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Image Manipulation: Photoshop As a Data-Measurement Tool UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations 1-1-2007 Image manipulation: Photoshop as a data-measurement tool Tracilee Rose Hoffman University of Nevada, Las Vegas Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/rtds Repository Citation Hoffman, Tracilee Rose, "Image manipulation: Photoshop as a data-measurement tool" (2007). UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations. 2291. http://dx.doi.org/10.25669/u33b-jidq This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by Digital Scholarship@UNLV with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Thesis in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Scholarship@UNLV. For more information, please contact [email protected]. IMAGE MANIPULATION: PHOTOSHOP AS A DATA-MEASUREMENT TOOL by Traci lee Rose Hoffman Bachelor of Arts University of Nevada, Las Vegas 2001 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Arts in Journalism and Media Studies Department of Journalism and Media Studies Greenspun College of Urban Affairs Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas May 2008 UMI Number: 1456340 Copyright 2008 by Hoffman, Tracilee Rose All rights reserved. INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI UMI Microform 1456340 Copyright 2008 by ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 E. Eisenhower Parkway PC Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Copyright by Tracilee Rose Hoffman 2008 All Rights Reserved Thesis Approval The Graduate College University of Nevada, Las Vegas A p r il 24 .2008 The Thesis prepared by Tracilee Rose Hoffman Entitled IMAGE MANIPULATION: PHOTOSHOP AS A DATA-MEASUREMENT TOOL is approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Journalism and Media Studies Examination Committee Chair Dean of the Graduate College Examinamn Commm Examihat m m inee M ember Graduate College Faculty Representative 11 ABSTRACT Image Manipulation: Photoshop as a Data-Measurement Tool by Tracilee Rose Hoffman Dr. Lawrence Mullen, Thesis Committee Chair Associate Professor of Journalism and Media Studies University of Nevada, Las Vegas Researchers believe that image manipulation threatens photography’s perceived objectivity of capturing moments in history. Current research exists that is aimed at determining whether images have been subjected to methods of manipulation. While this research is thorough in its approaches to detection, it lacks methods that would facilitate the measurement of those manipulations. This study uses Photoshop to measure the qualitative changes in images. The aesthetic dimensions set forth by Gillian Rose (2007) such as content, color, spatial organization, and light can be isolated, manipulated, and ultimately measured. This research is aimed at facilitating additional questions regarding what constitutes image manipulation, the extent of image manipulation using the methods described herein, and how image manipulation may affect the viewer. It also hopes to show that widely accepted practices of image modification need to be revisited as technologies continue to update at an unprecedented rate. Ill TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT................................................................................................................................. iii LIST OF FIGURES.................................................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES..................................................................................................................... vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.....................................................................................................viii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION............................................................................................1 Background .......................................................................................................................1 Significance of Study ...................................................................................................... 3 Theoretical Background ..................................................................................................3 This Study’s Purpose ...................................................................................................... 5 Conclusions .......................................................................................................................7 CHAPTER 2 IMAGE CREATION AND MANIPULATION: AN OVERVIEW..........9 Early Photographic Milestones......................................................................................9 Methods of Photographic Image Manipulation: A Brief Overview....................... 17 CHAPTER 3 IMPORTANCE AND ROLE OF THE PHOTOGRAPHIC IMAGE.. ..31 Background .....................................................................................................................31 The Social Role of News Images................................................................................32 Visual Literacy ............................................................................................................... 42 CHAPTER 4 EXISTING RESEARCH...............................................................................57 Image Forgeries and Manipulation: Qualitative Approaches to Image Analysis. 58 Computer-Assisted Detection: Quantitative Analysis of Manipulated Images.... 59 CHAPTER 5 METHODS......................................................................................................70 Selected Cases................................................................................................................ 72 Procedures ....................................................................................................................... 80 Analysis of Cases...........................................................................................................84 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 96 CHAPTER 6 RESULTS ........................................................................................................97 Panic and Human Shields in Basra .............................................................................. 97 Madrid Train Bombing ............................................................................................... 103 IV Summary .......................................................................................................................106 CHAPTER 7 DISCUSSION ...............................................................................................107 Cases............................................................................................................................. 108 Relevance......................................................................................................................110 Limitations................................................................................................................... 112 APPENDIX................................................................................................................................116 REFERENCES.........................................................................................................................123 VITA.......................................................................................................................................... 134 LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1 The Two Ways of Life..........................................................................................22 FIGURE 2 Las Vegas Lights ..................................................................................................23 FIGURE 3 Joseph Stalin and Nikolai Yezhov......................................................................25 FIGURE 4 National Geographic, Volume 161, Number 2 ................................................ 26 FIGURE 5 O.J. Simpson’s Mugshot .....................................................................................28 FIGURE 6 Temple of Queen Hatshepsut in Luxor Egypt ...................................................29 FIGURE 7 Composited Image, Brian Walski, 2003 ..........................................................73 FIGURE 8 Unaltered image used for British soldier, Brian Walski, 2003 .......................74 FIGURE 9 Unaltered image used for Iraqi man holding child, Brian Walski, 2003 .......74 FIGURE 10 Close-up showing recurring background artifacts, Brian Walski, 2003 .......76 FIGURE 11 Madrid Train Bombing,
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