The falling soldier is real!

Robert Capa is one of my favourite photographers of all time. And since I wrote a small poem once (published here) about a photo he'd taken of a captured german soldier, although it's not the one displayed in my other blog.

I've just read an article that debunks all the rumours about the most famous photo of the spanish Civil War, The Falling Soldier, beeing fake. Under the assumption that since arranging photoshoots is or at least has been very common among war correspondants, war photographers and illustrators, this photo had to be fake. Richard Whelan, who also has written a biography about Robert Capa, has proved them all wrong.

In his article, Proving that Robert Capa's "falling Soldier" is genuine: A detective story, he investigates, checks and debunks the accounts of thos who have said that Capa couldn't have been at the spot at that time, or even those who said that Capa himself have said that the photo was arranged. The accounts had often confused Capa with either someone else or placed the situation seperatly on differant occasions.

I must say that I didn't know what to think about the photo before. I think it's a great photo and it looks so real. There is just something about the photo... hmm perhaps I should show it... that
makes me believe it. But I guessed it could have been a fake. What's the odds of anyone taking such a snapshot, at that time at that single moment the object of the photo get's shot. It's even more incredible when you know that this person, who Richard Whelan has identified as one Fredrico Borrell Garciá, was the only one who fell during this battle. However, with the identification of the fallen, Whelan proved that this person actually did fell during the civilwar, at that time and at that place.

Robert Capa is not without guilt or blame though, the shoot was in some way arranged. Apperently Capa met this patrol of soldier during a quiet moment in that sector during the battle of Cerro Muriano, and they were willing to pose for him. They ran needlessly into cover and shot into the thin air. This shooting did however attract the enemy who shot back using a machinegun. The result was one man dead and Capa took the picture.

I believe that Capa who died during battle in Korea wished he'd never taken that photo, if only it would mean that Borrell would live.