Can anyone help with this: "53% Marine" also photoshopped?

[bleever]

As seen in other recent posts, some of the photos on the goofy We Are The 53% website are clearly faked, and not very well:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x2121926

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x2122521

Which got me to wondering about the iconic photo of the Marine, which became the subject of Daily Kos' most viral story ever:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/10/12/1025555/-Open-Letter-to-that-53-Guy

Forgive me if someone already brought this up, but when I take a good look at this picture:



(originally seen here: http://www.tumblr.com/photo/1280/11069968209/1/tumblr_lsm012P3FX1r4q8eo)

I see what seem to be unnaturally consistent shadings along the edge of the page, and other oddities in density, etc.

Can anyone with photoshop expertise lend any insight here?

Because if they're not just faking pictures of one or two "ordinary" folks, but actually using a United States Marine (real or purported) as a phony prop for their movement, they're toast.

And Erick Erickson should be fired from CNN.

[arcane1]

1. He doesn't blame Wall St for not having time off?

Then I wonder who he does blame?

[rustydog]

2. Can't fix stupid

[FarLeftFist]

3. The paper has a drop shadow on the left and the bottom, the drop shadow even appears on his shirt.

Could very possibly be a fake. Plus, the paper does seem very crisp around the edges while his shirt becomes blurry by the neckline. Obviously the lighting is hitting him intensely on one side of his face.

[Lizzie Poppet]

58. On the shirt I wouldn't mind.

I wouldn't mind the drop shadow on his shirt (well...if it actually matched the light source in the rest of the pic...), but the rest of the drop shadow is floating in thin air! If I ever see a shadow in thin air (and not cast on something), I'm calling Ghostbusters.

[Kennah]

4. I have to agree. This thing has been Photoshopped.

[renate]

5. I'm certainly no expert but this particular one looks real to me

The light is coming from behind so the shadows are kind of unusual and hard to fake. At first I thought the shadow on the paper that was cast from his hand was from his fingers, but actually I think it's the light coming from behind the paper and blocked by his whole hand that makes it look so different. Someone faking it probably wouldn't have thought of that detail.

However, in this particular case (not in others, like the Nigerian-immigrant one), I think it'd be a good thing for this picture to be real, because the rebuttal in Daily Kos is AWESOME and it would be a shame for this picture's possibly being fake to detract from that.

Edited to add that, on the other hand, the edge of the paper against his face and shirt looks Photoshopped to me. So what the heck do I know.

[Xithras]

14. It may be real.

I pulled this up in PS and looked at that weird edge closely. It really looks like a compression artifact, and not a drop shadow. Given the image size and low resolution (its a 0.3MP, 640x480VGA shot), I'd guess that it "looks funny" because it was either shot on a crap camera phone or a cheap computer webcam. It's not unusual for low quality cameras to create compression artifacts along high contrast edges.

The lighting is fairly consistent with a close in source like a lamp to his left, augmented by a second point source directly in front of the subject, like a computer screen or low power LED flash.

It certainly COULD be faked (trust me, ANY image can be faked if you have the time), but IMHO there are no smoking guns in this image.

[FarLeftFist]

16. It's 650x459, a setting cameras don't have. Lets do an ELA here:

http://errorlevelanalysis.com/permalink/40e5676/

[bleever]

23. What's your take on the results?

Thanks.

[Pacifist Patriot]

53. It's the shadows that have me convinced it's a fake.

[ixion]

6. looks photoshopped to me...

the distance between his hand and his shoulder looks odd, especially given the rotation of the wrist... he would have 4-foot-long arms at that ratio.

Also, the paper definitely looks like a layer around the edges.


The other thing I notice about these messages is that they all use very similar, or even identical, phrasing.

[yardwork]

7. The edges of the paper look wrong to me, and his hand doesn't match his body.

The hand looks like it comes from a different body. Different skin texture and tone, and the distance doesn't look right.

Even if the photo is legitimate, the edges of the paper near his body have been altered.

[demosincebirth]

8. With the haircut (no sidewalls) and T-shirt it looks like he's still in the millitary.

[bleever]

9. A couple of skeptical comments from the site:

"A former marine. Who worked 8 years to pay for college. And who apparently never heard of the GI bill."

And,

"...if he’s a former marine, he has VA benefits so that should count as ‘health insurance’ right..."

And I liked this one:

"I am a working student, I don’t want a handout, I am a conservative and a republican voter who ATTENDED OCCUPY because I am concerned about new campaign finance laws that allow the corporate sponsoring of candidates.
I am pro capitalism.
I am pro business.
I pay my taxes and honor my debts."

[zalinda]

10. There is an inconsistency in the pic

When I enlarged it in Irfanview, the 'marine' hardly pixilated, but the writing on the paper did to quite a degree and so did the hand. It looks like a female hand is holding up the piece of paper.

zalinda

[bleever]

20. Thank you. CNN should fire tea party shill Erick Erickson for this.

What kind of real journalist would be associated with crap like this?

[mopinko]

63. i think the hand looks consistent, but agree about the

paper. looks like it was scanned.

COMPLETELY PHONY

[Hydra]

11. Paper is backlit, front lit, and looks like a post-it note on the left

It's a fake...big surprise since the rest are too.

...Are they just not trying anymore?

[Ahpook]

40. I don't think they are trying anymore

And that is a terrifying thought.

[Hydra]

42. Thats true

When a con-man stops conning, it's usually because he's decided armed robbery is the better strategy.

[MelungeonWoman]

52. They've always been this bad at the con

but we're getting more sophisticated.

Their time draws short.

[uppityperson]

12. Wouldn't a "former marine" have VA health care?

[LGR]

74. VA

An ex-Marine would indeed have earned the right to use the VA healthcare system. However, unless he is ofically disabled they still have to pay for healthcare. It's like a co-pay, and it's not often very cheap. This seems to be the only legitamate gripe... He may have mispoken and was meant to say that he do NOT get free healthcare since he earned it as a Marine... and/or he still pay out of pocket for it.

[FarLeftFist]

13. That looks like some thick paper there buddy, its even casting a drop shadow on the wall behind, yet

The light is hitting from the side.

[anamandujano]

15. .

[FarLeftFist]

18. Notice the pixelation around your shopped words and his.

[anamandujano]

21. I messed up with the font size and had to scale up.

What font could they possibly have used to create printing like that? The closest I could get was comic san sans, I think that's what they call it.

In addition, it would take some time to get it like that and who would want to make fun of a marine. I almost added something to my text like,

--"fyi, I respect the military, just wish the gov't would screw with them so much"

[FarLeftFist]

22. No font. Could have been written on actual paper and imported into photoshop and placed on new paper

It looks fishy. Also there are plenty of handwriting fonts out there such as these: http://www.dafont.com/theme.php?cat=603&page=1

But I would go with these being handwritten on paper and imported into photoshop. Easier and slightly more life-like.

[anamandujano]

26. So some dirtball got ahold of a photo and shopped

this drivel to make him a laughing stock? I'd sue.

It's probably web cam so the poor quality is normal.

ps--Thanks for the link to the fonts.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

17. Sucker.

[JVS]

19. I love the rage of these asses who work two shit jobs for just enough money to pay a net...

positive tax bill and then think their interests are aligned with the same people who want to make sure they can't find one decent job.

[newspeak]

60. yeah, to me even if these signs are photoshopped

the content on the signs speak volumes. "I work two or three jobs (can't get one decent job)" "I have medical bills or I lost my decent job or home." So, what they are saying to me is "we don't mind if WS is corrupt or bet on our misery which they created or corporations can treat their employees like slaves or con us with the next scheme be it another mortgage scam or S&L theft.

The signs speak volumes about them--"There's a sucker born every minute."

[The Backlash Cometh]

24. He has small, feminine hands.

[Saving Hawaii]

25. Looks like somebody's facebook photo

[Erose999]

75. Who would have that pissed off expression on their facebook photo?

[Fuzz]

27. Why didn't he qualify for the GI bill to pay for college?

[Rozlee]

50. Maybe he got kicked out before his 18 month enlistment qualification.

Plus, seriously, working 70-80 hours, assumably going to school full time, then studying. No wonder the left side of his head looks like his brain's herniating.

[LGR]

72. GI Bill

The G.I. Bill that vets earn does not pay for ALL of a vets college. In many cases such as at expensive schools it only pays a semseter or two. I only got 50,000 for 5 years and 2 combat tours..... 50,000 which will get you nowhere slow at a school like say NYU.

[johnnie]

28. Just some quick thoughts

My father served in the Marines for 30 some years. "Former Marine" isn't something they would call themselves and that haircut isn't quite the jarhead look and a lot of them keep that style when they crop their hair.

[bleever]

29. Good point; Semper Fi doesn't mean "I used to be a Marine",

does it?

[Name removed]

69. Deleted message

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[Aerows]

32. Once a Marine, always a Marine

I've never heard a Marine refer to themselves as a "former Marine".

[lunasun]

34. Dishonorable discharge consequence?

not that I think this is real
Nice hand insert though

[Name removed]

70. Deleted message

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[mopinko]

61. yup. no such thing as a former marine.

once a marine always a marine.
something chickenhawks like whoever did this would not know.

[Name removed]

71. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Aerows]

30. Shopped

Definitely shopped. They are so terrified of OWS, they have to resort to propaganda.

[livetohike]

31. It looks like his head doesn't fit his neck and I have zero

photoshop knowledge. It looks like that headed was pasted in place. The hands look too small, too.

[justiceischeap]

33. His face next to the paper certainly looks like it's been shopped

with the clone stamp tool. The paper has definitely been shopped in. I'd guess this guy was holding something else in the original photo and then this new paper was "created"

[Beartracks]

35. 2 jobs with no health insurance? He's a 99%er.

It doesn't matter that he is a former marine who worked 60-70 hours a week to go to college. He is now a college-educated guy holding down two jobs with no time off to try to make ends meet, and he has no health insurance. In short: his hard work is not being rewarded. That makes him part of the 99%.

================

[TNLib]

36. Jesus Christ Someone needs to get these jack asses some photo shop lessons!

nt

[renate]

37. the comments here are really illuminating

Especially the ones about how a real Marine would never call himself a "former Marine," and how he should be covered by health insurance after having been in the military (although I'd have thought that would only apply to people who'd retired after 20 years... does military service for any length of time entitle ex-service members to health care for life, or only for injuries sustained in combat?).

Most of all, I like the comment stating that he *is* one of the 99%, if his life is as crappy as he says.

[Ahpook]

38. Besides the PS issues already found

How old does this person look to everyone? If he is a former Marine AND has worked 2 jobs for 8 years wouldn't he be a few years older? I mean possibly approaching 30? I say hovering around 20

So he joins the Marines at age 10, got out and started his 8 year stretch of employ.

Wow, he doesn't fuck around does he? :)

[Doremus]

39. Words on the paper are definitely photoshopped.

Words don't follow the contour of the paper as he's holding it and it's naturally curving yet words are straight. Also, strange lighter margin around top and side edges of page, no doubt the edge of the fake message image pasted over the original.

[Youth Uprising]

41. That looks like a female hand to me.

It looks way too manicured. Look closely at the fingernails, is that nail polish? You can definitely see it in the index finger.

[chade]

43. I would say yes

The most obvious piece for me is that given the ambient lighting behind him: the dark yellow wall, the highlight on his forehead, and the highlight on his fingers, that paper should be a mustard or cream-colored yellow. The warm lighting completely changes the overall white balance of the photo to yellow, so there would be *nothing* in the room that would be an actual white with the exception of a flash or maybe the brightest, brightest highlight on his face if they were reflecting bright enough. Since even those highlights are a deep yellow, it makes the brightness of the paper look very suspect.

[Cassandra]

66. I was thinking white balance as well.

[Canuckistanian]

44. Obviously 'shopped

Dead giveaway is the black edge of the paper.

And also the sharpness of the paper. It should be blurry, considering that his left shoulder is out of focus, indicating a shallow depth of field. That paper should not be so sharp, since it's supposed to be a few inches IN FRONT of his face.

My verdict? FAKE.

[Quixote1818]

45. No question this has bee shopped. Look at the edge of the paper on each side

There are strange drop shadows not just on one side but several sides of the paper.

[GoCubsGo]

55. Absolutely. Just look at the whole photo

The paper looks like it's slapped on top of another photo. It's so obvious.

[Shagbark Hickory]

46. Rule of thumb: Any pic of a dude/dudette holding up a paper with a message written on it is bogus.nt

[blm]

47. Is there such a thing as former Marine? What happened to 'Semper Fi' Mr. GOP Plant?

.

[Name removed]

73. Deleted message

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[dionysus]

48. what a wierd giraffe neck in that photoshop!

[Fantastic Anarchist]

49. Fake ...

The position of the hand is at an unnatural angle. Too much space between his arm and body.

[JI7]

51. the Message looks made to make fun of the 53 percent movement

[Pacifist Patriot]

54. That was the first thing I thought, but then again I see satire everywhere these days.

It's often hard to distinguish it from reality.

[GoCubsGo]

56. Yep. This guy could very well be real.

If so, he's probably one of your Libertarian/Cult of Ron Paul/Ayn Rand-worshiping types. There are loads of them around, who are so obsessed with this "I am a hard working person. You are a parasite." mentality, that hey can't see the forest for the trees.

[JI7]

65. it comes off as pathetic to me, and if he works so hard why isn't he making more money ?

because isn't that what they believe. the wealthy are wealthy because they work hard for it. so why ins't he wealthy ?

i just can't see how these people can't get it.

[Lizzie Poppet]

57. Obvious shoop is obvious.

I mean, c'mon...the paper has a friggin' drop shadow! Looks like its even set to the default 5 pixels and lower-left position, too. "Amateurish" is too kind an adjective...

[Botany]

59. It might be real

A Real Phony thanx I'll be here all week .... try the veal and tip your waiter too.

BTW how thick is that paper? 5" :rofl:

[bleever]

64. He works like an Egyptian slave, but still has to make his own paper

by slicing up logs by hand.

And, for a guy who says "stop whining", it's really a pretty whiny note, isn't it?

[Botany]

68. Did I ever tell you that you are my Fave?

Try to hold your arm in the position as the guy in the picture :rofl:

[mopinko]

62. the color of the light is not consistent.

that yellow cast is from incandescent light there in the basement. the paper is pink-ish.
the shadows on the hand don't match up, either. i can't make out what is casting that shadow, exactly.

[Tiggeroshii]

67. Huh. I guess the only way to know for sure is ifthe guy finds himself on there and comes out...

Let's us get to know him a little to see if this is legit.