(Photo)shopping James Purnell
The rumbles on. The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport turned up late for a photoshoot at a Tamside hospital. Other MPs had already been snapped, but Mr Purnell agreed, in any case, to have his photograph taken. That much everyone agrees on. Mr Purnell's spokesman has attempted some clarification of what went wrong in this episode:
He knew they were going to merge those two photographs together but he thought it was for internal NHS use only. He didn't realise it was being sent to the local press. In retrospect it wasn't a great idea to photoshop the images but he didn't want to let anyone down.
Which explains why the Culture Secretary agreed to stand in precisely the right spot to enable a digital merging of the two photographs.
Clearly, the whole affair is rather embarrassing for the cabinet minister who has been at the forefront of the government's response to some recent examples of deception in the UK's broadcast media -- and the man who came up with . But is it all a digital storm in a virtual teacup? After all, it's not as if Mr Purnell was pictured at an event he hadn't actually attended. His presence in the picture that was published in the local press merely served to bring more attention to a new development at a local hospital. Is that such a bad thing? I merely ask the question: you provide the answers.
Comments
I agree - i think the whole thing is blown out of proportion. The guy was doing the hospital a favour, he wasn't misrepresenting himself. He was there, he was at the launch, and he is not the person who should be attacked here if there's any criticsm.
Im glad you're asking this question because I've wondered about it for a couple of days as the story ha been reported. I dont think this is deception, its merely windowdressing.
WHAT is the controversy? Has Britain gone crazy? What are they putting in the water over there??!
The picture is a lie! What can be disputed about that?
Regards,
Michael
All pictures lie to some extent Michael. Manipulation and deception are two different things and all imagery is a form of manipulation.
Step right up folks, step right this way, see the amazing vanishing man James Purnell. Now you see him, now you don't. Blink twice and he's back again. How duzzzz he do it? He's so clever at it, even the people standing around him don't notice when he fades out, don't notice when he rematerializes. Beam me aboard Scotty. Aye sir but the transporter has been acting kind of wierd lately, you may not be quite yourself. That's OK Scotty, I was planning on joining the shadow government anyway, one to beam up. Maybe he's under Harry Potter's invisibility cloak. Actually, he does it all with mirrors, his presence is a mere illusion he's perfected over the years. When the Prime Minister and the rest of the Cabinet thinks he's sitting in a meeting with them, he's actually out chasing his secretary. Maybe that's why they consider him "the quiet one." :-) Actually, the hospital wasn't really there either. The building was also just a projection done with mirrors but it was good publicity for the Labour government to say it opened a new hospital, even if it wasn't a real one. :-)
Step right up folks, step right this way. See the amazing vanishing man James Purnell. Now you see him, now you don't. Blink once and he’s gone, blink again and he's back. How duzzzz he do it? He's so clever, even the people standing around him don't notice when he fades out, don't notice when he fades back in. Beam me aboard Scotty. Aye sir but the trrrrrransporrrrrter has been acting kind of weird lately, you may not be quite yourself, you might find yourself shifting in and out of other dimensions, I can not guarrrrrantee… That's OK Scotty, I was planning on joining the shadow government anyway, one to beam up. Maybe Purnell is under Harry Potter's invisibility cloak. Actually, he does it all with mirrors, his presence is a mere illusion he's perfected over the years. When the Prime Minister and the rest of the Cabinet thinks he's sitting in a meeting with them, he's really out chasing his secretary. Maybe that's why they consider him "the quiet one." :-) In fact, the hospital wasn't really there either. The building was also just a projection done with mirrors but it was good publicity for the Labour government to say it opened a new hospital, even if it wasn't a real one. :-) Anyone want to schedule elective surgery there? I understand when the NHS says you’re on the waiting list that’s an illusion too.
Alison
Manipulation and deception are two different things
I agree. The picture was manipulated and it also deceives.
Regards,
Michael
In a sense, all photographs are lies, deceptions. The photograph is deliberately engineered to make you see what the photographer wants you to see. If he can't make his view convincing enough with what he captured in his lens when he snapped the shutter, he does it in a darkroom or today on a computer. This has always been true. Photographers had many techniques. They'd dodge and burn to alter exposure and lighting. They's airbrush and retouch photos in other ways such as with soft focus filters and arrange special lighting to make people look more attractive than in real life by removing age lines and blemishes or make them look more imposing by the angle from which the photograph was taken. Viewed from below, even an innocent child's face can look menacing especially with lighting that puts some facial features in deep shadows. Viewed from above even a serial killer can be made to look weak and innocent. We photograph a beautiful garden so carefully you wish you were there every time you see it because what you don't see is a mountain of trash or a ton of weeds just beyond the camera's view. That deception is called "cropping" which in fact is one technique for composing photographs. The better the photographer, the more convincing he is at getting you to see what he wants you to see by creating an illusion of his own world and drawing you into it. (Painters do the same.) Anyone who takes a photograph at face value is making a mistake. A lot of people had a lot of fun with that supplying those who wanted to believe in them with countless contrived photos of UFOs. Anyone want to buy an unreleased photo proving the Loch Ness Monster exists and is a plieasaurus? Give me five minutes to get my equipment out and I'll make one for you. How about a photo proving Jesus is alive and well and living on Mars just waiting for the right moment for a second coming?