Category Archives: Staged Photos

An infant—traumatized, possibly injured and abandoned—was one of many victims when Japanese bombers blasted Shanghai South train station to smithereens in August 1937. “Bloody Saturday.”

We know the photographer: H. S. Wong (a.k.a Wong Hai-Sheng, Wang Xiaoting and by his nickname “Newsreel”). We know almost nothing about the baby. Read more

The bathtub? Adolf Hitler’s. 

The beauty in the tub? Lee Miller, an American-born model, artist, photographer, and wartime photojournalist for British Vogue.

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Phony War

When British Major William Martin’s body washed up near Spain in 1943, the Germans obtained a snap of his fiancée Pam – and Allied invasion plans. The Germans were delighted. So were the Allies. Read more

red_flag-2-watchesThe Reichstag Red Flag: Faked?

Staged? Faked? Like Joe Rosenthal’s famous Iwo Jima image that inspired him, Evgeny Khaldei’s dramatic photograph attracted controversy – and still appears in different versions.   Read more

Iwo Jima flag-raisingIwo Jima! Staged?

Six soldiers raised the flag, photographer Joe Rosenthal took his shot, his photo quickly became a phenomenon – and he was accused of staging the whole thing.  Read more