RE: [Leica] Re: National Geographic scandal

["bdcolen" <bdcolen@earthlink.net>]

Good points, Sal..:-)

- -----Original Message-----
From: owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us
[mailto:owner-leica-users@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us] On Behalf Of Sal
DiMarco,Jr.
Sent: Thursday, August 28, 2003 5:58 PM
To: LUG >for posts
Subject: [Leica] Re: National Geographic scandal


Luggers,
    Wow, in all history of photography, I don't think someone has done
such a detail examination of a set of photos.
    The main problem, so far as I see it, is the accuser has not had the
opportunity to examine the original film. The answers are in there.
    The article was both written and photographed by the same person.
This indicates to me, he is an expert on this species of bird.
    I do not think the Geographic would have either accepted the piece,
or subsidized the story, if they had any questions about the author.
    My GUESS, and it is only a GUESS, is some of the photos were done
under controlled conditions.  A real environment is created for the
animal and then placed in it and the action photographed. As Doug Herr
can testify, quality bird photography take an awful lot of time, some
times many months.
    Waiting an animal to walk into 'just the right spot' isn't always an
option. But, nudging him into it is.
    How any of you remember the 'Big Cats" series in the old LIFE
Magazine? In it are two terrific photos which were coaxed. The panther
attacking the monkey where the monkey is screaming and trying to get
away was shot in a walled circle, the poor guy had no chance. The other
image is the sun silhouetting a tiger in a tree eating a gazelle. The
photographer John Dominis shot the gazelle and put it in the tree and
waited for the tiger to appear and the sun to go down.
    Is it cheating? Possibly, but those thing do happen in real life,
and one might have to wait years to get such a photo. John spent
something like 18 months in Africa doing this essay, and used this
technique as a last resort.
    Possibly the same thing was done for the Geographic.
    In the list of Geographic people, accused of not doing their job, is
a photo editor, who I know. If, this shoot  was totally faked, I think
he would have noticed it while editing the film.
    But, anything is possible. I guess we will have to stay tuned.....
Happy Snaps, Sal

Sal DiMarco, Jr
Philadelphia, PA
Web Site: http://members.fcc.net/sal.dimarcojr

- --
To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html

- --
To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html