After reading “Richard Whelan’s discussion of Capa’s photograph” I definitely find his arguments convincing. His use of evidence and engagement was convincing as well. Carefully analyzing his photograph, I don’t think his photo was staged. The man’s body position looks realistic as his back arch with the impact of the shot into his body. In addition, the motion of the man’s arm/hand is revealed by how he is letting go of his gun. I definitely believe that its authenticity matters because the image is so real. It looks real! Therefore, it wouldn’t be questioned by many. This image reminds me of the image that showed a soldier left in between rocks. Both of the images portrait exactly what war is really about. However, the image of that soldier was staged to catch a crowds attention. It was a dead body that had absolutely no motion. On the other hand, Capa’s photograph shows the motion as it took place. He clearly captured the image at the right time. The image was able to show each move as the body collapsed and unfortunately dies. The gun falling and making an impact, all helps the audience prove that the image was not staged.

This photo looks like it’s been staged because I think if he gets shot, he should be falling down straight instead of butt facing the ground. However, I did change my mind after I read the article whereas O.D. Gllagher and Bill Mauldin both provided evidence to prove that Capa purposely staged the the photograph but later both of their evidence to be proven fake. Gllagher did not share a room with Capa and the photograph Maulin recognized was by George SIlk.

Also, I don’t think you would be able to have that much time to stage a photograph in battlefield. It was a period of war, if they wanted to stage a photo they did not have to go to a battlefield. They could have done it somewhere with a similar background, not having their life risked under flying bullets.

I think authenticity does matter, because when viewers are getting information from the photo they expected the information to be true and real. If the photo is fake, then what is the point of spending time to look at something that is unreal. But, sometimes a staged photograph is only meant to make the photo more convincing, it might have been staged but doesn’t mean it is not authentic.

I personally don’t believe that Capa’s photo was staged due to a few things. One, the way his legs are positioned doesn’t seem as if that was something that could be positioned that way. Another thing is that it looks as if the gun is flying out of his hand, it would be kind of hard to get a shot of a gun like that unless the photographer took their time to do that. Even though Gardner’s photo “Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter” was staged, in Capa’s photo there are many differences that showed why his photo actually happened the way it is photographed. The main difference between the two photos is, once agin, the gun. In Gardner’s phot the gun is placed nicely on the wall. Furthermore, in Whelan’s article , one thing that he mentioned that really caught my attention was when Gallagher claimed to be with Capa at a hotel and that he heard him calling for people to help him stage the photo, but then all of a sudden he claimed that he had Capa mixed up. Another point that caught my attention was when Whelan stated that he was able to prove that Capa was at that exact point to capture the photo of The Falling Soldier. Authenticity definitely matters when it comes to photographs taken during war and photographs in general because they can be used as evidence.

I think the photo Falling Soldier by Robert Capa is real. From what I can see, the angle of the man’s legs are off-balanced. It will be hard for the man to maintain that position and wait for Capa to take the photo without the help of props. Furthermore, even if the falling is real, like what Captain Robert L. Frank said in Robert Whelan’s article, “It is nearly impossible for any conscious person to resist the reflex impulse to brace his fall by flexing his hand strongly backward at the wrist and extending his fingers out straight.” The feeling of being off balance and falling will jolt reflexes and impulses to help prevent or to minimize the pain upon impact. Another example of reflex is when people suddenly and out of nowhere hears an explosive sound, their heart are bound to beat faster and their muscles will tighten as the “fight or flight” instinct kicked in. Personally, I feel that the issue about whether Falling Soldier is staged or not varies according to the different lenses and criteria. If the goal of the photo is to show real events, then Capa’s photo’s authenticity matters. However, if it is to show the experience of war, then it does not matter whether Capa’s photo is staged or not, because the goal is to educate people about something.