By Frank Calidonna

The main method of recording the art of a cemetery is photography. Unlike all of the other methods photography is totally non-invasive. You may photograph a stone hundreds of times and not touch the stone once. A camera (film, video, or digital) is the only way to faithfully record a statue or deep relief work. That alone makes it a valuable tool.

You may photograph for record or display purposes. You should have this settled in your mind before starting out. A simple 3 ½" x 5" color or black and white print is sufficient for record. If you plan on showing your photographs to groups then slides will be needed. Large display or framed prints will require color or black and white negative film. If you think you will need both slides and prints I will go against conventional wisdom and recommend using color negative film. You may select the pictures you need for slides and copy them to slide film or have slides made. This is an easier and less expensive way than starting with slide film. Slide films are more difficult to use and more expensive to print. You may also use a color negative to get a black and white print when this is needed. Color negative films are the best all around; the easiest to obtain and can be processed almost anywhere at reasonable cost.

If you only need high quality black and white prints then start with black and white film. Color negative film is great for the occasional black and white photo, but nothing beats black and white film for black and white prints. Two of the finest black and white films are Kodak T-Max 100 and T-Max 400. If large, high quality color prints are your goal choose the slower films. Kodacolor Gold 100 and Fuji HG 100 are my main recommendations in color negative. They are super high quality films, available and processed everywhere. Large 30" x 40" enlargements from 35-mm negatives are possible. Slide films are generally obtainable at camera stores. I highly recommend Kodak Ektachrome 100, Fujichrome 100 or Fuji Velvia (not a cheese). If there are old timers out there screaming Kodachrome, go for it, but I think most people will have better success with the three recommended films.

A photograph for the record should be permanent. If you are planning to donate pictures to a museum, historical society, or The Association for Gravestone Studies then permanence or archival quality is very important. Here is where black and white has the edge. A properly processed black and white negative or print, properly stored in polypropylene materials will have a life of more than one hundred years. Color materials at this point have a much shorter life. Kodachrome does have a long life, but you have to store it in the dark it and you cannot show those slides, as the projector light will ruin the color dyes in the film. The recommended slide films stand up much better to projector bulbs. Archival usually means a black and white print or negative. This may change with digital technology, but for now black and white = permanence.

Most of you use a 35-mm camera. The only camera I would not recommend for serious recording would be any camera that does not allow attaching a PC cord to fire a flash. Many of today’s very modern cameras do not allow you to fire a flash unit off of the camera or only with an expensive hookup. You may find the best camera for this purpose is a bare bones mechanical 35-mm such as a Pentax K-1000 or similar model. The main thing you want is a built-in meter, a PC (polarized connection) cord outlet, and a tripod socket.

The bulk of your work will be with the normal 50-mm lens. Some cemeteries are quite crowded and a 28-mm wide-angle lens can be useful. Some monuments are very tall, so a 90-mm to 150-mm telephoto can be useful. Since you are not photographing moving objects, slower less expensive lenses will still give the highest quality.

Now for the recommendation you don’t want to hear -- A TRIPOD. Sorry, but it is necessary. You can’t do this work well without one. I normally tell my students to choose a tripod using the "Oh, God!" test. Go to a store that has many tripods. Pick each one up starting with the smallest. When you pick one up and you immediately think, "Oh, God, this is heavy", you have found your tripod.

Seriously, a flimsy tripod puts your equipment at risk and will produce fuzzy pictures to boot. Sturdy is the word you want when selecting one. Tall doesn’t really matter that much. Sturdy and low are important. To be really useful you need a tripod that will get your camera down a few inches from the ground. I will recommend without any hesitation the Bogen line with any of their quick release heads. I like their 3047 head best. I think quick release heads are wonders of convenience, but make sure they are heavy duty. Remember to always purchase a cable release to use with the camera. This prevents vibration, which is the main reason for using the tripod.

You will need a small flash unit with lots of power. The Vivitar 283 is the professional standard for price/performance. It has a guide number of 120 (very powerful) and can be purchased for around $60. Whatever you use it must be workable with a PC cord and not just from a camera hot shoe. You should have a light stand for your flash and a means of attaching it. I have found the Bogen studio clamps for attaching flash units to be strong and inexpensive. If your stand is lightweight you may want a sandbag to weight it down. Of course if you go with a friend you won’t need the stand or clamp.

Finishing your list of supplies is a Kodak Gray Card for exposure determination, an old white sheet to use as a reflector, and a Swiss army knife and some electrical tape for last minute repairs. Also useful is a waterproof ground cloth to lie on, a couple of soft brooms or brushes for cleaning, some grass shears for trimming, garbage bag to carry your litter, and a pack horse, friend or long suffering spouse to carry all of this stuff. Carry what you feel you need and are able to carry. Over the years I have modified golf carts, luggage carriers, and kid’s wagons to bring all of this with me. Different terrain requires different tools, but they do make it easier.

There are two basic cemetery photographs - tablet stones or statuary. Each requires a different technique. The majority of stones are tablets with relief or incised carvings. A typical one hundred year old marble tablet with incised writing, possible relief carving, with worn lettering and gray to black pollution stains will test your skills. These can be 18 inches and higher and approximately 2 inches thick. When you have determined that a stone is interesting and/or important enough to photograph, the following is the procedure.

Light is everything in photography. Check the position of the stone. If it is facing east or west you may not need the flash equipment. You want a raking light coming from the side of a stone to make the lettering readable. An east/west stone will have that light either early morning or late afternoon. If the stone is in the shade or it isn’t a sunny day then you will need your flash equipment.

Trim the grass down to the base of the stone. Brush off any debris and clean off whatever you can from the stone. Do not try to wash the stone and NEVER use a harsh or metal brush on the stone. You will seriously damage it. Remember this is a piece of real art. You certainly wouldn’t go into a museum with a bottle of 409, so don’t do it here.

Take your camera and fill the frame with the stone. Be careful not to cut off the top or bottom. Note where you are and then set up your tripod. A tripod that can sit low to the ground is of great importance. You want your camera to be level with the middle of the stone to prevent distortion. The Bogen tripods are able to get right to the ground. You may need your ground cloth, as you may be lying on your stomach at this point.

To use the flash set your light stand or friend directly to the side of the stone and about 30 degrees above and 15 degrees to the front (see drawings). A strong sidelight will create dark shadows in worn lettering. Many times this will show lettering on a stone that is unreadable to the eye. The hard shadow will make relief images really stand out. Attach your PC cord to the camera and the flash. Since the flash will be six to eight feet (or more) away from the camera you will need a PC extension cord. These are available at camera stores and are very inexpensive. Be careful in wet situations. The three or six volts of battery power required to charge a capacitor to fire the flash can give you quite a jolt. They will definitely jump-start your pacemaker. Never hold onto the cord when firing the flash.

Exposure is calculated with the guide number of the flash. Your camera has a shutter setting for flash, usually 1/60^th of a second. The aperture, or f-stop, is calculated by dividing the guide number into the distance of the flash to the stone. If the flash is 6 feet away and the guide number is 48 then, 48/6=8. Set the aperture at f8. Since most of these stones are about the same size you will find that WHEN USING THE FLASH the aperture setting is generally the same all the time. Take your camera out and test the exposure before you go for serious pictures. Get a working procedure and follow it. Write down the procedure. Even old pros use check lists.

If you are not using the flash then use your camera meter. Hold the Kodak Gray Card in the same light as the stone about 10" in front of the lens and turned about 45 degrees to the sun. Read the meter and set the shutter and aperture. Then expose the picture. The theory is that if the gray card is exposed properly all other shades will expose properly too. It works with color too.

Statuary is next. These are often large. The basic rules are the same. You want light to come from the side, about 30-45 degrees, to produce a nice shadow. This is rarely the case as cemeteries with statuary rarely follow the east/west pattern. Check the statue in your camera. Is it well defined? Does it have any shadow or none? Is it backlit? Watch for trees and other statuary spoiling a composition. You may have to move around a bit to get the best photograph. If the statue is tall you may want to move back or bring a stepladder, but do not try to get to "eye level" with a statue. When you are some distance to the side of a tall statue look at it. You will notice it leans forward. They are usually carved with a perspective so that correct viewing is from below.

One important point; color film does not need shadows as much as black and white. Slide film needs very little shadow. Too much will ruin the picture. A hazy overcast day is much better for shooting color. Black and white by its nature needs shadow to make an interesting picture. You may add shadow with the flash or subtract shadow with the large white sheet as a reflector. A bright sunny day may mean bringing two friends to hold the sheet for filling shadows. Remember we want high quality photographs. Even dull days are fine when you have your own light source.

In summary, flat, tablet stones need very strong sidelight with hard dark shadows with black and white or color film. The camera should be at mid level of the stone. Statues need some shadow for black and white and weak shadows for color film. Focus very carefully. Always use a tripod and cable release for razor sharp pictures. Keep records to identify each stone and its location. Please be free in sharing your photographs with Historical Societies and, of course, The Association of Gravestone Studies. I will be happy to answer any questions. I can be reached at the following address: frank.calidonna@worldnet.att.net