How to contact a housebound morbidly obese person?

[Diabolical]

This is going to sound like a strange request but I'm a final year photography student and for my thesis I want to do a documentary piece on extreme lifestyles. I was thinking of comparing the life of an athlete to that of a housebound morbidly obese person. I want to show the stark differences and highlight the challenges and sacrifices that come with both lifestyles. I can't imagine anyone feeling comfortable with me photographing them but I'm hoping there might be one person out there who would be willing to help me out and to show others the hardships and difficulties they have to endure everyday. But most importantly I want to get to know the person and document who they are outside of their physical limitations. I'm all too aware of how extremely invasive this is and my main worry is finding someone willing to let me come in their home and photograph their life. I don't know anyone who would be extreme enough in their obesity to be housebound and nor do I know anyone who knows anyone like this. For my project to work and to have the impact it needs I need someone extreme but I don't really know where to start. I was thinking of getting in touch with nurses who are involved in primary care in different communities and to ask them if they have any patients like this and if they could ask them if they'd be interested. But once again I really don't know how I would even go about this.

I don't know if anyone would even be able to help me out with this but any suggestions at all would be greatly appreciated, thank you very much!

boogle

Maybe post this in the Food and Cooking forum!

If it was me, I'd put an ad in the paper.

Aimeee

www.obesityireland.ie might be able to point you in some direction?
I was googling for info on the Obesity Clinic when the above cropped up, but this may also be of use.
You could contact anyway and see how you get on.
http://www.rte.ie/tv/programmes/theobesityclinic.html

[Diabolical]

Thank you so much! How I didn't think to check obesityireland.ie is beyond me! Thanks again

Dermighty

The calculator says I'm a class 3 obesity case.....how can you exercise if you can't fit out the door....;(

Arthurdaly

Ok, you want to contact a person who is most likely clinically depressed and take pictures and invade their home. How much are you paying?

[Diabolical]

Why would you assume someone who is morbidly obese is clinically depressed? I stated in my post that I am fully aware of how seemingly invasive it is so thank you for pointing it out, much appreciated.

Arthurdaly

A housebound morbidly obese person will be full of the joys, my bad!! How much are you paying?

[Diabolical]

Arthurdaly wrote: »

A housebound morbidly obese person will be full of the joys, my bad!! How much are you paying?

Unfortunately being an unemployed student I barely have enough money to feed myself so I wasn't really considering a money payment but I guess it's not something I would rule out. I was more thinking getting to know the person and then buying a personal gift as thanks. Why, would you know of anyone willing if there was payment involved?

wicklaman83

[Quote=[Diabolical];83360502]

Unfortunately being an unemployed student I barely have enough money to feed myself so I wasn't really considering a money payment but I guess it's not something I would rule out. I was more thinking getting to know the person and then buying a personal gift as thanks. Why, would you know of anyone willing if there was payment involved?[/Quote]
I wouldnt bother replying to that crap. You asked a courteous question so should be getting the same back in replies.
If i was you i would contact the given link where i'm sure you'd get mannerly helpful people. Best of luck

spurious

While some of the responses may have been over the top, I think the OP might need to be prepared for someone to object to being identified in photos, if willing at all to be photographed. An assurance as to what might happen the photos (negatives or original files) afterwards might also be an issue.

Corkbah

[Diabolical] wrote: »

Unfortunately being an unemployed student I barely have enough money to feed myself so I wasn't really considering a money payment but I guess it's not something I would rule out. I was more thinking getting to know the person and then buying a personal gift as thanks. Why, would you know of anyone willing if there was payment involved?

yet as an unemployed student you can afford a camera and film ...or do you use digital ?

Barely enough money to feed myself indeed.

most people are struggling financially - money is king these days!!

boogle

Corkbah wrote: »

yet as an unemployed student you can afford a camera and film ...or do you use digital ?

Barely enough money to feed myself indeed.

most people are struggling financially - money is king these days!!

Go and ride your high horse back to your thread complaining about the pay of public servants. What's it like to live your life being bitter and judgemental about everyone else?

Corkbah

boogle wrote: »

Go and ride your high horse back to your thread complaining about the pay of public servants. What's it like to live your life being bitter and judgemental about everyone else?

WTF .. I dont have any thread on public servants pay !! ... try check before attacking someone and try to stay on the topic instead of trying to insult/attack another poster.

boogle

Corkbah wrote: »

WTF .. I dont have any thread on public servants pay !! ... try check before attacking someone and try to stay on the topic instead of trying to insult/attack another poster.

My bad, checked again and I mixed you up with another username. Sorry about that.

Anyway, on topic, I don't think it's fair to criticise the OP for saying he's a student and hasn't got much money. Most students are broke!

Arthurdaly

Nobody is critising the Op, it was a simple question. How will this poor unfortunate person who he plans to photograph for his personal gain/interest be remunerated?

JJayoo

Try this lump

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056703370

[Diabolical]

Corkbah wrote: »

yet as an unemployed student you can afford a camera and film ...or do you use digital ?

Barely enough money to feed myself indeed.

most people are struggling financially - money is king these days!!

Your absolute pure ignorance is pretty astounding.

I have to rent all my equipment from college. I do not own any of my own equipment and probably won't for the foreseeable future. I struggle to scrimp enough money for the bus to college everyday, and yet I struggle along all in the pursuit of my passion. I work god damn hard to do what I do and I try and I make ends meet as best as I can. The cameras the college provide are amazing and are an absolute life saver.

Please, do me a favour and cop yourself on.

Cavehill Red

Have you had this project approved by your college's ethics committee?

[Diabolical]

spurious wrote: »

While some of the responses may have been over the top, I think the OP might need to be prepared for someone to object to being identified in photos, if willing at all to be photographed. An assurance as to what might happen the photos (negatives or original files) afterwards might also be an issue.

I agree the responses here are a little over the top. I knew the request would be received badly though. I completely agree with you, of course the person needs to know where the pictures would end up. Not far tbh, it's a final year project, I'm thinking of making it into a book but the book would only be presented to my lecturers to be graded and then given back to me and there'd more than likely only be one copy. Your work just looks much better in a published book than on a powerpoint. Other than that, the pictures wouldn't be going anywhere.

[Diabolical]

Arthurdaly wrote: »

Nobody is critising the Op, it was a simple question. How will this poor unfortunate person who he plans to photograph for his personal gain/interest be remunerated?

Well thankfully it's nothing got to do with you so I don't see why you're fixating on this particular issue. I take it you're not a photographer and know pretty much nothing about the field. People who are photographed in amateur shoots are rarely, if ever paid. If you happen to make it big of course you go and hire models etc.

Why are you assuming that someone who is willing to help me is a poor unfortunate person? Am I holding them against their will and forcing them to smile at my camera? It is completely out of your realm of thinking that maybe, just maybe, there's people who are more than willing to give a student doing a project a helping hand without the bribe of money?

[Diabolical]

Cavehill Red wrote: »

Have you had this project approved by your college's ethics committee?

Here we go. Trust me, this is not a case that you bring to my college's ethics committee. I reiterate, I am only asking for a few suggestions as to how I can find someone who would be willing to help me out with this. Asking a person to take pictures of their lifestyle and getting their permission to photograph it, regardless of their size, is a pretty sound premise for a project.

Cavehill Red

[Diabolical] wrote: »

Here we go. Trust me, this is not a case that you bring to my college's ethics committee. I reiterate, I am only asking for a few suggestions as to how I can find someone who would be willing to help me out with this. Asking a person to take pictures of their lifestyle and getting their permission to photograph it, regardless of their size, is a pretty sound premise for a project.

I think you need to go and get the approval of your college's ethics committee before you proceed any further.

Zillah

Arthurdaly wrote: »

Nobody is critising the Op

Oh don't be stupid. Your confrontational tone is obviously a criticism. It is a difficult topic to approach and you're making a whole bunch of assumptions about why it should or should not be done.

Diane Arbus was known for photographing "freaks", if she had listened to the eejits in her life like those in this thread then she'd never have made her awesome body of work. There are photography projects documenting people dying from cancer, losing children, many difficult subjects, and they often leave people in tears. If you encountered someone planning to document a child dying from cancer would you take the same tone? If you convinced them we'd have lost one of the best photography projects in decades.

Believe it or not but your knee-jerk, small-minded first reaction might not actually represent a mature or nuanced analysis of the topic.

Cavehill Red

The OP's project definitely requires ethics committee approval because it involves human participation. Thenecessary form is here: http://www4.dcu.ie/sites/default/files/research/REC_Full_Form.doc

[Diabolical]

Cavehill Red wrote: »

I think you need to go and get the approval of your college's ethics committee before you proceed any further.

I don't need to do anything. What's your background and experience regarding this issue or is it just your opinion?

Cavehill Red

[Diabolical] wrote: »

I don't need to do anything. What's your background and experience regarding this issue or is it just your opinion?

I'd happily discuss that with you in person, but I'm not putting my personal details online, I'm afraid.
Have a read of the research ethics guidelines here: https://www4.dcu.ie/research/research_ethics/guidelines.shtml
It's very clear what you're proposing requires the approval of the college ethics committee, and this is for your legal and ethical safety as much as that of any participants. If your advisors have not made you aware of this, they have been very lax. Or perhaps you have not informed your advisors of your plans?

[Diabolical]

Zillah wrote: »

Oh don't be stupid. Your confrontational tone is obviously a criticism. It is a difficult topic to approach and you're making a whole bunch of assumptions about why it should or should not be done.

Diane Arbus was known for photographing "freaks", if she had listened to the eejits in her life like those in this thread then she'd never have made her awesome body of work. There are photography projects documenting people dying from cancer, losing children, many difficult subjects, and they often leave people in tears. If you encountered someone planning to document a child dying from cancer would you take the same tone? If you convinced them we'd have lost one of the best photography projects in decades.

Believe it or not but your knee-jerk, small-minded first reaction might not actually represent a mature or nuanced analysis of the topic.

First of all, thank you so much for linking the "A Mother's Journey". I have never seen that before, that is the most powerful and heart wrenching thing I've seen in a very long time. Diane Arbus is a major inspiration and I love all of her work. Funnily enough, a lot of my ideas kinda stem for her work. Just amazing!

Thank you for understanding, in a way I understand the closed-mindedness. I mean I posted in a health and fitness forum about a photography project, I really didn't know what else to do. But you're right, if I was to listen to everyone's opinion on the subject matters I enjoy photographing, I'd never take another picture again. I understand that people think I'm trying to be unnecessarily invasive but that's not it at all. I'm looking for a smart person who lives a lifestyle different to others, who I can work with on a project, that's all. I don't want to hurt anybody or take advantage of anybody.

Just looking for some help and suggestions. I will actually take this to my lecturers just in case it may possibly be an ethics issue, but I highly highly doubt there will be.

[Diabolical]

Cavehill Red wrote: »

I'd happily discuss that with you in person, but I'm not putting my personal details online, I'm afraid.
Have a read of the research ethics guidelines here: https://www4.dcu.ie/research/research_ethics/guidelines.shtml
It's very clear what you're proposing requires the approval of the college ethics committee, and this is for your legal and ethical safety as much as that of any participants. If your advisors have not made you aware of this, they have been very lax. Or perhaps you have not informed your advisors of your plans?

I understand, thanks! I will give them a read of course. If it requires going down that route then I'll deal with then. No, my advisors are unaware, deadline for proposals are a good few weeks away actually so I'll bring it up this week. How did you know I was in DCU?

Cavehill Red

[Diabolical] wrote: »

I understand, thanks! I will give them a read of course. If it requires going down that route then I'll deal with then. No, my advisors are unaware, deadline for proposals are a good few weeks away actually so I'll bring it up this week. How did you know I was in DCU?

Because most of your posts are about 2010 Communications entry at DCU.
If you look at the flowchart on the ethics page, you'll see that you're obliged to firstly inform your advisors of your plan, and then secondly submit at the very least a notification form to the committee because you're dealing with human participants who, given the nature of the project, could easily be damaged emotionally or psychologically by it.
They'll take three weeks to respond and may ask for a fuller application form to be filled in. The reason for all of this is because the college can be potentially sued by anyone harmed in the process of a student's official research.

Corkbah

give this guy a buzz !!

http://www.breakingnews.ie/bizarre/60-stone-uk-man-is-worlds-fattest-539843.html