Estonia's only full-time funeral photographer hopes to keep the custom going
Maaleht caught up with Estonia's only full-time funeral photographer, Joanna Raudhein.
Raudhein said she believes the fading custom - of taking a final photo of families of the deceased, beside the casket, often open, should be revived for the sake of future generations.
Raudhein was 14 when she first photographed a funeral, in this case her great-aunt's and now, almost 15 years later, she recalled "since I had a camera, it somehow felt natural."
Photos are also important for those who cannot attend the funeral for one reason or another — for example elderly people who cannot come due to health problems — she noted, and also for those who are in attendance but due to emotions and the grieving process, may not remember the event as well without the photographic record.
As for the photographer, they have to be "on" at all times, and also have to be sure that no one, least of all the deceased, can be clearly seen in her published portfolio.
Despite its somber nature, Raudhein also touched on the cut-throat nature of the funeral business – in one anecdote she recounted, a colleague in the sector even intentionally hid Raudhein's business cards, which Raudhein had placed at a crematorium.
As it happens, this underhand business practice did not pay off – Raudhein no longer needs to actively promote and advertise her services, since she has found the best promotion is word of mouth.
One professional quirk of Raudhein's is browsing death notices in newspapers while in the store: "It may seem like I'm looking for work, but that's not it," she chuckled, adding she is rather more interested in how many expressions of sympathy a person receives and what their loved ones write about them.
Her first big break came five years ago, when she covered for a colleague, going full-time when that colleague changed track.
Raudhein said that while in the beginning she approached documenting funerals as if this was a type of journalistic reportage, she now tries more to tell a story and convey the emotions of that day, adding that while those emotions cannot fail to make an impact on her too, she has grown accustomed to it over time.
"Sadness is a natural part of life; you have to learn to live with it," she said.
The full Maaleht piece is here.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte
