History relies heavily on eyewitness accounts and photos. When these accounts are falsified, history can get muddy. There are tons of photos that have been doctored and transformed to employ a certain narrative that a person wants, but that ends up changing history...
Abbey Road Was Photoshopped For American Audiences
It's shocking, but it's true. You probably had no idea that the infamous album cover that we all know is actually the tiniest bit photoshopped. Apparently, the cigarette in Paul's hand wasn't gonna fly with the American music industry, so they decided to alter the photo before releasing it to audiences...
No More Cig
This is actually the album cover we all know and love. It's not a huge difference, but it does change the feeling of the photo just a bit. The image of Paul barefoot in the street with a cigarette loosely dangling from his hand is the pinnacle of carelessness... Without the cigarette, it just looks like he's barefoot to be edgy.
Churchill Was a Smoker
Winston Churchill was a frequent cigar smoker, as were most folks back in the day. As smoking became more and more taboo, the English government decided to start photoshopping the cigars out of his hands and mouth to promote a better image of him.
The Photo that Circulated
This was the photo that circulated worldwide. It's much more recognizable without the cigar hanging out of his mouth! In a way, the photoshop job does create a more positive image of him, even if it alters history...
General Francis P. Blair Added to the Photograph
General Francis P. Blair, sitting down on the right, was added to the photograph after the fact. He couldn't make it to the shoot, but the American government didn't want to release a photo of their top generals with one missing. So, they had to alter history.
The Original
The photo shown above is the original photo. They intentionally left a space on the right so that they could photoshop the general onto it. On a later date, they used the same exact setup and had General Blair sit in the spot on the right. Then, they overlayed the photos and sent it out to the public.
This Photo of Ulysses S. Grant Is Totally Fake
Most historically photoshopped photos have been minor things that don't really affect how we view an event. This one is the complete opposite. It's even labeled as, "Grant - Civil War with Generals." That's not the case at all...
Competely Fabricated
Grant's team decided to circulate a fake photo of him looking majestic on a battlefield. Instead, it's actually just three photos mashed up... They took a photo of Grant at his home base and meshed with with another photo of a man on a horse. From there, they added that to the battleground.
Someone Is Missing
This photo with Hitler in it doesn't seem like it would need to be photoshopped, but it ended up changing drastically. Weirdly enough, they took out a certain person to give it a better "look." Historians are still a bit baffled as to why they chose to remove this person...
Goodbye, Joseph Goebbels
Joseph Goebbels was Hitler's right-hand-man. They never had a falling out as far as historians know, so the fact that this photo was manipulated to take him out was just bizarre to people. He was by his side all the way until the end.
Kent State Shooting
This infamous Kent State photo is still circulating to this day, but not for the same reason. Now, it's used in journalism classes all over the world to talk about the ethics of photoshopping something like this event. In 1970, Kent State student protestors were met with gunfire as National Guardsmen tried to disassemble the protest. The photoshopped object was so menial, but it still created issues.
The Distracting Fencepost
Obviously, photojournalists don't always have the time to set up the perfect shot. This photographer ended up getting a heartbreaking shot that circulated the world. A photo editor decided that the fencepost messed with the aesthetic of the photo and shopped it out... Was that the correct choice?
Prime Minister of Canada, William Lyon Mackenzie King, and Queen Elizabeth
This photo of two powerful people looks like nothing could actually have gone wrong, but apparently, it did. King's camp wanted to circulate this photo of him and the Queen to make him look more powerful. But first, they had to take out a certain person...
King George VI Is Out
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth were visiting the Prime Minister in his home country when this nice photo was taken. Apparently, the PM's camp didn't think that this photo would have the same effect if King George wasn't in it... So, out he went.
A Powerful Photo of Abraham Lincoln
This is one of the most popular portraits of Abraham Lincoln to date. It's commonly used when referencing him in videos or books. No one had any idea that this wasn't actually President Lincoln...
Surprise! It's John Calhoun
Yep, weirdly enough, they decided to photoshop this composite image of Southern anti-abolitionist John Calhoun to make a more demanding composite of Lincoln. He wasn't the most "assertive" looking man, so this was their solution.
Only the Real Ones
Mao Tse-tung (or Zedong) was the founding father of the People's Republic of China. Even he wasn't above being petty enough to photoshop an ex-friend out of a photo! Despite this being an older and somewhat irrelevant photo, he decided to photoshop out a certain someone so only these two friends remained...
No more Po Ku
The gentleman on the far left, Po Ku, ended up having a falling out with the Chairman. So, in order to rid the memory of him, Tse-tung decided to photoshop him out of any photos that may go into media rotation.
Mussolini's Power Stance
Italian dictator Benito Mussolini was obsessed with his image. He needed to make sure that everyone knew how powerful he was at all times. Naturally, that wasn't quite the case and he wasn't as powerful as he tried to make himself out to be.
Hold My Horse
Mussolini demanded that his horse's handler be photoshopped out of the image as it would tarnish his repuation. Even though there's no shame in having a handler hold the horse still, Mussolini knew that it wasn't up to par with his dictator role. So, out he went.
Look Closely
This photo of the Russian flag being raised over a battle-torn town raised eyebrows when a magazine editor took a look at it. A photographer sent this photo around to get it into circulation, and an editor of Ogoniok, a magazine in Russia, took one look at it and noticed a problem with one soldier's watch...
He Had Two Watches
It's hard to tell, but this soldier actually had two watches. He had one on each wrist, which then led people to believe that they were looting the town that they destroyed. Naturally, Russians weren't interested in giving out that narrative, so he photoshopped the watch out of the photo to make them look better.
Joseph Stalin Wasn't Afraid of Photoshop, Either
This photo is actually one of the most famous historic photos that were photoshopped. Stalin, like other dictators, didn't want any traitors or ex-friends in any photos with them. So, he had them photoshopped out. To the left of Stalin is Nikolai Yezhov, the head of the police force...
Removed From History
Yezhov ended up falling out of Stalin's good graces, so Stalin tried to get him removed from history. Any photos of Stalin and Yezhov together had to be redistributed after the photoshop job was complete. Once again, dictators really love their image.
Trotsky and Lenin
Leon Trotsky was a trusted name in the Soviet Union. He was close with Lenin and the arch-rival of Stalin. Stalin, who we know loves a good photoshop job, decided to try and erase Trotsky from any photo that he could get his hands on. He really did his best to erase the man from history...
A Menial Photo Where Trotsky Was Erased
Stalin and his team worked diligently to try and remove Trotsky from history. Even in a photo like this, where you can barely see Trotsky, was taken and photoshopped. Stalin had some petty ideas, that's for sure...
Stalin Strikes Again
Here is another photo that very loosely featured Trotsky. Stalin and his people found the photo and decided that it should also be photoshopped. He knew that any image of Lenin would probably also have Trotsky, so he would erase him...
And, He's Gone
Eventually, Lenin and Trotsky would also butt heads. Trotsky was eventually exiled from the Soviet Union, and Stalin continued his campaign of removing him from history. Obviously, it's difficult to erase history...
No Longer a Cosmonaut
This is a photo of Russia's cosmonauts who were the first people to orbit the earth. It was a huge feat, especially at the very beginning of the Space Race against American astronauts. Russia, loving the idea of photoshop, had an issue with one of the cosmonauts and decided to try and erase him from the history that they made...
One Less Cosmonaut
Grigoriy Nelyubov was removed from the team due to misbehavior. Eventually, he was completely removed from the program and was even stripped of his achievement. Russia then began the process of deleting him from history via photoshop.
What Could Hitler Look Like?
This is a bizarre photoset of possible identities that Hitler could have survived under. Many conspiracy theorists believe that the dictator is still alive and changed his identity. This is a popular photo of what they could have looked like.
Missing Some Players
The US Olympic Hockey Team missed some of their players for the photo op, but they had an easy fix for it. They decided to badly photoshop them in! It's like they were there...
Fidel Castro Did It, Too
In the classic supreme leader fashion, Castro was also one to try and erase his ex-friends from history. If someone close to him went against his wishes or ran off, Castro would put in measures to make sure that it was like they weren't even there in the first place... He did it seamlessly, too.
Carlos Franqui
The man in the middle is Carlos Franqui. He was part of Castro's crew and in his close circle. At some point, he abandoned the regime. Castro exiled him to Italy, where he lived for the rest of his life. Even though Franqui played a large role in Castro's life, Castro made sure it was like he was never there.
Getting the Perfect Shot
This photo looks normal at first, right? The British soldier is seen calming down Iraqi citizens so that they don't get hurt in any possible crossfire. What made this image so popular was the Iraqi father with his child looking at the commanding soldier. This dynamic created a narrative that most countries who are in war-torn areas want: the people that they are protecting look up to them. In a bizarre twist, this photo is completely shopped to create that narrative.
Photoshop Job
The photographer who took the photos saw the opportunity for a creative narrative and took it. Any journalistic integrity of this photo is gone since it's basically rewriting history and creating a fake narrative, no matter how close to the truth it might be.
Iranian Missile Launch
Iran photoshopped their missile launch to cover something up. They talked a big game before this launch, but when something went wrong, they tried their best to "fix" it...
The Real Photo
Iran launched four missiles, but only three took off. In order to "correct" the accident, they photoshopped another missile into the air to show their rivals that they were successful in their launch. Obviously, this ended up turning into a conversation about government propaganda.
David Cameron Goofed
This seems like a normal photo, right? Nothing would need to be photoshopped? Well, David Cameron didn't think so. In fact, his team made such a poor decision in photoshopping this that they had to apologize. This photo was posted to Downing Street's Facebook page. Citizens immediately noticed that something was off...
Fake Poppy
The poppy photo was posted for Remembrance Day. Apparently, his team thought that it was a bright idea to photoshop a poppy for the occasion. People immediately noticed how fake it looked and ripped him to shreds for it. They ended up taking the photo down.
The Most Famous National Geographic Cover
Most magazine covers are edited a little bit to make sure that it fits the actual cover, but this photo was completely photoshopped. The essence of the photo is still there, but the authenticity is not. The editors took the original photo and moved some things around to make it look more appealing...
The Real Photo
In order to make sure some of it fit, they photoshopped the entire photo to make it nice and neat. A lot of people believe that this ruins the integrity of the photo just to sell magazines. In any case, this is a neat shot.
"Valley of the Shadow of Death"
This photo was taken by a journalist during the Crimean War. The goal was to depict all of the cannonballs in the street after a grizzly battle. Unfortunately, the photographer outed himself to photo manipulation when he posted all of his photos, and only one of them had these cannonballs...
Fake Cannonballs
Turns out, this photographer decided that his photos were "lively" enough, so he decided to photoshop a bunch of cannonballs into just one shot. Without thinking, he published the other photos as well. People noticed the outlier photo and accused him of faking it. He denied it.
No Friends for Stalin
Stalin loved to create his own history, that's for sure. This is a photo of him and his trusted accomplices. True to form, one by one they fell out of history...
One Down
After the gentleman on the left fell out of Stalin's life, the photo was reproduced into a portrait and then redistributed. This lasted for a few years until someone else crossed him...
Another One Bites the Dust
Just like that, another person is burned from Stalin's history. The photo was taken again and made into an illustration so that it only featured Stalin and his last trusted comrade. It didn't take long for this picture to go back into the hands of an illustrator...
Me, Myself, and I
Just like that, one of Stalin's most famous portraits is created. After all of these men either left Stalin's side or was kicked out, Stalin was the only one to remain. Of course, he had to get rid of that last man to cross him to make this a single, lone portrait.
Not Oprah!
This photo made history for a different reason. Oprah was put on the cover of a TV guide in 1989, but the photo itself was not Oprah. Despite the photoshoot they did for her, they decided to completely photoshop the entire thing. This one is wild...
Ann-Margaret
The photo that the editors decided to steal was of glam model Ann-Margaret. The designer of the dress, Bob Mackie, spotted the flop of a magazine cover and brought attention to it. It was a big scandal and an even bigger slap in the face to Oprah.
Kim Jong Il and North Korean Troops
Obviously, North Korea doctors their photos. This is something that has been an issue with the country for decades. It's hard to trust anything that comes from them because of the lies that they've been caught in! In something as small as this. After Kim Jong Il suffered a stroke in 2009, the government decided to show how powerful he was by having him visit some troops. Except, he didn't actually go.
Looking Closer...
At first, it's hard to tell that he's photoshopped in there. But, photo analysts were able to determine that he was definitely was not present for the actual photo. You can tell by the way the background changes between his legs and the other troopers' legs. A simple photoshop fail...
Israeli Government
In 2009, the Israeli government elected a new Prime Minister who brought on new electric officials. It was a momentous occasion for the country. They took this photo for the media and sent it out, not thinking anyone would try and doctor it...
No Women
One newspaper, in particular, decided that they didn't like the photo, but they needed to distribute it. So, they decided to photoshop the only female government officials in the photo to two other men who were already in the picture. They believed that their readers won't like the idea of women in government, so they photoshopped them out.
John Lennon and Che Guevara
This photo of the British rocker and Cubano revolutionary struck a chord with a lot of people. The idea that music and war could come together to easily piqued peoples' interest. Too bad this is fake! This famous photo is actually doctored. Guevara's face is actually photoshopped onto Wayne Gabriel's body.
2004 Tsunami
The tsunami's that hit Asia were devatasting. A lot of horrible photos have surfaced since then. Fake ones have come up as well. This photo was most known for huge waves crashing into a busy street in Asia, but that's not the case. It's actually a photo of Chile, and the huge waves were photoshopped in.
9/11 Survivor
This photo has been circulating on the internet for years. This was taken when the man in the photo visited New York years before 9/11 took place. He decided to doctor the plane into the photo to make it seem like he was on top of the World Trade Center during the catastrophic event.
Adding to the Fleet
North Korea released this photo to the public to showcase their strong military presence. When taking a closer look, it's obvious that some of the soldiers and hovercrafts have been cloned to showcase a larger military presence.
2015 Fake Missile Launch
This photo of North Korea testing missiles terrified the rest of the world... Until they actually looked at it. There are many facotirs to showcase that this is a fake missile in the photo, especially the reflection in the water.
Infamous Einstein Photo
This is another popular photo that has been floating around the internet for years. It's most certainly fake, especially because the photo of Einstein riding his bike can be found not in front of an atomic bomb test site. Although it does seem like his nature to be so carefree around a huge explosion, this isn't real.