Which was the biggest Photoshop disaster?

Thu Aug 27, 2009 7:23 PM EDT

Live Poll

Microsoft is hardly the first tech company to look foolish due to bad Photoshop jobs. There are plenty of other examples, documented by Photoshop Disasters and others, where company marketing tries to pull a fast one on its customers, only to have keener eyes prevail.

Results with 9 short comments
Total of 878 votes - click on the "Display Comments" bar below to sort comments

51.9%

Microsoft swapping the head of a black man with a white man's.

456 votes

14.2%

Camera phone's magical zoom.

125 votes

7.3%

Asus and MSI using the same ad.

64 votes

17.7%

The Lexar SD card.

155 votes

5.7%

Capcom poaching game art.

50 votes

3.2%

Other. (Explain in comments below.)

28 votes

Display Comments:

Camera phone's magical zoom.

Actually, if this is a photo taken in a mirror, you would see the camera as depicted. So, no magic required.

1 vote

- Bubby, OKC, USA

- 1:20 pm EDT on Fri Aug 28, 2009

Other. (Explain in comments below.)

None of them. They all are simple cases of overlooked details. And I didn't see anything wrong with a few of them.

- Aerdrie S.

- 1:55 pm EDT on Fri Aug 28, 2009

Microsoft swapping the head of a black man with a white man's.

Only because it looks really fake. And BTW Bubby, if taken in the mirror, you would see the lens of the camera in the shot.

- Blaquer

- 1:59 pm EDT on Fri Aug 28, 2009

Other. (Explain in comments below.)

F.A.C.E.S. use of purchased photos to represent citizens against coal industry regulation.

- tf gray

- 2:56 pm EDT on Fri Aug 28, 2009

Microsoft swapping the head of a black man with a white man's.

This is really second after the creepy woman with the extra finger. I think she works at my local Safeway! Just sayin'

- Fazool-555369

- 3:25 pm EDT on Fri Aug 28, 2009

The Lexar SD card.

Abstract visualiztions in Ads is what advertizing is all about. Why does everyhting have to be linear?

- ASignOfTheTimes

- 4:49 pm EDT on Fri Aug 28, 2009

Microsoft swapping the head of a black man with a white man's.

If you look carefully in the Microsoft ad, the black/white man is actually using a MacBook... Seems like Microsoft is advertising for Apple

- pauliepancakes

- 6:53 am EDT on Sat Aug 29, 2009

Microsoft swapping the head of a black man with a white man's.

Frankly, I think this article sucked because MOST of them the text didn't explain the error and they were so subtle that I couldn't find em

- tpg-sr

- 5:24 am EDT on Sun Aug 30, 2009

Other. (Explain in comments below.)

Actually, This is less about Photoshop 'disasters' and more about a piece of poor journalisim. Not a very good article. And written poorly.

1 vote

- ktandnt

- 5:19 pm EDT on Mon Aug 31, 2009

— Filed under: photoshop, advertisements

Advertise | AdChoices

xirus

i guess with this little fiasco, the black man's head isn't the only one that ended up on the chopping block. LOL

#1 - Thu Aug 27, 2009 9:17 PM EDT

Teri-1301691

The way the runner is situated on the track in the Vista ad ... when the gun fires, the runner wouldn't go around the curve but instead would go straight ahead into a wall. Owwwwww!

#2 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 12:50 PM EDT

Dubs!

Yes that is true. But the main point was that the runner has no shadow.

#2.1 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 2:56 PM EDT

Aerdrie S.

Simply a lack of attention to detail. And if someone could explain to me why the one with the two boys at the computer desk and the one for Okami are listed, I would appreciate it. I don't see anything wrong with either of them. Thank you.

#3 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 2:00 PM EDT

dumdumwantgumgum

Obviously you did not look very closely at the computer desk picture! The enlarged portion clearly shows the reason it is a fail! The boy is pointing at a woman on the computer screen who has her pants down!!!!

#3.1 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 2:20 PM EDT

Dubs!

The computer desk picture the boy is pointing at a sexy bikini model type picture, that is bending over the hood of a car. Sorry dumgum but if you zoom in on the pic she doesn't have her pants down.

#3.2 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 3:00 PM EDT

g-742308

the Okami cover art has a watermark on it -- from IGN. Okami came out for ps2 and was later updated for Wii. The people that did the cover art for the later edition just grabbed an image off the internet that was used by IGN -- a gaming website. IGN gets permission to publish images from games -- so they watermark them. Then Capcom goes on the internet and gets one of those images and uses it for cover art.

#3.3 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 7:47 PM EDT

Critic-1301922

Actually "Bubby" the camera magical zoom wouldnt look like that in a mirror...cause the camera part would be facing the mirror and you wouldnt get the BACK of camera in the photo then... pay closer attention before you speak please.

#4 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 3:36 PM EDT

NjTexan-1302040

Geessesshh...all the photos showed so tiny because of all the other crap on the page I couldn't see anything wrong with any of them.

Who takes the time to make pages that are useless because you can't see the tiny photos?

#5 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 4:53 PM EDT

Copyeditor

I agree -- I tried to zoom in on the insert (I set my browser window to 200% of normal), but it became blurry. The same with the Lexar Professional ad -- I couldn't see anything wrong with it. Was I supposed to be reading the tiny print on the left, either above or below the arc? Could someone explain this one? Thanks!

I used to copyedit for MS, and they have extensive guidelines and rules advocating gender and racial equality and diversity, but when they target ads to particular cultures, they try to not offend anyone. For example, in some strict Muslim countries you are not allowed to show men and women together in the same photo or art.

#5.1 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 6:26 PM EDT

Moni-557331

Problem is in the reflection below it... It took me a minute too...

#5.2 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 6:31 PM EDT

g-742308

I thought the lexar was funny -- the reflection says 4GB.

#5.3 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 7:52 PM EDT

Paradise671

The SD card is pretty much fail. so easy to recognize

#6 - Fri Aug 28, 2009 10:48 PM EDT

dave-1302506

Of all time???? Has to be TV Guide mounting Oprah's big wide-eyed head on Ann Margaret's HOT-SO-HOT Bod!!!

#7 - Sat Aug 29, 2009 1:53 AM EDT

pauliepancakes

If you look carefully in the Microsoft ad, the black/white man is actually using a MacBook...

Seems like Microsoft is advertising for Apple nowadays.

1 vote

#8 - Sat Aug 29, 2009 6:57 AM EDT

David in Boston

Lexar ad is confusing and may actually have two problems. The refection showing 4 GB is wrong, but also notice that this is "free" at bottom right of package? Since when do companies give stuff away for free?

#9 - Sat Aug 29, 2009 9:20 AM EDT

Aerdrie S.

A big "Thank you" to everyone who pointed out why the computer desk and Okami pics were on the list. Personally, I still don't see the big deal with the desk pic. Yeah, two little boys pointing at a scantily clad woman leaning over the hood of a car. Big deal. The image they were looking at could have been far worse. And I had to use a magnifying glass to see the watermark in the Okami pic. I'm 43 and have worn glasses since I was 4. My eyes just don't work as well as they used to (and that wasn't all that great in the first place). Again, thank you for your help. Cogito Ergo Periculosus

#10 - Sat Aug 29, 2009 1:50 PM EDT

Dances With Dingos-1000249

Actually the computer desk was a joke posted on fail blog or some site like that a while back. The original image had the same psychadelic pattern on both fake computer screens. At the time I went to the vendor's website and saw the original, so it looks like PC World didn't do enough homework before publishing this piece! PC World gets punked by fail blog! I'd consider that a FAIL in and of itself.

#11 - Sat Aug 29, 2009 2:25 PM EDT

Wintermute-440606

The pics are so small and grainy that you can't even see what the problem is in many cases, even when it's been explained.

#12 - Sat Aug 29, 2009 6:10 PM EDT

ktandnt

I wish I had the time that the writer of the article must be able to spend on a piece of schlock such as this. He reminds me of 'Comic-Book Store Guy' from "The Simpsons"

(Worst Photoshop....EVER!!!)

Our digital age is full of so called 'photoshop disaster's', and we just don't need to pay this much attention to them.

PC World needs to keep their ship in better order, this article seems more like it full of inside jokes that we the casual reader just don't seem to get.

And, if you are writting an article about pictures, how about letting us see the pictures?

1 vote

#13 - Mon Aug 31, 2009 5:25 PM EDT

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Results with 9 short comments Total of 878 votes - click on the "Display Comments" bar below to sort comments

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Results with 9 short comments
Total of 878 votes - click on the "Display Comments" bar below to sort comments