Photographers wanted in Cologne / Bonn area of Germany ?

[Dave289]

I have just found out about this wonderful organisation.

As the title suggests, I am a photographer living just south of Cologne and Bonn in Germany, and wondered if you are looking for any photographers in this area ??

Best regards,

Dave Butcher.

[Vicki]

Hi Dave,

If you click on the banner at the top of the page it will take you to our main site. Click on the red 'find a photographer' button and enter in your country information and it will tell you who else is in your area . . .

Welcome to NILMDTS!!! If you have any questions this forum is a GREAT place to find answers!!!

[Dave289]

Hi Dave,

If you click on the banner at the top of the page it will take you to our main site. Click on the red 'find a photographer' button and enter in your country information and it will tell you who else is in your area . . .

Welcome to NILMDTS!!! If you have any questions this forum is a GREAT place to find answers!!!

I guess I didn't word my question very well !! I had already seen that there were three other photographers registered in Germany, but wanted to know if there was any call for another photographer in this region ?

The reason why I asked is because I had already contacted directly four local hospitals that specialise in treating terminally ill children, and was told in every case that it was a "bizarre and morbid offer to photograph dying children .... if the parents were that mentally ill, they could contact and commission a photographer themselves, but the hospitals could not condone or support such an act in any way" !! I guess the Germans simply have a much colder and sterile outlook on life (and death).

I could also offer my services as a photographer in Dubai, since I spend a fair amount of time there every year !! I will also contact the specialist hospitals when I am next over there, to see if I can help them out.

[Vicki]

Sorry about the misunderstanding Dave!

Headquarters would have to sift through all their records to see if we have ever done any sessions in your area. If we haven't it doesn't mean that there isn't a call for our services tho. You'd be surprise how many US hospitals have had similar responses to what we offer but after meeting, seeing our work and understanding better what we do they tend to turn things around.

Do you have any of our brochures to show the hospital staff. We generally contact either the nursing managers, breavement counselors, chaplains, etc.

Also, we are not invited as guests of the hospital but as guests of the parents. Maybe you could talk to a counselor or social worker at the hospital and explain that what we offer is just another tool to help grieving parents. Many times (especially when the parents know they are going to deliver a baby that won't live) once the parents have our information they WANT us to be there to photograph them and their baby. Many of our sessions can come from the social workers or grief counselors that have first contact with the families prior to birth.

We don't often do sessions for terminally ill children ( some NILMDTS photographers do this more than others) and if you are approaching that hospital you might need a different presentation . . . at our local Children's Hospital we call them "life" sessions and offer to take photos of the kids before they reach a point where they cannot leave their beds or they are in the process of dying . . . getting portraits with the family outdoors or around the hospital where the child is more lively and vibrant (even tho terminal) might be a more acceptable way to get the hospital on board.
There is an organization here called Soulumination and you might want to look at their website for how they work with terminal children and photography.
http://soulumination.org/home.html

As for babies that are born still or pass inutero you should try to meet with the nursing managers of the labor and delivery departments to show them what we do and bring them brochures.
Ask them if they take photos of the baby for the families and if they do show them what a difference having a professional photographer do the images can make, especially with retouching fragile skin and bruising.
Mention that we have professional digital retouchers that can make beautiful images from even the most extreme damage to skin and skull distortion tha can come from babies that pass inutero . . .
Just a few thoughts . . . don't know if that helps at all . . .

[Kirk Kief]

Dave,
To answer your question, YES, we always need more photographers in every part of Germany, England, U.S., and all points between. Since this is voluntary work, the more photographers in any given area, the better. That helps to spread out the work flow once an area gets busy.
To begin the process for you to join us, all you need to do is to go to our main website and click on the Photographer Area, then click on Join our network. Fill out our application, then give us a little time. Be sure to include your website. It can take us 4-6 weeks to process your application. If you have any further questions, feel free to send me an email.