Castro pic: Real Or Photoshop?
Castro pic: Real Or Photoshop? Photoshop.
August 13, 2006
by Bob Parks
That is the question….
http://fontman.smugmug.com/photos/87835830-M.jpg
According to the Associated Press, "This is one of four photographs published Sunday Aug. 13, 2006 by Cuba's Communist Youth newspaper's online edition Juventud Rebelde proporting to show The first photographs of Fidel Castro since his illness two weeks ago. Castro holds a copy of the Saturday Aug. 12, 2006 edition of Granma, the Communist Party newspaper. The headline reads "Absolved by history." The Associated Press cannot verify the authenticity or the date when these photographs were shot. (AP Photo/HO)"
I say Photoshop, only because the type and picture on the newspaper are way too sharp and easily readable to be an actual photograph's interpretation. The picture and text would/should be a little more out of focus. The dead giveaway is the text on the newspaper below the photograph of Castro. It is clearly more distinct than the more blurred paragraphs below. There is very little difference between in the lighting between the two sections and even though there is a slight fold, that wouldn't account for the contrast difference in the type.
This is not to say the contents on the page might not be real, but it has been partially enhanced and that is supposedly a violation of the rules. I would assume the standards of the Associated Press are higher than that, of say… Reuters. And kudos to the AP for noting that they had suspicions as well.
