[Leica] NPR comments on photography

[ricc at mindspring.com (Ric Carter)]

Yep, I could happily defend this guy for the first two examples, but  
the basketball thing is way over the line.

ric


On Apr 20, 2007, at 6:27 PM, Ted Grant wrote:

> You mean to tell me all these days of fuss and letter writing and a  
> guy
> fired because he "cropped out" a pair of legs with PhotoShop that had
> absolutely no relevance to the scene?
>
> That's it? Spotted out a pair of unknown legs!!! What if he just  
> cropped the
> shot tighter and nobody would've known. My heavens people, please  
> let us not
> be of the bird brained type morons who created all this fuss!
>
> I mean the feet have no relevance. The only real problem here was  
> the photog
> wasn't smart enough to crop hard on the right side of the frame!  
> That's all
> he had to do! And it wouldn't have mattered if a 1000 other  
> newspapers used
> it with the legs or not!
>
> This is what happens when photographer's fall completely into the  
> bosom of
> mother "Photoshop!" They stop thinking like wet room photographers and
> cropping in the enlarging and become wonder whiz kids of the re- 
> touching
> tool! I'd bet there's a lot more to this story than what we are  
> seeing.
>
> NOW!!............ the BASKETBALL insertion!!!!!!!!!
>
> That's just plain ordinary CHEATING!!! Out and out! And absolutely  
> no kiss
> ass reason he or the thousands of others who do this kind of  
> insertion crap
> every day shouldn't be fired!
>
> No he didn't change the re-action of the players and their efforts.  
> And
> putting the ball in didn't, nor did it make any difference to their  
> face and
> hand actions. Or the score.
>
> However what he did was, he be-littled and made potential looking  
> cheats out
> of every one of us working professional photojournalists! Once this  
> kind of
> crap is out, then in the eyes of lay people we are cheaters! That  
> means
> every photograph where due to our skill, experience or just plain  
> good old
> fashion luck, we have the projectile in the picture it's assumed by  
> the
> people, we put it there with PhotoShop! Unfortunately! :-( We are  
> tarred,
> feathered and guilty of cheating because of him.
>
> This kind of insertion if caught, the shooter is out the door with the
> hardest kick in the ass and a damn good smack across the side of  
> his or her
> head! Gone finito and it doesn't matter how many award winning  
> photos taken
> in the past!
>
> Don't even think about coming back to defend the guy and his crap,  
> simply
> because this "photo over work" isn't any different than cheating at
> anything! Quite frankly the SOB is a liar!!!!!
>
> And in turn, makes all of us look like liars and cheats!! Did  
> anyone die
> because of this? No. But my honesty and integrity as a long time hard
> working photojournalist to bring truth with my cameras and pictures  
> has been
> tarnished!
>
> And that my friends is what's damaged due to this damn fool! My  
> honour and
> that of thousands of others like me who use our cameras with  
> honesty in
> bringing truth to our viewers!
>
> ted
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information