Sunday, March 06, 2011

Steven Frischling's Conflicting Accounts of Same-Sex Wedding Photos

Steven Frischling claims that his photos of same-sex wedding ceremonies in 2000 in Vermont ended up in Life, Time, Newsweek, US News & World Report, etc. Maybe true, maybe not - we've never suggested he's never had photos published.

But what does concern us here at the FishFraud Blog are the major inconsistencies in his stories about how he got those photos.

Story #1
In this story, he states that he was approached by a wire service to cover the event but turned it down to shoot it for UPI. Of course his photos were so fantastic he sold them for years after.

From Sports Shooter 2/8/03
http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=1113
"I shot the first day same sex marriages were legal in Vermont (anywhere in the US). Initially I was approched to shoot it for a wire, with full copyright transfer, I turned it down. I shot it for UPI (again, no copyright transfer) and Corbis, and in the next year photos I had shots appeared in LIFE's Year in Pictures (full page), Time's Year in Pictures (full page), LIFE's Photo Album 2001 (one and a half pages), Newsweek (3/4 page), US News (1/2 page), and about 32 other resales. In the past 2.5 years since the event I have made another 25+ sales of the images. I am not sure what the totals are for the licensing fees, but go to Editorial Photos estimator to figure out my sales to Life (twice) Time, Newsweek and US News. Quite a bit more than the $180 AP pays."

Story #2
Five years later, in a discussion on FlyerTalk about digital cameras, the story has changed. First, he was no longer shooting it for UPI but now says he was shooting for Life Magazine (not that he had a photo that ended up in Life, but he shot it for Life). Second, he says that he had to use a point-and-shoot digital camera to take the picture because both of his Nikon D1 (digital) cameras failed simultaneously. (He just has the worst luck!)

From Flyertalk 7/16/08
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-photography/845151-digital-newbie-10mp-vs-12mp-major-difference-2.html#post10044736

"Back in 2000 I shot a full page photo for Life Magazine with a 2.0mp Nikon Coolpix 950. Why the Coolpix 950? Both my 2.7mp Nikon D1 bodies failed simultaneously! Life Magazine was a large format magazine, quite a but larger than Time/Newsweek/USNWR, closer to the format of ESPN The Magazine."
Story #3
Remember his terrible luck, with both his D1 cameras failing simultaneously? But back on Sports Shooter in 2003, he posted a total contradictory story in which he shot this for a newspaper! This time, he claims he used the point-and-shoot CoolPix because his film camera (Nikon F100) ran out of film. He claims an intern who "begged" him to develop his film ruined it all, and then he "shortly after" bought a D1!

From Sports Shooter 4/21/03
http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=1705
"On July 1, 2000 same sex weddings became legal in Vermont. This was my first assignment back after my daugher was born (June 17), and I chose to shoot the midnight story because it was the first wedding to take place, it was 3 blocks from my house and I knew both "brides", so I knew I'd get all the access I wanted blocking out AP, Reuters, AFP, etc etc etc.

A summer inten (daughter of a layout person) begged me to let her run my film, since she was a photo student, and she has souped some film in the past I let her get the film back so I could keep shooting after the small ceremony.

When I got back to the paper my four rolls were all rolled together (in individual reels, but rolled tight) and burned. She had to confess she had been bringing in her own plastic reels and never used metal reels before. She did not want a problem so she did not ask someone to help her or wait for me.

Major national news has been destroyed....and I was upset because the wires and other papers got the ceremony in the clerks office, but not the brides getting dressed, re-reading the vows in private, speaking with the clerk in a private meeting with the other media trying to peek in the window, and other private tender moments,

Oh well, at least I got two different photos from a different wedding from the same day in Life's Year in Pictures (full page) and Life's Photo Album (1.5 pages). The full page was shot on a Nikon CoolPix 950 (my F100 ran out of film)

I bought a D1 shortly after this little incident (which caused me to break a finger when I punched the wall next to my desk in anger)."

Story #4
Now he says he bought his first D1 in September 2000, while the first same-sex weddings occurred in July 2000.

From Sports Shooter 10/25/03
http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=4980
"But the first digital body I bought was my D1 (for $5,500) in Sept 2000, followed shortly there after by a second D1."

Our questions:
  • Why are there so many conflicting details surrounding these photos?
  • Who did you shoot the photos for - UPI, Life Magazine, or the newspaper where the daughter of a layout person ruined your film?
  • Did you use the CoolPix because BOTH your D1s failed simultaneously, or because your F1 ran out of film, shortly before you bought your first D1?
  • What exactly is wrong with you?

Happy Lying!

62 comments:

  1. http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/02/17/Civil-union-bill-on-way-to-Hawaii-governor/UPI-72921297955383/

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  2. UPI, the one most of us remember, is long gone. Some posters have mentioned this and SF proceeds to call them...bad names for thinking that UPI went under. Correct me if I'm wrong - UPI was purchased in 2000 by Sun Myung Moon, who founded the Unification Church. The one that likened Homosexuality to...more really bad names. Before the purchase, UPI had essentially no staff and was over.

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  3. Steven Frischling LOL

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  4. FUNNY: http://www.frischling.com

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  5. http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/02/17/Civil-union-bill-on-way-to-Hawaii-governor/UPI-72921297955383/

    oh my god. coule he have used a wider lens? the feet on those guys are GIGANTIC and their heads are like pins.

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  6. Awesome: http://translate.google.com/#auto|en|frischling

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  7. "oh my god. coule he have used a wider lens? the feet on those guys are GIGANTIC and their heads are like pins."

    they look like clowns.

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  8. "oh my god. coule he have used a wider lens? the feet on those guys are GIGANTIC and their heads are like pins."

    Fish seems to have a thing for wide lenses - look at the A380 set.

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  9. He seems that he only has that one lens.

    I guess this is where he thought he could be a wedding photographer.

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  10. At least that couple had the opportunity to see their wedding photographs!

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  11. " At news events I usually figure the rules are for everyone else "


    From:
    http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=2305

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  12. " I shot approximately 200 fatal scenes in the course of a year at one point, 1996 "


    From:
    http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=3132

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  13. The resumes of his family members strike me as having similar patterns, lots of very high end achievements, very long lists of accomplishments. Not saying any of it is untrue.

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  14. ...I'm just comparing theirs with his.

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  15. "The resumes of his family members strike me as having similar patterns, lots of very high end achievements, very long lists of accomplishments."

    His brothers appear to be successful adults and functioning members of society. We have to assume they cut him off at some point (that website looks rather dated.) If you look at their various Facebook accounts - his father, his brothers and their spouses are all friends with each other, have each other listed as relatives, etc.

    None of these people are Facebook friends with Steven and Susannah. In this day and age, that should tell you something.

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  16. Good job on the gay marriage paper trail. Once again, the devil is in the details. Let's take a closer look...

    Steve writes, "Initially I was approched to shoot it for a wire, with full copyright transfer, I turned it down." Knowing that in the next line he tells us that he shot the job for UPI, we can assume that this first offer came from AP. I find it a little hard to believe that at a time when UPI was a wire service only in name, with no actual newspaper clients left, and pretty much just posting pictures in a bulletin board fashion, that Steve would have turned down an opportunity to shoot for a legit, functioning wire.

    But you have to take everything on faith with Steve. So let's take his word that he turned down the AP and chose to go with the perpetually going-out-of-business UPI. I can see the copyright ownership issues, sure. And he says he made a boatload of money from those sales to Life. (You know someone is checking each one of those magazines right now, right?)

    But then he says later that he was on assignment from Life. As if. He's now gone from a nonexistent wire service to an even more non-existent magazine. A Google search reminds us, "It appeared that the money-losing magazine was just hanging on to make it into the 21st century, and it almost did. In March 2000, Time Inc. announced it would cease regular publication of Life with the May issue, seven months before the century's end."

    So I'm a little dubious that Life was assigning a guy who couldn't even work as an AP stringer to cover this story, just as they were getting ready to wheel the furniture out of their offices. (It would be akin to imagining that on their last day of publication, National Geographic would assign a story to a photographer they'd never used.)

    Then, Steve writes, on this assignment for Life both his cameras failed AT THE SAME TIME! Because that happens so frequently to all of us, two cameras at once. (Snark aside, I've been a professional photographer since 1985 and that has never, ever happened.)

    Now, continuing our devil-is-in-the-details examination, we get to the best part, the icing on the cake, the third incarnation of the story:

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  17. (continued from previous message) Steve writes, "On July 1, 2000 same sex weddings became legal in Vermont. This was my first assignment back after my daugher was born (June 17), and I chose to shoot the midnight story because it was the first wedding to take place, it was 3 blocks from my house and I knew both "brides", so I knew I'd get all the access I wanted blocking out AP, Reuters, AFP, etc etc etc."

    Whoa, let' stop right there. Do you think Steve disclosed to his editors at Life or UPI or the local Pennysaver that there was a bit of a conflict of interest going on? Generally speaking, shooting news pictures of your neighbors would be a bit of a no-no.

    But our hero gets the story no matter what. And he runs back to the paper (this is like a dream: wire service morphs into magazine and then into a newspaper) and there's an intern just dying to soup his film. 'Cause all interns "beg" photographers to soup film (it's so exciting!) and all veteran photographers love to handoff important film to interns they don't know. It's a win-win.

    But this damsel-in-distress doesn't know how to use metal reels and she "burns" the film. (You've lost me there, Steve.) "She did not want a problem so she did not ask someone to help her or wait for me." If we were in the therapist's office right now, do you think he might ask if you were projecting at all, Steve? Because I find it hard to believe any intern would fuck up film like that and not want to grab the first person she saw for some help.

    And so, his Pulitzers in ruins, Steve does what any other photographer would do: break his own finger in anger. He writes, "I bought a D1 shortly after this little incident (which caused me to break a finger when I punched the wall next to my desk in anger)." Is it me or does Steve have more medical history than anyone on the face of the planet?

    (For historical context, Pat Zachry, a pitcher for the New York Mets in the 1970's, once kicked the dugout steps after giving up a game-winning hit. He broke his foot and his season was over. So you've got company, even if his injury was real and yours was imaginary.)

    Anyway, it's only when you start to focus on the smallest details of Steve's ramblings do you get a truer sense of just how delusional he is.

    Cheers.

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  18. Props to 1:01.

    The photo of you, SF, lying in bed with wires and stuff stuck to you. That doesn't prove you were in the hospital - that proves you were lying in a bed with a bunch of wires stuck to you. We can't see the room, we can't see anything that says you were actually in the hospital. Tell us, please, the name of the hospital, and maybe someone will believe you. I don't thing there are any reasonable laws are rules that says you can't reveal the name of the hospital. So why can't you tell us?

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  19. You like using wide angle lenses so much. How come you didn't use it then? We could see the room.

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  20. at least posting anonymously proves one thing - I'm not doing this to see my name on the internet. Facts speak for themselves.

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  21. Brad, consider a few things. Steven has lashed out at innocent people. He created a fake twitter account, anonymously, and slandered, without cause, several innocent people without one shred of credible evidence. He's raving incoherently on this blog. Take a look around here. Does the fact that name aren't assigned to these comments make them any less credible. Does it sound like these are made up? One fact after another is emerging that Steven has been unable to keep lying his way through his entire career. Forget the names for a minute. Try to argue with the facts presented here. Can you?

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  22. Wow. I have to read my posts first: "please consider a few things." "Does that fact that names aren't..." "Does it sound like these posts are made up." Does it sound like Steven has been unable to keep from lying..."

    All you have in his defense is that these posts are written anonymously. I'm not a big time photographer, but while I work I'm very lucky to meet some. I'm impressed by their integrity and hard work. Mostly, I'm impressed by the work, the photos, they bring home. I've met people who have been shot at. Do you know how amazing it is that someone is willing to do that? And it's incredible, to me, to listen to someone who pretends to be someone who has been shot at, when you actually meet someone who has - it's insulting and ugly. And it's dangerous. Come on. Convince me. Try something that makes me consider another possibility that Steven Frischling hasn't been lying. Tell me that these stories written by people who have been where Steven claims to have been are just getting made up.

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  23. He can lie all he wants on the internet. The one place where it's hard to lie is a court of law. He's been sued and admits it. Next sentence out of his mouth - he's not proud of it, so he chooses to leave it behind. What about the other half of the story he's not telling you, Brad? What he's not telling you is that he never showed up to answer any of the charges against him. Ever. Here's his big chance to get away from all those evil doers trying to harm him, and what does he do? Doesn't show up. I wonder why? Was he too busy covering the war in Iraq?

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  24. Yo Fish - give us some good stories about your work in Libya. You surely have something. Make something up if you need to, we're used to this.

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  25. "the facts presented here."
    March 6, 2011 3:06 PM

    "Don't recall ever claiming we were journalism at all. How much journalism is hosted at blogspot?"
    March 4, 2011 9:23 PM

    "His only response to Sam's letter was to call the Las Vegas Sun and try to get him fired. Truth."
    March 4, 2011 9:28 PM

    Sam Harris -- "So, 9:28, please stop posting hearsay and inaccuracies."
    March 4, 2011 9:56 PM

    Facts? Here? Sure. Who needs facts.

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  26. You're not going to get anywhere with that argument. Seeing through that stuff is easy for anyone with half a brain (I suppose you're lucky to have a few cells left), and is quickly discredited. Read. Think. Look stuff up. Your argument is as thin as the intelligence you're using to write it.

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  27. Who needs facts? Please tell me you're not that stupid.

    Steven does. That's who.

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  28. and, 4:30, you've just insulted a community of people who really do work for a living. Congratulations.

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  29. 4:30 Facts?

    Steven's long history of fictitious stories that are ever changing establishes the FACT that he is a pathological liar. If you can dispute that fact by showing proof that he never posted all of those comments and variations of stories on photography website message boards then maybe we'll listen. Unless you want us all to believe that the FishFraud people planted all of those message board comments years ago in anticipation of this blog and the (further) implosion of Steven's reputation.

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  30. "I did not intent to add incorrect information."
    Steven Frischling, 3/8/03

    http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=1373

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  31. It's so funny. Anytime someone comes on to the blog and says, "Oh, you're all so wrong about Steven." All we do is point and smile. Steven's taken care of all the facts we need.

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  32. "My resume simply lists no education on it."
    Steven Frischling, 4/8/03

    http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=1612

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  33. Who's ever finding these - They're hilarious.

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  34. I mean, for real... is there really any question as to whether or not SF received any TSA directive??? Not at all... It seems quite clear that it was a cut and paste job from Chris.

    http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-safety-security/1034711-did-tsa-ghost-write-flyingwithfish-tweet-twitter-coercion.html

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  35. "I am a photo driven geek, with no life what-so-ever"
    Steven Frischling, 6/17/03

    http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=2340

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  36. Oh, the TSA thing. $5 says Fish not only copied/pasted the directive from Chris Elliott, but also made up the fake notebook.

    It's all about making Piglet seem like he stuck it to "the man" when in fact "the man" doesn't give a fuck about a blowhard blogger.

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  37. http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/12/dhs-threatens-blogger
    "The Gmail address consisted of the name “Mike,” followed by random numbers and letters..."

    http://brajit.blogspot.com/2011/03/freefish-saga-continues.html, quoting Frischling:
    "along in that Addison's personal email is mikey99999@gmail.com, (his PayPal had been tied to it and it appears in my KLM stats)"

    I don't know if it's been mentioned before or if it even means anything. There are probably 1000's of gmail accounts with Mike in it, but is there an implied connection? Of course, that's assuming that he actually RECEIVED that email in the first place.

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  38. There are two comments here (3:06, 4:04) addressed to Brad but where is Brad's comment? Did he defend Frischling and then delete it?

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  39. "Is this part of the conspiracy to drive me nuts? Oh man, now I am talking to myself."
    Steven Frischling, 7/29/03

    http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=3019

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  40. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/travel-safety-security/1034711-did-tsa-ghost-write-flyingwithfish-tweet-twitter-coercion.html


    Seems he is getting FishFried on Flyertalk too. Isn't that owned the same company that he blogs for on boarding area?

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  41. Flyertalk's known as a message board that attracts liars and sociopaths. Google Barton Watson if you want to see a prime example of people who Randy Petersen liked enough to make a moderator.

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  42. Yes, FlyerTalk was started by Randy Petersen.

    Randy Petersen is a giant moron for keeping Fish on "board." What is wrong with him?

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  43. "Am I the only male photog who has no interest in shooting women in bikinis or bare topped?"
    Steven Frischling, 8/10/03

    http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=3246

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  44. "Flyertalk's known as a message board that attracts liars and sociopaths."

    no wonder Steven Frischling works for Randy!

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  45. "Why is it every day I wake up I feel like there is a wrecking ball about to crush my house?"
    Steven Frischling, 8/17/03

    http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=3387

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  46. "Oh! what a tangled web we weave
    When first we practise to deceive!"

    Moderator - "There are two comments here (3:06, 4:04) addressed to Brad but where is Brad's comment? Did he defend Frischling and then DELETE it?"
    March 6, 2011 8:43 PM

    Moderator - "what we DELETE is douchebags"
    March 3, 2011 9:50 PM

    Poster - "But don't you think it's only fair to warn posters that you will indeed filter, edit and/or DELETE anything against your agenda?"
    March 3, 2011 10:15 PM

    Moderator - "How can you filter or edit comments in Blogger? DELETE yes"
    March 3, 2011 10:23 PM

    Could probably find several more, but really why?

    So moderator, tell us all, how can anyone (Brad?) DELETE their post(s)? Come clean, tell us how and just repost what YOU DELETED. Or is it just "against your agenda" and needed to DELETED.

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  47. http://brajit.blogspot.com/2011/03/freefish-saga-continues.html

    Brajit does not realize she's not helping Fish one bit. He as already removed that post from Facebook because even he realizes that he broke the ToS by placing unsupported accusations in a public forum.

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  48. at 10:50 a psycho wrote:

    "So moderator, tell us all, how can anyone (Brad?) DELETE their post(s)? Come clean, tell us how and just repost what YOU DELETED. Or is it just "against your agenda" and needed to DELETED."

    Brad has a Blogger account. You can delete your own comments on other people's blogs if you left the comment under your own Blogger account.

    For people who are not insane: We did not delete Brad's comment, obviously. We get emails notifying us of all comments and there were none from Brad, so confusion reigned while suddenly two people were addressing him.

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  49. "Brad has a Blogger account. You can delete your own comments on other people's blogs if you left the comment under your own Blogger account."

    - ....as the moderator hurriedly sets a "Brad" Blogger account to cover his tangled web.

    "For people who are not insane: We did not DELETE Brad's comment, obviously. We get emails notifying us of all comments and there were none from Brad, so confusion reigned while suddenly two people were addressing him.

    - "confusion reigned"

    - Oh sure, silly me. And we wonder how quickly a "Brad" post will surprisingly show up "explaining" just want needs to be explained, or will "confusion" reign yet again.

    And to be totally honest, why does a moderator even feel the need to respond to "a psycho."

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  50. Brad is the owner of the previously discussed blog - http://brajit.blogspot.com/2011/03/freefish-saga-continues.html

    Thus our statement that he already has a Blogger account.

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  51. Yesterday someone tried to knock some sense into this nimrod. I had some hope that someone was friendly enough with this guy to help him see what was going on. Apparently not. Is he capable of listening to anyone? Is there anyone that even talks to him? If you only listen to people kissing your ass, the only thing you'll ever hear is the stuff coming out of it.

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  52. Does anyone have a link to the photo of SF where he is wearing the oxygen mask? I can't find it.

    SF, you are a loon!

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  53. Ha. Check his yfrog stream. It's right next to the picture of his son on his birthday. Poor thing. Imagine if SF spent all the time he does on twitter and in forums with his boy? What a shame.

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  54. 3/6/11 12:41AM links to a photo that was surely not taken any time close to midnight as version #3 of this story retells.

    It is just not possible, without divine intervention, the help of an alien mothership or a major astronomical event such as a nearby cataclysmic supernova to have both that blown sky and the sharp, crisp details in the building and subjects at nighttime, even in the middle of summer, at a northern latitude, with a bright moon.

    It just is not possible that this shot is not a daytime shot. There is no way it was made anywhere near midnight.

    Which provides clear visual contradiction to Version 3 for anyone who has even a basic understanding of the science behind photography.

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  55. Mask, wires, etc:
    http://yfrog.com/f/h4misj/
    Credit to February 28, 2011 12:10 PM for finding it, or for mentioning it first.

    It looks like a hospital room. Not much of it. But it looks like one.

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  56. OK, I give up. I have posted here repeatedly trying to warn Frischling to stop posting here, yet he cannot resist. Dude, your comments are obvious and you're not fooling anyone.

    I tried. You will not listen. Therefore, I will no longer feel bad for you. You're bringing this on yourself, fanning the flames, and I can't help but think you're somehow getting off on the attention.

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  57. the more Steven Frischling content on this site, the higher ranking it gets on google. Name alone does not get to the first page, but with more and more postings and inbound links, eventually it will.

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  58. oh gawd. He's back to tweeting the same stuff. About his first class travel and camera gear, Syrian Airlines. Who gives a s*&^.

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  59. I don't believe that he's flown on most of the airlines he claims, nor that he has/had elite status with the airlines.

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  60. 7:05 You've just joined the I Give Up On Steven Frischling Club. There's no reason to feel bad for him. Stretching the truth is one thing (unless of course you're a journalist). Defrauding people of their money is another.

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  61. Steven Frischling

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  62. A game about Steven Frischling? - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fish-fun/id335037370?mt=8

    ReplyDelete