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n A B rief T utorial  on the Earl y Arts of Photo Manipulation   "I believe it was probably less than ten minutes that went by from the invention of photography to the point where people realized that they could lie with photographs."-- Errol Morris   (Below) Th is composite photo by Henry Peach Robinson used five separate images and shows the sophistication of the state of the art of photo manipulation   as early as 1858. photo courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Th e photographic manipulation (belo w ) was the placing of Lincoln's head on John Calhoun’s body in 1860. The photographer used a composite technique.      During the American civil war (1861 - 1865), well known photographer, Mathew Br ady, enhanced many of his photos to better show the carnage and horrors of the Civil W a r. The photo on the left was released in 1864 from a composite of the three photos on the right. Unidentified French artist, published by Allain de T...

Will the Real Wright Flyer Please Step Forward ? Photo claimed to be of the "first flight" by Orville Wright in 1903. Released in 1908. Years after the Wrights claimed they achieved the first sustained, powered flight in history with a man on board at Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, a 98 year old woman, Mrs. Lillie Swindell, made local headlines when she said she had stored the Wrights' original flyer in her attic after the Wrights went back to their home in Dayton. And as a thrifty and resourceful resident of Kitty Hawk, she wasn't about to let the flyer go to waste. So she made use of various pieces of "the first plane to fly" for her practical projects. Muslin that had covered the wings of the plane was shared with her neighbors to make clothes for their kids. Wood from the plane was used to fashion frames to stitch her quilts. 1 To Wright historians, of course, this has to be a ridiculous story. Every Wright historian "knows" that the broken...

At Kill Devil Hills, NC: December 17, 1903 Wind speed: 27 mph. Temperature with wind chill: near freezin g Timeline Number One   The Wright's Story Of  The Events of December. 17 , 1903, When They Claimed the First Powered, Heavier Than Air, Controlled,  Sustained, and Powered Flights in History Note: Timeline number one, as narrated in this blog post, is extracted from the documents and statements of Orville and Wilbur Wright. Together with the photographs depicted in this article, it is the official version of Wright historians. 10:00 am or thereabouts The Wright brothers wake up on the morning of December 17, 1903, to a cold wind, strong enough to attempt a powered flight from level ground. The rail they need to take off from has been moved from the hill. after their December 14 attempt and set up about 200 feet from their camp.. They failed making a successful flight from the hill on the 14th. The brothers put up their flag to signal their friends at the Kill Devi...

“...he that sows lies in the end shall not lack of a harvest, and soon he may rest from toil indeed, while others reap and sow in his stead.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien , The Silmarillion  The other side of the headlines   Norfolk, Virginia, December 18, 1903 Alpheus Drinkwater claimed he forwarded the first telegram announcing the "first flight." He very well may have, but it wasn't the famous one to the Wright's father--it was to their sister.  Harry Moore was the cub reporter who broke the news of Orville's "flight" to the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot. The first "successful flight" of a powered airplane was blazoned in headlines across the front page of the Virginian-Pilot newspaper the day after the Wrights claimed they were first to fly. The story of how the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot got the news of the Wrights' "flights" has been the subject of speculation for years.  The "official" ...