HW. #4: Robert Capa’s “Death of a Loyalist Soldier”

The photograph named ‘Death of a Loyalist Soldier’ by Robert Capa was a great piece of art work from my point of view. This picture had been recognized as the greatest war photograph of all time, and I do completely agree with that. This photograph in particular had been pin pointed and received a lot of controversy over the years. While observing this picture, I cannot come to a conclusion that whether this picture is staged or not. If it was staged, it was done at its best, with high professionalism. Robert Capa had magical hands that could manipulate camera shutters in a timely manner. I like to believe that this picture is not staged, only because of the timing of the shot. It was such a perfectly timed shot, and Capa deserves the credit for that work. Robert Whelan’s arguments were not that convincing to me. The main reason that Robert states that is many soldiers were spotted dead at the same exact spot. That might be coincidental, from my point of view. Photography is an art, and for art works, I don’t think that authenticity matters. Its how you present the work, not the way you did. Only the final product counts. This photograph is worth appreciation, regardless of questioning its authenticity.