Amazing photos of Nazi Germany by Hugo Jaeger using a Leica LTM??

[Roger Hicks]

I think the photographs are wonderful such good composition and great exposure, the man was a hell of a photographer. Interesting to see WW2 images in colour rather that B&W as it looks real in a way that B&W doesn't.
Had I been born in that place and time would my face have appeared in one of his images, would I have gone along with the mass hysteria? I hope I would have seen reason but think I might have joined in... scary stuff.

Dear Brian,

A friend of mine who was a (UK) Communist Party member in the 1930s once said to me, "If I'd been in Germany, I think I'd have fallen for it. The uniforms, the glamour, the girls..."

Then again, he was a man of uncommon intellectual honesty, who left the Party and later rejoined for the pleasure of being thrown out.

Cheers,

R.

 

[huntjump]

That was powerful. Thank you for sharing. Anyone who objects to these photos i think is completely missing their value and ignorant to the power of understanding history. Every single person on this planet should learn about the horrors of WWII, the atrocities committed and learn how to prevent any repeat of this.

Nebraska, great points. While i was reading your post it scared me to think a lot of that sounded like what I'm seeing in the US (referring to the "conservative" business, financial and aristocratic elite")

many of these same photos are seen in this video too: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fuiyn_BY6mE&feature=related

 

[peterm1]

Most fascinating and also troubling pictures and interesting thread. I just would like to make a minor, though significant, point in regard to the above statement. It is true that Hitler came to power in a democracy. But it also needs to be mentioned that he never received a majority of votes. It also may be worthwhile to mention that Hitler's "success" only began after the Wall Street crash of 1929. His ascend to chancellor was facilitated by the "conservative" business, financial and aristocratic elite that hated democracy. He was appointed by the conservative president Paul von Hindenburg and voted the Enabling Act (dictatorial power) with the help of the conservative parties including the influential Zentrums Partei (the parent party of today's CDU) after the burning of the Reichstag (blamed on the Communists). It was the liberal/socialist/left parties that opposed the act and then paid a heavy price for their principled position.

I certainly would not disagree with any of this. But of course I still stand by what I said - Germany was a democracy and Hitler came to power using essentially democratic processes (well excluding the street fighting, the violence and Jew hating that his supporters freely conducted and he encouraged even before he came to power.) Yes he never held a majority. But he had most votes and thus was able to effectively control the Reichstag. Its also uncontroverted that Von Papen and others thought they could use him for their own purposes and thus did little to stand in his way or stand up to his insane and brutal policies. Which I think is part of what you are saying about the role of the conservatives. it just goes to show how politics cna pervert principles in the name of power.

 

[zauhar]

Most middle class people today seem completely unable to stand up to authority, even when they have little to lose. Almost like their brains have been "pre-washed".

Which makes these photos frightening, fascinating and uncomfortably current. Thanks to the OP for posting the link, I would not have run into these otherwise.

Was Jaeger "evil" for taking advantage of the opportunity to photograph history as it happened?

Randy

 

[bgb]

Dear Brian,

A friend of mine who was a (UK) Communist Party member in the 1930s once said to me, "If I'd been in Germany, I think I'd have fallen for it. The uniforms, the glamour, the girls..."

Then again, he was a man of uncommon intellectual honesty, who left the Party and later rejoined for the pleasure of being thrown out.

Cheers,

R.

Dear Roger,

I think than many men all better than i fell for the 'idea' of the Nazi party, I have met a few old Germans from that time and they said they truely felt like supermen who could change the world.
They believed in Adolf but not so much in going to war however they accepted it, as for the 'atrocities' they all said they weren't involved and knew nothing. They could have been any of us.

Regards, Brian

 

[uhoh7]

Wedding Photos are propaganda too

 

[peterm1]

Most middle class people today seem completely unable to stand up to authority, even when they have little to lose. Almost like their brains have been "pre-washed".

Which makes these photos frightening, fascinating and uncomfortably current. Thanks to the OP for posting the link, I would not have run into these otherwise.

Was Jaeger "evil" for taking advantage of the opportunity to photograph history as it happened?

Randy

I think this is true. There is something about groups that make most people comply. Most people act like sheep. I see it often in the work place. Of course I have never worked for someone like Adolph Hitler. But I have on more than one occasion worked for people who if properly examined would qualify as having at best, narcissistic personality disorder or more worryingly as being psychopaths. And I have observed how their paticular brand of banal cruelty permeates the workplace while erstwhile good people cower and look on. As Edmund Burke said "All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing"

Incidentally there is research which shows that psychopaths (also known as sociopaths) are strongly represented in high level leadership roles - business, governemnt - you name it. Hitler was more than this of course but I think that he was most definitely a psychopath no matter what other psychiatric descriptiosn could be applied to him.

www.guardian.co.uk/science/.../psychopath-workplace-jobs-study

 

[red snapper]

Sticking to the wartime theme I would like to share these with you, one of my first my first digital jobs using newly acquired D100,s:

http://http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2004/06/293068.html

 

[Roger Hicks]

Most middle class people today seem completely unable to stand up to authority. . .

Dear Randy,

Why 'middle class' and why 'today'?

Are there many exceptions in history? Except when led by demagogues?

Cheers,

R.

 

[FrankS]

The punitive treaty of Versailles would also partially explain how/why Hitler came into power.

The genocide part, that's just pure evil and insanity.

 

[uhoh7]

The punitive treaty of Versailles would also partially explain how/why Hitler came into power.

The genocide part, that's just pure evil and insanity.

As the famous studies show, the average person is perfectly content to electrocute a "subject" to death, on the orders of an authority.

 

[charjohncarter]

Fantastic, thanks.

 

[porktaco]

hitler wasn't an alien from mars who brainwashed a nation with zeta rays. he was a man and a man with allies in high places. and, critically, a man who connected with (many of) the men and women in his country. the human element in those pictures is helpful to anyone looking back on that time. totalitarianism is evil, genocide is evil. but it's evil perpetrated by people on other people, often through the manipulation of emotions. realizing that can only help prevent the reappearance of such horrific regimes.

 

[raytoei@gmail.com]

guys, let's keep politics out of this excellent photographic thread....

any guess what lens was used later in the series ? i noticed a lack of summar glow in the later pictures.

raytoei

 

[nebraska]

I certainly would not disagree with any of this. But of course I still stand by what I said - Germany was a democracy and Hitler came to power using essentially democratic processes (well excluding the street fighting, the violence and Jew hating that his supporters freely conducted and he encouraged even before he came to power.) Yes he never held a majority. But he had most votes and thus was able to effectively control the Reichstag. Its also uncontroverted that Von Papen and others thought they could use him for their own purposes and thus did little to stand in his way or stand up to his insane and brutal policies. Which I think is part of what you are saying about the role of the conservatives. it just goes to show how politics cna pervert principles in the name of power.

I essentially agree with your position. But the simple fact is that without the support of the conservative parties (and their aristocratic and business supporters) Hitler could not have passed the necessary legislation to destroy the fragile Weimar Republic. Yes, he had the largest block of votes but not control of the Reichstag nor the necessary votes to abolish democracy. To me this tragic episode shows how ideology (conservative hate of liberalism/democratic socialism, etc.) can pervert politics.

 

[peterm1]

A bit of an aside but I am warming to this theme of people in high level leadership roles who have malignant behaviours. Not like Hitler of course, but dredful behaviours that do harm people and the body politic.

At the moment in Australia there is a high level tussle going on between the current Prime Minister (Julia Gillard) and the previous Prime Minister (Kevin Rudd). Rudd was ousted in 2010 by his own party who now say they did so because could not work with him and cannot do so now, - tagging him as autocratic, demeaning of his colleagues and totally ineffective as a leader. But he is very very popular.

So popular that the polls say the Labor Party would win easily if an election were held tommorrow and he were leader of the party. And the same polls say that if they were to go to the polls with the present leader they would lose in a landslide.

But the majority of his party who have experienced him have rejected his comeback- well over more than two to one against. They say they simply cannot face working with him again. This is how much damage some people to those who work with them when they are in power.

There has been a great deal of footage of him recently working the crowd. He oozes charm and laps up the adoration that flows in return. But apparently this is part of the problem - he did the same when in office - constantly courting the public whilst by the published accounts of his party colleagues, alienating everyone else. And some of their number have not been backward in saying he has behaved in a malignant manner with plenty of suggestions of psychopathy , narcissism and the like. (I am only reporting what is being reported in national press.)

Sadly disfunctional behaviour at the top leadership of countries is not limited to murderous dictatorships - they are only a most extreme form of what happens in a much more petty way elsewhere.

 

[Spyro]

There has been a great deal of footage of him recently working the crowd. He oozes charm and laps up the adoration that flows in return.

K-Rudd charming? Seriously? Damn... I've been in this country for 7 years now and I dont think I will ever understand australian psyche.

Anyway the photos are awesome, already posted them elsewhere too.

 

[Harry Lime]

I would say these are not Kodachrome but I have nothing concrete to base this on. I have scanned many Kodachrome slides from the 40s and early 50s. Some in this set almost look hand-colored, Kodachrome doesn't look like this.

Amazing collection!

My guess would be they are Agfa. Kodachrome has a little more bite, contrast. Agfachrome also seems to acquire a greenish tint when it ages. Kodachrome on the other hand is extremely stable.

 

[Harry Lime]

When ever something like this surfaces after many decades of storage, I can never fail to think of how little digital photography will be around, just a short time down the road.

That's one good reason to keep shooting film...

 

[mfunnell]

K-Rudd charming? Seriously? Damn... I've been in this country for 7 years now and I dont think I will ever understand australian psyche.

I was born here and have lived here for three quarters of my life and I'm not sure I do either.

Thing is, everything Peter says about Rudd was well known to close followers of Australian politics. Alan Ramsey (former dean of the parliamentarty press gallery) famously referred to him as a "prissy, precious pr--k". The indispensible Anabel Crabb - who pointed out that most members of his party would be willing to chew their own arms off above the elbow just to escape him - even wrote an entire book about him.

None of which matters as most people in Oz just don't follow politics at all closely. What they know about Rudd is that he acted the part of "nice Mr Kevin" on morning breakfast TV, getting at them before their first cup of coffee and before their defences were up. The rest is history.

...Mike