Misinformation

Early examples of 'Photoshopping' an image

Touching up photographs is not a new phenomenon The Rosenberg Collection of Vincent Kelly glass plate negatives gives a unique insight into the early touch up process. These glass plate negatives show two very similar images, one, an image of the person just as they were would have been used for reference, while the other 'touched up' image would have been used to create a contact print which would be sold to the subject.

This example is quite clear to see as the freckles do not survive the retouching.

 Studio portraits of a girl, possibly Clara Harwood,Ca. 1896 and 1900 H2018.15/82

You can see a scratched x to indicate the untouched image, for which a print would not be struck.

 Studio portrait of woman, family name possibly Walker, Ca. 1904 and 1937, H2022.4/33

Because we have the original glass plate negatives in the library and they are digitised at a high quality you can zoom in and see the the details of the retouching.

   close up of H2022.4/33 

close up of  H2018.15/82

We have examples on our collection from other photographic studios. This image of  Miss J. Barber taken by Spencer Shier in 1919, again you can see an 'x' on the image not intended for distribution.

 Miss J. Barber, 1919, H81.117/56

Once prints were made, a lot of early photographic portraits underwent some cosmetic colour touch ups to enhance the image, which is why you often find black and white portraits moonlighting as colour images with rosy cheeks and various coloured highlights, such as the carte de visite example below:

 [Unidentified man] [picture], ca. 1878 - ca. 1885, H2006.58/29

Can you always trust a photograph?

This photo of Ned Kelly by William Burman purported to be the last before he died Is in fact a fake composite image created by putting Kelly's face on James Nesbitt's body and drawing in thicker eyebrows and a bushier beard. Close inspection of the photo in our collection reveals the cut lines around the face.

Portrait of Ned Kelly [picture], 1880, H96.160/200

When looking at the original photographs you can see how the face of the composite is an exact match for the earlier clean shaven portrait, and the body is a match for James Nesbit's portrait.

Ned Kelly, Ca. 1874, H2001.161/2  

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James Nesbitt, page 169 VPRS 515/P0000

This Postcard of Ned Kelly produced in the 1940s clearly 'embellishes' the earlier photo of Ned Kelly without a full beard to more closely resemble the image of him in the public consciousness.

Ned Kelly (The Bushranger), [Ca. 1940], H20169

Chung Ling Soo company, [Ca. 1910] PC124/B

This photo is not quite what it seems.

Chung Ling Soo never existed as a 'real' person, the man in the middle of this photograph bearing the moniker of Chung Ling Soo was born William Robinson and is of European descent. He spent much of his stage career living as Chinese stage magician (complete with constructed back story) Ching Ling Soo, a 'trick' which only unravelled when he died in an onstage accident when performing the bullet catch in 1918.

[Flying machine over High Street, Armadale] ca. 1900. H2010.49

This photograph by Algernon Darge is an impossible image. A plane with no visible means of propulsion, captured in perfect clarity, superimposed over an elevated streetscape.

 Dr. H. S. Lynn, magician. H88.50/5

This photograph playfully shows the touring American magician Mr. Lynn, holding his own head under the arm, with no head to be seen on his shoulders. This impossible image is in keeping with the magical tradition of misdirection and slight of hand employed by magicians when performing their tricks.

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