While it is true that many photographs are now altered, and that some.

             of these alterations provide a false sense of the world, there are limits.

             to these alterations that are not created by news organizations or.

             individuals but which instead are dictated by reality. The average consumer.

             of a photograph typically has a general idea of what the scene that is.

             being represented should look like. For instance it is understood that land.

             should lie below the sky and that people are typically larger than insects.

             Thus alterations that would violate either of these norms are guarded.

             against by reality and convention. If the photographer's goal is to be.

             believed, he cannot stray too far from conventional reality. The range of.

             manipulations is usually relatively small. Through both altered and.

             unaltered images, digital technologies have provided artists with greater.

             capabilities in this field, yet the barriers of what could conceivably be.

             reality have remained largely unchanged. When it comes down to the absolute.

             importance of this topic, the subject really narrows down to one simple.

             question how much should one trust photographs? Digital photographs, all.

             photographs, in fact, should be trusted to a "reasonable" degree.

             .

             Webster's Dictionary defines photography as the process of producing.

             images on a surface sensitive to light. Others refer to the camera as a.

             "mirror with a memory" and would agree that a "picture is worth a thousand.

             words". Before photography, written words were the primary form of mass.

             communication and drawings and paintings were the primary form of art,.

             entertainment and record keeping. However, in the 16th century the world.

             experienced a shift when ways to preserve images were introduced. There.

             must be a reason, however, for this growing popularity. What made people so.

             interested in photography? Photography had and continues to have many.

             purposes in the world including telling stories, establishing a mood and.