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Any tips for shooting a hospital surgery?
Jann Hendry, Photographer
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Thousand Oaks | CA | USA | Posted: 10:51 PM on 08.14.08 |
| ->> I'm going to photograph a hospital surgery. Any ideas, suggestions on how to cover this? Not too graphic on the comments, please... |
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Josh Merwin, Photographer
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New york | NY | USA | Posted: 11:05 PM on 08.14.08 |
->> Stay out of the doctor's way and watch out for the sterile table! I shot a kidney transplant and I was surprised at ow calm the doctors were and one of them said, "I don't know why you want to shoot this, it's a very routine surgery" I was surprised, obviously they approach it from a different perspective. It's something they see everyday, not us or the public. The blood didn't bother me at all and everyone was very nice and helpful. I was allowed to come and go whenever I wanted. This was after being told by the pr person that once I left the operating room I wouldn't be allowed back in. She obviously hadn't conferred with the doctors, who were much more helpful. Email me if you have any more specific questions and you can see the project (gallery and multimedia piece )at my website, http://www.joshmerwin.com. I hope this helped!
Josh |
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Tom Story, Photographer
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Tempe | AZ | USA | Posted: 11:20 PM on 08.14.08 |
->> I did some OR photography back in the Jurassic period using film. I remember the big light that they use over the table is really bright, by several stops over the ambient.
Given the dynamic range of modern digital, I don't think you'll have much problems. Much easier getting an exposure and color balance. A high vantage point (stop stool or the like) may come in hand.
Down in Nicaragua, we taped slaved SB 24s to the tile walls of the OR, which bounced off the ceilings and walls taking care of the contrast problem. |
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Erik Markov, Photographer
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Kokomo | IN | | Posted: 11:24 PM on 08.14.08 |
->> Jann,
go to my page, down to my transplant gallery. There's only one shot from the surgery but it will give you some idea of what its like.
Every surgery is a little different, the light is a little different depending on what the operation is like. That lung transplant, there was a brighter spot light to brighten up the chest area so they could see to operate on the lungs. As you can see tight shots the exposure's going to be greatly different than if you're shooting a wide shot of the room.
Like Josh said check in with the docs about specifics, pr people are pretty much useless. Depending on the surgery, you might not know who the doc is beforehand. Don't know if you've been conferring with them or not. With my project, the doctor was whoever was on call the day that the lungs came available.
Depending on how long the surgery is you definitely want to see if the surgery staff will get ya a stool to sit on during slow periods if you're shooting the whole surgery start to finish.
And most surgeons and nurses are great people, they'll show you as much as you want to see for the most part. From standard to really squeamish |
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Rick Rowell, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Vista | CA | USA | Posted: 11:50 PM on 08.14.08 |
| ->> Hey Jann, I photographed open heart surgery on a 5 year old child a few years ago for St. Vincent Medical Center. First thing, clean all of your camera equipment, bodies and lenses throughly with Isopropyl alcohol. I use medical gauze and Q tips to clean the outside of the camera (any drug store will have them). Also make sure your camera straps are clean as well. Let the surgeon know that you have done this. You may have to do it again just before interring the operating room. The surgeon placed me on a step stool just over the anesthesiologist's head. This was a great angle to see directly into the chest area. I shot mostly close up with the 70 to 200mm zoom. Watching that little heart beating was amazing. Be prepared to be struck with wonder. Be aware of changing exposures. The area being worked on will be under very bright light compared to the rest of the room. If they let you move around just be mindful of your surroundings and do your best not to bump into anything. They probably won't let you shoot until they have the patient opened up and stable. I'm sure you know the seriousness of the situation, so just be aware, if they tell you to move, you should already be moving before they pronounce the e at the end of the word move. Good luck and have some fun with it. |
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Eric Canha, Photographer
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Brockton | MA | United States | Posted: 11:54 PM on 08.14.08 |
->> Jann,
All of the photographic advise has been great so I won't go into that. Having worked that environment I would tell you to know your limits or at least the tell tales that you may be about to faint / vomit / etc.
The thing that struck me the first time in the OR was the smell. The victim had multiple stab wounds to the belly. The odor that filled the room once the surgeon had the belly open caught me by surprise. The second memorable sensory input was the sounds. If this is your first time in the OR have a plan for excusing yourself if the need arises. You will gain A LOT more respect if you back out gracefully and return than trying tough it out and ending up on the floor.
Cold sweats, ringing ears, spots or stars in your visual field are all indicators that your body is compensating at its limits. Back out catch your breath, clear your head, then if your up to it head back in.
What kind of procedure are you going to photograph? |
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N. Scott Trimble, Photographer
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Lake Oswego | OR | USA | Posted: 12:35 AM on 08.15.08 |
->> I love shooting in the OR. I was fortunate enough to shoot one of the first chip implant surgeries for Parkinson's Disease where they put an electrode in the brain to counteract the misfiring neurons. It was an eight hour surgery, I was hit in the face by a piece of the subject's skull as the surgeon was drilling the hole in his head, and the patient was talking to me when it happened! TOO WEIRD!!!
He was awake the whole time as they probed his brain, which sounded like your were on a submarine with sonar pinging away. Then they opened his chest to put in the batteries to keep it powered.
I spoke with the surgeon beforehand and got everything cleared and understood before going in. If you do that and familiarize yourself quickly with the surroundings, know where to go, and where not too, you will be fine. The better rapport you have with the OR team, the more likely they will bring you over to show you "Hey, you wanna see this?" |
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Andrew Carpenean, Photographer
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Laramie | WY | USA | Posted: 12:54 AM on 08.15.08 |
->> Jann,
Consider keeping a 100mm macro with you. I understand the grossness factor and all, but this lens is considered a standard lens when photographing operations. I photographed an open heart surgery like Rick a few years ago and had the same position to shoot from. Ask before hand how close you can get and slowly work your way into a position you feel comfortable being at while not being in the way.
The lighting will be tricky and so shooting in close will sometimes help keep consistence in exposures. |
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Greg Foster, Photographer
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Atlanta | GA | | Posted: 12:56 AM on 08.15.08 |
->> Check out the work of Max Aguilera-Hellweg, a very good magazine photographer who actually actually went to medical school and became a doctor after photographing a surgery. He still shoots, and has done a book on surgery and the human body. A fascinating story, and very nice work.
http://www.maxaguilerahellweg.com |
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Jeff Keacher, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Stanford | CA | USA | Posted: 1:12 AM on 08.15.08 |
->> As long as you stay out of the sterile field, you should be fine.
I've always found it quite fun to observe surgeries. After the patient is unconscious, the mood becomes more relaxed. They even turn on music sometimes!
I haven't found them to be too strict about what can and cannot be brought into the OR. It seemed like people were always bringing in laptops, phones, and whatnot. You should talk to somebody to find out their expectations, but it seems that a thorough precleaning isn't always necessary. |
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Greg Foster, Photographer
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Atlanta | GA | | Posted: 9:51 AM on 08.15.08 |
| ->> One little factor to be aware of (at least from my experience)- the floor can get a little slippery, with the scrub shoe covers and the various fluids. You don't want to be grasping at things or have arms, hands or cameras flailing around if you lose your balance. |
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Francis Vachon, Photographer
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Quebec | Qc | Canada | Posted: 10:26 AM on 08.15.08 |
->> Any "blue" thing have been sterilized. So don't touch anything that is blue!
And yes, photographing an open heart surgery is one of the most amazing thing that I saw |
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Ryan Kern, Photographer
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Tierra Verde | FL | US | Posted: 6:01 PM on 08.17.08 |
| ->> I'd confirm with the operating doctor that it's okay to use your strobe. In my experience, some will not mind at all, where others may limit you to 4/5 pops. I also agree to bring your 100 macro, that lens gets priceless results. Other than that, wear a few layers of clothes (it'll be 60-ish degrees) and breath through your mouth! |
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Darren Whitley, Photographer
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Maryville | MO | USA | Posted: 11:54 PM on 08.17.08 |
| ->> I photographed gallbladder surgery that was done via laproscopy. The guts can be quite colorful although seeing cauterized smoking tissue is a little strange. During the surgery the Yugoslavian anesthesiologist asked about my film camera. |
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Craig Kohlruss, Photographer
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Fresno | CA | USA | Posted: 12:56 PM on 08.18.08 |
| ->> You might consider shooting RAW to deal with the lighting challenges. And don't touch anything blue (sterile). |
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Marcus Marter, Photographer
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South Bend | IN | United States | Posted: 12:58 PM on 08.18.08 |
| ->> Don't touch anything! |
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Sarah Kiewel, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Gainesville | FL | USA | Posted: 1:10 PM on 08.19.08 |
->> Be careful that your sleeve (even if it's scrubs) or camera strap doesn't touch the sterile field either, or they have to re-sterilize everything (not cool). I photograph in the OR often and it can be very interesting. If you get squeamish it can help to keep photographing and focus on composition instead of thinking about the fact that it's a human body they are working on.
As far as the lighting, if you are there early enough you can usually photograph part of the surgery before they turn off the fluorescents. I try to get some wider shots with the ambient lighting and then close-ups later just using their spotlights. While doctors can be really nice and seem relaxed, they still need to focus on saving someone's life rather than on photos, so try to be as invisible as you can.
And enjoy the experience, you will get to see things most people never see! |
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Eric Canha, Photographer
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Brockton | MA | United States | Posted: 4:36 PM on 08.19.08 |
| ->> Don't forget to tell us how it goes! |
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Phil Hawkins, Photographer
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Fresno | ca | usa | Posted: 5:12 PM on 08.19.08 |
| ->> Jeez, look at all the people that have photographed surgery. What, did you put in for a sideline pass two weeks before gametime? I think it would be fascinating. |
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