Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/09/13

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Subject: [Leica] Re: E. Adams & Vietnam Photo
From: "Paul Schiemer" <schiemer@magicnet.net>
Date: Mon, 13 Sep 1999 08:04:19 -0400

Michael Hailey wrote:
> The first time I saw the still photo, I guessed it must be a frame from the
>previous footage I had seen because the perspective seemed identical.

This troubles me as well, because it seems they were standing very closely
together to get the shot.  Looks like broad daylight, slightly before or
after noon (looking at the shadows). In the version I'm looking at (from the
NY Times) the background is dodged by about three stops and out of focus.

I saw someone here comment earlier that the 'military' confiscated Adams
film to 'determine the speed of the bullet'- which is kind of odd. How could
they do that with a single frame, or even a sequence of still frames??

Maybe that 'same footprint' thing is due to cropping?

Claes Bjerner commented:
>I can assure you that at no time has a 16mm film frame been published as a 35mm
>photograph. It simply wouldn´t work.
Using a slide duper I've copied single frames from 16mm footage with my
Nikon. [This was in the old days, haven't done it recently though].
*I'm not suggesting this specific image is a dupe, nor am I casting
aspersions toward Mr. Adams.  Just wondering aloud about the 'moment', and
circumstance surrounding it.

There was mild controversy surrounding the excising of a single frame from
footage shot by a correspondent in Spain (I'm pretty sure it was Spain). It
showed two soldiers, one standing & one kneeling. The standing soldier was
motioning toward the photographer, the kneeling one was aiming his rifle at
him. There was a trace of muzzle flash.
The single frame was used to advertise an exposition of news photography in
France (Metz, I think it was...). Because it was taken from a motion picture
segment it was thought to be inappropriate use in this way.
Need I mention it was the last footage the filmmaker exposed.

FOR LEICA CONTENT; what camera did E.Adams use in making the original image??