with a black and white setting or try some settings on a photo editing software that you’re familiar with. Keeping it simple will not only give your images an old, eerie beauty, but it will also help you notice how the shadows play across tombstones, creating lots of drama and interest.
Extra tip: to get the most dramatic shadows, try to shoot in the early morning hours or in the early evening on a sunny day.
Tip #2: Details! Focus on the little things.
The vines overtaking a tombstone, the spider crawling up a statue or the aged hands of an ancient mourner. Capture the dirt-encrusted etchings in the stones and the flowers left by a grieving family. Capturing the little things can make for an interesting story. The devil is in the details, as they say.
Tip #3: Add in some color.
Starting with black and white is always a good idea. Like I said, it helps you focus on shapes, shades and composition – all the things that help make up a great photo.But once you’ve gotten comfortable with that, have a look at some color. You don’t see it done as much in cemetery photography…that’s why I’m all for it! Who says all cemeteries have to be gloomy and monotone? Not me!
Tip #4: Go bold
After trying some color, why not go bold! Add effects, add filters, go wild with it and try something new. Try out some of your phone's image editing tools, oversaturate red to give it that bloody look. Cooling down the color tones, such as adding more blue and green, can transform a sunny day into a gloomy, overcast one. If you have some skills with Photoshop, try layering your photos with images of light flares or marble textures to add an ethereal or gritty feel.
Tip #5: Capture the full picture
Once you’ve really looked and photographed the details, don’t forget to go wide to capture the overall feel of the cemetery. Cemeteries often have beautiful landscaping on the grounds. I love exploring when the fall foliage explodes with color, but winter and early spring are also great times to capture some fog among the stones.
Exploring cemeteries is always fun and interesting, whether they are in your backyard (lucky you!) or halfway across the world. So, if you’re a photo novice, or just a spooky-loving, grave-hugging gal like me, these tips will certainly improve not only your photography skills in general but also broaden your appreciation for the solemn beauty that cemeteries have to offer.
Sonja Quintero, owner of Squint Photography in Dallas, is an avid traveler, a lover of great architecture and obsessed with Halloween! Check out her work here at squint-photography.com and see more of her cemetery photography on fineartamerica.com.
