Approves
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Guys, I figured it out. The “photographer” spent four years in community college for digital photography.
Four years.
This is CLEARLY a viral campaign for the heretofore unannounced Community movie.
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That’s why those people look like that, they’re Turnips!
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It seems rather dangerous to blame a real, actual person for these, though. That’s a big ol’ lawsuit waiting to happen, and surely people would realize that? This is why this doesn’t work as some viral stunt for me - there’s going to be a really serious negative impact on the ostensible photographer’s reputation that the photographer wouldn’t inflict on herself and surely anyone else wouldn’t be so reckless. Unless the person putting these photos out there is neither the photographer nor the client, but some random third person impersonating the client. But why?
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Talent at what, though? Perhaps the lightroom editor is a brilliant harpsichordist?
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Maybe, though at 8 months out I’m willing to bet this is what the mechanical turk handed back. I’ve been stunned in the last few years at what I’ve seen passed off as work.
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amateur comes to fee/ballsup without online software
Well, according to her LinkedIn profile, she has a BA in music.
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I want these to be a hoax. But I have seen some pretty amazingly bad stuff presented as professional photography. So, as someone who used to do photo work in the pre-digital era who has an onion in his belt and a bone to pick, let me offer a rant my wife doesn’t want to hear again:
There are a ton of people out there in small town flyover USA who make a living because their sister, brother, wife, husband, second cousin, or sweet baboo works at the local schoolatorium, mega-church, dance studio, or what-have-you. They get by on semi-extorting money from semi-captive clientele and not on any particular skill.
It helps that a lot of the people in these areas don’t have a lot of taste or awareness–and think a photo is great if the digitally-added backdrop is a Murican flag, football team colors, or a nice fireplace with a Crimma Tree.
There are examples close to home from people I love. My dad gave over the only copy of a photo of his grandpa to be hand-retouched–the photo was more or less destroyed–but he liked it. My mom has a big stack of portraits of herself which have been retouched by her boyfriend–she loves them–and he’s a “professional”–but she looks like Tammy Fae Baker in all of them. Or maybe a cross between the animated version of the Joker and TFB. Someone in cultural studies needs to do a book on this.
Anyhoo, to bring this rant to a self-righteous and outraged close: I wouldn’t be surprised if this was legit–even tho it is a bit of a natural log progression from the actual awfulness out there. (And, really, isn’t this believable coming from the folks who brought us President Shithole Combover?)
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Something like this? (Some people really seem to hate their own kids)
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A photographer friend of mine looked into this a bit and said she saw a statement from the photographer on some photography forum.
Supposedly the client was being extremely fussy and kept requesting additional edits, and so the photographer eventually got pissed off and delivered the photographs as shown.
This version of the story makes the most sense to me. My friend looked at the photographer’s site and she didn’t think the photographer was particularly skilled (her portfolio wasn’t great and she didn’t choose a great time of day to do the shooting) but a botching like that is deliberate.
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It’s like something I’d see in a Negativland album booklet.
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And this is the shit people (the type @Supercrisp mentioned above) in turn expect from me when they approach me for an oil painting. Ugh.
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Okay, now you have to ask you friend to please share the photographer’s website link. It’s not easy to find. Also, please ask your friend to share that photography forum link. Thanks in advance!
Okay, so yes, your friend is right. This photographer is not particularly skilled. I now have found her wix website:
http://lhphotos1.wixsite.com/lhphotos
Also, over on Facebook, there are two threads that indicate that someone have reached out to Lesa directly and she explained that the couple wanted to use the family pictures on their business website, then when the photographer explained that this would required a different contract and special licensing (and more money), they got pissed at her. Also, it seems that the family refused the free re-shoot that the photographer offered. At this point, it is unclear if the botching was deliberately done by the photographer or deliberately done by the client, but in any case, I think they both have motives.
More info on the comments on these two Facebook posts:
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It seems pretty wierd that someone would keep at it until this result was
achieved… And then deliver them. “Yup, looks good!” As opposed to the
minimum amount of time spent editing. Maybe it was all paintbrush work
because she doesn’t know how the clone brush works.
Her prof obviously never taught her that in business, when taking money for work, saying “my prof never taught me how to do that” won’t get her anywhere in a court of law, which is where this entire thing should be taken.
The pictures may have motifs, but neither the photographer or client do. They do, however, have motives.
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