MJK 1 Colour version - WARNING - GRAPHIC IMAGE

[Carol]

Hi Steve and Jane!

I would just like to thank you both for being so generous as to share the results of your very hard work with the rest of us. In my opinion colour helps to give us a reality check on what actually happened to these poor women. Black and white can be atmospheric but only colour can give us a true picture. The warning was a good one and I'm sure many members of Casebook appreciated it. I would have needed a warning when I was young but at my great age of nearly 65 I can now look at most things!

Again, many thanks to you both. I can really recommend your thread to everyone, Jane - 'Jane Coram's pics'. Mind-blowing!

With lots of love to you both,
Carol

[Brenda]

.

John,
Just so you know, this site is full of respected published authors and unpublished authors, bloggers, artists, reconstructionists, photographers, editors, criminologists, college professors, police officers, television producers, census researchers, historians, theorists, Whitechapel preservationists, at least one medical doctor, inkologists (LOL!) and just plain hobbyists. Just a look around the site should convince you that the subject of "Jack the Ripper" covers so much more than the actual murders. You never know who you might be talking to on this site, and the quality of intellect here is what has kept me coming back for 9-10 years now. I truly don't know of another site quite like it on the 'net.

[sgh]

A note on the image reconstruction method

An explanation on the image enhancement and colouring work in Adobe Photoshop.


This may be a bit awkward for the none photoshop savvy to understand but I'll try my best.

It's important for method credibility reasons as I have noted some serious misunderstandings
by a particular poster.

------------
All work is performed on a duplicate of the original image. The original remains intact.

Before any colouring work can commence on the image it is necessary to carfefully enhance
the tonal range in the shadows, mid tones and highlights to try and rescue the faded condition
and bring it back to life because this provides a stronger foundation upon which further work can then take place.
No cloning or other invasive technique is employed as this would immediately render the image valueless for research purposes!



The initial enhancement work as with all further works on the image is acheived using nondestructive 'adjustment layers'
in Adobe Photoshop (CS3 Ext)

Basically, adjustment layers in 'photoshop' appply the adjustment math on top of the pixel information, so there
is no damage to the original image pixels beneath.


The colour work is achieved by selecting a specific area of the image then adding a
colour balance adjustment layer to add a transparent colour.
These critical selections are made at 100% and 200% view for accuracy.

A colour balance adjustment layer can best be described as laying a sheet of clear glass over the selected area
then using colour controls to 'tint' the glass 'layer' to the desired colour.
This means that all the original details of the image remain visible and now have colour.


The applied colour layer automatically takes on the tonal depth range from the base original, so if part of my selection contains
a highlight the colour will appear very light, and if part of the selection is a midtone, then the same colour
will appear darker to match the depth of the midtone, and so on to the darkest part of the selection producing
the darkest shade of the same colour.


I hope that clarifies things a little and not left out anything major, but that's the gist of things
without resorting to a greater technical discussion.

------------


A good example of the sheer power and capability of this colouring method can be seen
back in my first post which includes the cropped close-up of the victim, in particular, the top
of the bloodstained chemise, right at the edge where the neckline would be, or thereabouts.
An apparent blood dispersal pattern can be detected there with a little more clarity.
I did not 'draw', 'paint', alter, or invent any of those shapes of the blood pattern whatsoever.
All I did was make a subjective selection of that area of the chemise then applied an appropriate
colour balance adjustment layer which revealed more of the existing detail.



The purpose of the enhancement excercise as stated in my first post is to try and offer the serious researcher
a clearer understanding of the picture.
It should be used only as a guide alongside the original sepia image due to the very nature of subjective
reconstruction work.


I appreciate positive discussion, and as my work progresses will from time to time seek advice and consensus from
serious researchers - several of whom have already posted positively here, for agreement on correct interpretation of the
reconstruction as it progresses.

Many Thanks
Best, Steve



--------

[Hunter]

Well said, Brenda and thanks for your explaination, Steve.

It has been asserted that the killer of each of these women left little evidence... beyond Kate Eddowes' apron and possibly some graffiti in the passage of the Model Dwellings on Goulston Street. But I would submit that the photographs of the victims - especially those of Mary Kelly - are evidence of a more substantial nature.

Unlike the items in Goulston Street, these photographs are still here to stand as testimony to the reality of what occured in a small part of London in the fall of 1888. The picture of Mary Kelly's mutilated remains is the best evidence of a serial killer's work. Those that believe otherwise should take a good look at it. This type of brutality defies any logical explaination of motive.

The name, Jack the Ripper, may have been an invention of some 'enterprising journalist', but this picture is evidence that the name was appropriate. It is his real signature in flesh and blood.... evidence of a mentality that was inconceivable, even to those that investigated it.

I hope that Steve's work, here, continues to provoke our minds in a proper analysis of what happened to this poor woman. Real harm is done when we choose to forget what all of the people that endured this... went through. This gruesome, grainy old photograph is a stark reminder.

[Carol]

Hello Steve,
Thank you for posting a step by step guide to working miracles on very old photographs! I'm afraid I'm only a little bit wiser - my brain went fuzzy when you used the word 'math' in the eighth paragraph. It will probably take me all day to recover now.

Seriously though, I appreciate both your work and Jane's more than I can say. I'm sure those poor women would be grateful that they have never been forgotten and that there are genuine fellow human-beings who feel pity for them and want their murderer to be named even over a hundred years later.

Keep up the good work!

Love,
Carol xxx

[Loublin]

Iv taken a look of her work already, it was pretty informative. I'm a artist and photographer and have been mucking with drawings and photoshop to attempt the same type of thing. I'm heading to Cali for a Family emergency in a couple of weeks but if I get anything done I'll post. Thanks for the welcome. My first impressions have certainly been changed. ;P

[sgh]

Hi sgh
I think this is good work and very informative. I had never seen this level of detail before and it made me notice a couple of things, maybe significant or not but I think so. 1. I can really see by the close up of her arm that In my opinion MK looks like she was not stout (thick), short or fat. Her arm(bone structure) appears to my eye to be that of a normal size, shaped woman maybe leaning toward actually taller and thinner. I could not really tell from previous pictures I have see. 2. The cuts to the arm are highlighted to reveal to me for the first time that the killer made one downward cut and then diagonal downward cuts off the first cut, creating upside down v pattern kind of like Eddowes. Why cut in a pattern like that?

Also, I think one can talk/work objectively about these horrible murders and still have deep respect and sympathy for the women. Since i have learned the details of their lives, it makes me think about them just as much about JtR(and all the mystery and romantasizing around him). When i think of Mary Kelly helping out other unfortunate women even given her tough circumstances it really makes me realize how good people can be, no matter how bad their situation.

Hi Abby, sorry about a late response to your message.
I quite agree with your observations regarding the victims size - not as stout as one might expect. Not thin nor overweight, but somewhere in between.
We have reports indicating her height as around 5'7".

I'll leave the forearm cuts to conjecture at the moment.

The colour recon work on the image is coming along fine and greater detail is gradually being revealed, some of which has quite surprised me!
It will be checked by several expert researchers here who I know have the proper skills and equipment to give the image and associated working files a rigorous examination not only for item identification accuracy with the image itself but also compliance with nondestructive image enhancement techniques.

For the moment
Best
Steve

[sgh]

The colour image - WARNING GRAPHIC IMAGES

The finished coloured version 1 of the MJK 1 photograph.
Please note that the sole purpose of this project is to try and clarify
the somewhat feint and often ambiguous details in the original image by adding colour subjectively as an aid to
further research.

I can only recommend the coloured image to be used alongside the original as a reference guide only
as it is not intended to be a definitive interpretation, however, great effort has been made to be as accurate as possible!

As I mentioned in my earlier posts in this thread, no pixels are added or removed nor blemishes retouched
in any way.
The colouring techniques and methods of improvement I've used in Adobe Photoshop (CS3) are all nondestructive.
The colours are applied by overlaying a transparent colour 'tint' above the original image so the underlying
details remain visible and untouched.

May I take this opportunity to thank two of my good friends - Jane Coram and Archaic for their invaluable
help and expert knowledge who kindly gave their assistance on any technical, item identification or historical queries
that arose during the project.




*WARNING PLEASE NOTE*

For comparison, the well known sepia image is shown first followed by the coloured version.


Go no further if you do not wish to see the coloured image.

Best
Steve.

[Archaic]

Hi Steve.

Again, the colorized photograph gave me quite a shock. You've done an incredible job of enhancing this old photo so it reveals more details regarding the utter depravity of Mary's killer. It's hard to believe than anyone would want to inflict such horrors on another human being.

You did an excellent job of showing the subtle pattern in Mary's chemise. Good choice of colors- just enough so that it's visible. It does make me think that Mary may have sewn her chemise herself from some cheap patterned cotton, because most chemises were white, cream or pastel with a bit of lace trim and sometimes embroidery.

The deep wounds in Mary's forearm definitely look like deliberate mutilations to me, not "defensive wounds" as was surmised in the past.

I'm wondering what the flesh-toned bit just above Mary's left forearm and the crook of her elbow is- Do you think it's a strip of flesh?
It looks too large to come from her forearm, unless its from the underside that we can't see. Nor do I see the faint pattern that would tell us it's part of her chemise.

Mary's bicep was clearly singled out for removal, and the detail your enhancement reveals is amazing. It reminds me of the fact that Jeffrey Dahmer had a 'bicep fetish'. When he murdered his victims he made a practice of removing their biceps in order to indulge his cannibalistic fantasies. I've heard of other killers doing this too.

The ghastly mutilation of Mary's poor face is so beyond words that I won't even try. I don't really believe in Hell, but this photo makes me feel that's where her killer belongs.

And you are most welcome, Steve, for any assistance I've been able to give you along the way. I feel that all of us owe you our thanks for your dedication to this important but emotionally difficult project.

Thanks and best regards,
Archaic

[Jane Coram]

Hi Steve,

Although I've already said this in an email to you, I think it's worth repeating here.

I think you've done an astounding job on this - there have been quite a few discussions over the years about various aspects of the photograph and this project has settled a couple of them at least pretty conclusively.

In the uncoloured image, the right leg at the top appears to show that the femur is broken. It's not - it's an optical illusion, but quite a few people have suggested over the years that it looks as if it's broken. With the remains of the muscle clearly differentiated with colour, it's clear that it is just an illusion.

As Archaic has already said, the wounds on the top of the arm as well show up much better than in the uncoloured version and gives an idea of just what the sick bugger was trying to do. The wounds on her lower arms no longer look defensive wounds as many have thought, but just further mutilations.

A really valuable piece of work. Well done.

Much love

Janie

xxxx

[richardnunweek]

Hi,
Excellent work Steve, it really brings to life not only the hidious mutilations, but the depravity in which kelly lived in that sordid little room.
It really brought home the state of mind the killer was in during his time in room 13.
What a sad bastard.
Regards Richard.

[babybird67]

Steve

amazing work. Thank you so much. Words are not able to express how talented you are and how valuable the work you produce is. The clarity of the image and the reality of the crime scene now are just beyond description.

Jen x

[Carol]

Hi Steve!
I hope you haven't given yourself nightmares bearing in mind the hours of work you must have put in on the image. Unbelieveable work. Thank you on behalf of us all for not only using your talents so that we can fully understand the terrible awfulness of the murders and maybe even discover something new, but also being brave enough to do the work. A job not for the fainthearted!
Love
Carol

[Carol]

[QUOTE=Archaic;172956
"I'm wondering what the flesh-toned bit just above Mary's left forearm and the crook of her elbow is- Do you think it's a strip of flesh?
It looks too large to come from her forearm, unless its from the underside that we can't see. Nor do I see the faint pattern that would tell us it's part of her chemise."

Hi Archaic,
I think it is just part of her body - laid bare but not butchered at all.
Love
Carol

[claire]

Excellent work there. Is that nail varnish on her toenails? Interesting.