I love this picture, but I tend to love all of Annie Leibovitz’s photography. In this case it shows Sally Ride, Buzz Aldrin, and Jim Lovell (though apparently as played by Charlton Heston) enjoying a moonlit ride… except the shot was taken during the day and PhotoShopped (you can tell by the pixels).
Too bad about the weird Louis Vuitton bag placement, but then this shot was done for the famous high-end luggage fashinonista. The point of the shot and the site is to talk about important journeys, and since they have videos of these three space pioneers I’m willing to cut them some slack.
There’s a countdown clock on the site that’s set to go off in early July, which happens to be near the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11. Not sure what that’s supposed to mean, but I guess Louis will tell us when he’s ready.
June 3rd, 2009 at 2:40 pm
I sure hope Buzz Aldrin didn’t punch anyone out!
June 3rd, 2009 at 2:46 pm
Really, Michael L? ‘Cause I kinda hope he did. Nothing says kickass space cowboy like some fisticuffs, I reckon.
June 3rd, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Wierd that they’re not even looking at that moon, which the pic seems to imply.
June 3rd, 2009 at 3:13 pm
@Artbot – Yeah that’s like a character in a movie looking at themselves in a mirror. We can only see their faces (or face) and the moon (or the mirror) if they’re not actually doing what it is they’re supposedly doing.
June 3rd, 2009 at 3:23 pm
Bah, I’d love a high-res version of that image, but no such luck.
June 3rd, 2009 at 3:25 pm
I agree with Artbot – if they were looking at the moon, we would mostly see the backs of their heads, as they would need to be turning to their right. And the lighting/shadowing is not right – i.e., it seems to be coming head-on to their truck (or slightly to their right), and is presumably brighter than one would have even with a full moon (and very fast film), as you suggest in it really being a daytime shot. Also, the apparent size of the moon is probably slightly larger than it really would appear, absent a telephoto lens (which then wouldn’t work with the astronauts in the foreground). And the sky seems too bright, and the nearby stars are probably too bright so close to a full moon…
June 3rd, 2009 at 3:38 pm
@ #2 Greg –
So who there do you think Buzz should deck? Which ofthe other two deserves a punching in your view? Sally Ride or Jim Lovell?
Can’t see why Buzz would punch either of them although it would make a much funnier and stranger photo!
Bart Sibrel, of course, well and truly earned his richly merited smack in the snozzer.
PS. Oh and BA – I notice the shot in question is distinct in its absence until you click on the later link … Plus sorry to be a party pooper but it doesn’t float my boat much; it just looks like an ad to me. If you hadn’t said I wouldn’t have known who they were and just totally ignored it.
June 3rd, 2009 at 4:08 pm
You don’t have to depend on pixels for the photoshop conclusion. Look at the size of the moon. Look at the people. The moon is so large that it would have to have been photographed with a fairly long telephoto lens, while the people were photographed using a wide angle lens.
June 3rd, 2009 at 4:32 pm
Well, it could be a studio backdrop moon and skyscape but it’s more likely Photoshoppery.
If they were looking at the moon all you’d see would be the back of their heads. Artistic license, folks? Annie has an artistic license to kill, 007 style.
June 3rd, 2009 at 4:55 pm
No photo ever, ever makes it into an advertisement until it’s been through a serious photoshopping regimen. And this has been so obviously processed it’s probably more closely related to a collage than a photograph.
June 3rd, 2009 at 4:57 pm
That night sky reminded me- does anyone know if light pollution is bad in Switzerland? I’m going there this summer and I’m hoping that I can get in a good view of the night sky.
June 3rd, 2009 at 5:25 pm
Of course it’s photoshopped. But the article references a meme in which people say that everything is photoshopped, regardless. See http://xkcd.com/331/
June 3rd, 2009 at 5:58 pm
Sally Ride? Ugh…Peggy Whitson or Eileen Collins weren’t available, eh?
June 3rd, 2009 at 6:03 pm
@Opiecan:
Click my name for a map that will tell you all you need to know about light pollution levels in Europe (including Switzerland). There appears to be one very small region in the SE part of the country that is somewhat dark, but that’s about it. And you’ll be in the Alps, so your horizons will make for very limited views unless you’re willing to climb!
June 3rd, 2009 at 6:40 pm
Thanks! Looks like I’ll be in a moderate to light area of pollution.
June 3rd, 2009 at 9:08 pm
Forget the moon…. I love that truck!! 55 to 57 Chevy from the look of it. 15 comments so far and nobody has drooled over the truck yet? Come on! I can’t be the only car guy geek in the world!
June 4th, 2009 at 12:58 am
Do we really need to ask who Buzz needs to deck? I thought it would be obvious: Jenny McCarthy. After that, maybe we can fly him over to Seattle…I hear there are some folks over there who could use some help discovering his fist.
June 4th, 2009 at 2:05 am
I hope their bags are better quality than their spell checkers.
“Deustchland”? Ugh.
June 4th, 2009 at 2:49 am
That’s supposed to be a Vuitton bag??? I’ve got one almost exactly like it (minus the shoulder strap) – I bought it years ago from a market stall, for about 2 quid. Course, my bag is mostly plastic and nylon, but you couldn’t tell from a distance….
June 4th, 2009 at 8:02 am
It wasn’t photoshopped – they’re looking at a UFO!
June 4th, 2009 at 10:28 am
Here is an article about it…
http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2009/06/01/new-vuitton-ad-campaign-the-right-stuff/
June 4th, 2009 at 11:11 am
They are looking out at the Universe. Eyes on the prize.
June 4th, 2009 at 6:02 pm
Anybody find a link to a high-res wallpaper version of the image?
June 4th, 2009 at 8:33 pm
They’re watching Bruce Willis take out that asteroid. Wewt!
August 22nd, 2009 at 12:47 am
semi hires version, with less text.
http://www.louisvuittonjourneys.com/#/en_US/the-astronauts-by-annie-leibovitz
Wait for the craptastic Flash site to load and display the image, then do a screen capture.