Ninalee Allen Craig, subject of iconic ‘American Girl in Italy’ dies

May be of interest:

 

Ninalee Allen Craig, subject of iconic ‘American Girl in Italy’ photos, dies at 90

I remember how disappointed I was when I learned the "perfect" street photo was actually staged.

I don’t think whether the photo is staged is a settled question. Various accounts I’ve read make different claims. Ms. Craig seems to have denied it was staged to her dying day. The degree of staging almost remains a question and one account says the walk first took place candidly and was then simply quickly repeated to be caught on film with no particular intervention other than askin Ms. Craig to retake her initial walk down the street.

 

In some street work and in photojournalism in particular, staging might make a big difference in my reaction to a photo. The candidness or serendipity of some scenes seems significant. At the same time, street photography doesn’t automatically assume a lack of staging. Though many street photographers don’t practice staging, many do to varying extents.

 

In the case of this photo, whether staged or not doesn’t seem to make much difference to me. If it was staged, it was done extremely well and props to both photographer and model for pulling off such an authentic moment with such effortlessness. Well done theater is no small feat and can consolidate life while zeroing in on moments and emotions in very cathartic and human ways. Staged or not, there seems to be an important truth in terms of the carefree attitude of the woman walking down a street surrounded by men in those times, the truth of the liberated and almost defiant narrative being told. I think a lot of truth can be found in the gestures, dynamics, and relationships in the picture that transcend the debate between whether it was candid or staged.

It proves you can succeed with a degree in art history, especially if you marry a count.

 

From the attached article, the photo is not so much staged as controlled, to a very limited extent.