I Hope It's True

[samuel orris]

Okay, so I was talking to a friend of mine this morning about Gettysburg and he said he saw something on TV that showed a photograph supposedly taken just before Pickett's Charge, looking towards Cemetery Hill. In the photo you could see the backs of the Confederate's heads and also, at the top of C.H. you could see Union soldiers.
I told him I know of no photos taken during the battle and that the photographers showed up a day or two afterward. For a photographer to actually be at a precarious position near the front of a battle line would be unheard of, not to mention a death wish for the photographer.
Still, did anyone else see this program or do you have any knowledge of a photo that would have this type of subject matter (not necessarily G-burg)? JPKHudson has been posting a lot of photos from the Archives, but I highly doubt this one would be there.

 

[Chattahooch33]

I'd say the chance is about -10%

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

I'd bet what he saw was a still from a reenactment, movie, or an image of a painting. Combat photography basically didn't exist yet (though there are two images from the Charleston area, one on each side, that may qualify).

 

[AndyHall]

Extremely doubtful. Such a photograph would be widely and instantly known if it were authentic.

There's a few-seconds-long clip on YouTube, purportedly of Confederate soldiers marching during the Gettysburg campaign, that is actually taken from footage from a big reenactment that's been run through a bunch of video filters to make it blurry, scratchy, and otherwise "old-timey." I suspect this image is more of the same.

 

[Jamieva]

Really doubt it. I mean what's the odds that such a picture existed and it wasn't found until 2015? Actual battle photos were pretty much non existant due to the danger to the person taking the picture and people moving in the picture would be blurry due to the long shutter rate of those cameras.

 

[reading48]

I doubt it, or it would have been shown in all the civil war magazines???????

 

[Lnwlf]

Extremely doubtful. Such a photograph would be widely and instantly known if it were authentic.

There's a few-seconds-long clip on YouTube, purportedly of Confederate soldiers marching during the Gettysburg campaign, that is actually taken from footage from a big reenactment that's been run through a bunch of video filters to make it blurry, scratchy, and otherwise "old-timey." I suspect this image is more of the same.

That was my first thought. Although there seems to be a rash of "new" finds lately, I would be very skeptical of it. Photoshop in the hands of one skilled in its use can be quite deceiving. I hope it is true, but I won't hold my breath.

 

[Lnwlf]

I doubt it, or it would have been shown in all the civil war magazines???????

B-b-b-but its on the internet! Who needs magazines???

 

[Nathanb1]

If there was one, we'd have it. Nope, for all the reasons above. I suspect the friend misunderstood (or the program was on the History Channel).

 

[diane]

I'd like it to be true, too. Uncle Billy was in that charge - might be able to recognize the back of his head!

 

[samuel orris]

Video photography wasn't used until the 1930's so I definitely would not believe in the authenticity in Andy's post. I concur with everyone else.