Mystery Man

Who is this?

(No fair doing a Tin Eye or Google Images search. Just guess.)

Mike

Send this post to a friend

Please help support TOP by patronizing our sponsors B&H Photo and Amazon

Note: Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. More...
Original contents copyright 2011 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved.

Featured Comment by Martin: "Fantin-Latour? Ephrussi?"

Featured Comment by Steven House: "Is it you Mike, whilst at Corcoran School, and studying some old film processing techniques?"

Featured Comment by Charles Lanteigne: "Meh...Fuzzy concept!"

Featured Comment by Mike Chisholm: "Alec Soth, obviously. No, wait—the hat—it's 'David Malki!'"

Featured Comment by Tim Parkin: "Meriadoc Brandybuck (at least the film photography version)."

Featured Comment by Ralf: "A. (Nose) A."

Featured Comment by Lucian Pintilie: "That's PhotoFrankenstein. It's supposed to look like Abraham Lincoln, but everything is Photoshopped: each eye is from a different person (judging by the eyelids and the direction of the gaze), the nose is not aligned with the eyes, the ear looks suspicious, the hand size does not correlate with the overall face...."

Featured Comment by Willem: "Thanks to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, this is easy."

Featured Comment by Ian: "Lartigue?"

Featured Comment by The Lazy Aussie: "I just wish I could say it was me. Insouciance up the ying yang. And a hat you could load film in."

Featured Comment by James: "It's a young Ctein, obviously."

Featured Comment by Ken Tanaka: "I know, I know! He liked to take B&W pics of rocks and trees when he wasn't dressing up to give the Gettysburg Address at drinking parties."

Featured Comment by John Schaefer: "Remembered it from his Autobiography from 1985...it's on page 102, taken by Virginia Adams in 1930...."

Featured Comment by James Rhem: "Too easy!!!"

Mike [ruefully] replies: I guess!

Featured Comment by Dave Jenkins: "It's Ansel Adams—the winner by a nose!"

Mike replies: Correct. As you'll see when I get the rest of the comments posted, your correct guess wasn't exactly the only one. I had to close the comments on this post....

Martin's guess of "Ephrussi" really made me laugh. And Lucian's comment is the best-ever description of Ansel's appearance, I think.

Comments

[Jhaugaard]

Ansel Adams

[Brendan]

Ansel Adams?

[Robert Howell]

Amstel Adams, the lumber baron's son.

[Bill Stormont]

...Ansel in Abe's clothing? A bit of digital chicanery?

[darr]

Ansel Adams!

[Dave Dillahunt]

Ansel Adams perhaps.

[Don Weston]

Ansel Adams as a young man...I think cause of his eyes....could be wrong...

[sandy rothberg]

Okay, I'll play,

George Eastman

[Crabby Umbo]

A rather dapper Ansel Adams?

[Richards@core.com]

Ansel Adams

[larry dudley]

hah! looks like ansel adams to me.

[Jim Bullard]

Based on the eyes and crooked nose... Ansel Adams. A young Ansel Adams.

[Kyle]

Ansel.

[Michael Carl]

Ansel Adams in top hat, black tie and tails!

[Steve Burns]

Ansel

[Miserere]

Ansel Adams! Any photographer remotely interested in landscape photography should know this :-)

[Alan Huntley]

Ansel Adams

[Gary Mortensen]

I'll guess it's Ansel, just a guess...

[D]

The honorable St. Ansel

[Andrew Karre]

Ansel Adams. The nose...

[Bjorn Halvorsen]

My wild guess: The young musician Ansel Adams. Dressed to kill a grand piano?

[Andy deBruyn]

Ansel Adams.

[John Schaefer]

Ansel Adams

[DC Wells]

His name was Michael C. Johnston. His clothing and the small device in his left ear tell us that he was one of President Lincoln's first Secret Service agents. The earpiece was an affectation, because working versions had yet to be invented and the Secret service was not yet charged with protecting the president. Officer Johnston's duties were restricted to tracking down counterfeiters, who were just beginning to think of using photography in their crimes.

[Victor Bloomfield]

Ansel Adams

[John Ducsai]

Ol' A.A.

[David Woodruff]

THe young Gentleman in the top hat is Ansel Adams

[robert]

Looks like a dapper young Ansel Adams.

[Pavel Derka]

Is this YOU when you were young? :)

[Simon]

Is this a trick question? Maybe a reverse of the Civil War Nicolas Cage & Jon Travolta thing, where you've discovered a modern-day Ansel impersonator...

[Bill Hanson]

Looks to me like Ansel Adams.

[Greg Roberts]

Ansel in his concert pianist garb?

[cliff]

Ansel Adams

[Andrew Molitor]

Anthony Hopkins?

[MacEye]

That be Sir Ansel.

[Jordan]

Looks like a young-ish Ansel Adams.

[Andy]

San Francisco native, Ansel Adams.

[Dean Forbes]

Ansel Adams.

[Alban]

is it ,you?

[Walter Glover]

Ansel Adams

[Martin B]

Looks like a young Ansel Adams

[Kenneth Tanaka]

I know, I know! He liked to take bw pics of rocks and trees when he wasn't dressing up to give the Gettysburg Address at drinking parties.

[YS]

Holy cow Mike, what did you do?

I originally wanted to cheat and keep quiet, but even Tin Eye and Google Images pulled up nothing. >.>

[Bron Janulis]

Saint Ansel

[Peter Hovmand]

Ansel Adams for sure :)

[charlie]

Sherlock Holmes?

[Jeff]

Easy peasy...crooked nose from 1906 quake...Ansel.

[Jim Oleachea]

I believe this is a shot of Ansel Adams......

[Arthur Meyerson]

Ansel Adams

[Mike Plews]

AA

[Paul]

Ansel Adams, I think.

[George Moulinos]

Ansel Adams?

[Tim]

From the look in his eyes, I'd say... Ansel Adams?

[Cw.]

Ctein in days of yore? Remember: you said no Googling and to only guess :-)

[Rob Griffin]

Looks like Ansel Adams on his way to play a piano concert. Wow! He cleaned up good in those days.

Rob

[Stephen Connor]

Looks like a young Ansel Adams to me.

[David L]

Ansel Adams

[Virgil]

Looks like Ansel Adams

[phil martin]

is it you in your twenties?

[Derek Hendsbee]

Ansel Adams

[Kamil Rakyta]

This one is easy :) Ansel Adams...

[phil martin]

ansel adams?

[Jim Metzger]

Young Mike Johnston (at his brothers wedding)

Jim Metzger

[Bob Mc]

Ansel Adams

[Lynn]

AA

[Jed]

Uncle Ansel, probably dressed for a piano recital. You can tell by his eyes.

[Roger]

Without the benefit of an image search beyond what's in my atrophied brain I'm thinking it's a youngish Ansel Adams.

[Andrew]

Looks like Ansel Adams

[Jim Natale]

A young Ansel Adams?

[Robert Edelman]

Ansel Adams.

[Dennis]

From the eyes, I'd guess a young Ansel Adams.

[Lindy]

Ansel Adams

[Syd]

A very young Ansel Adams

[Ernie Nitka]

It's Ansel Adams

[Frank Eberdt]

the eyes, beard and moustache remind me of an early Ansel Adams...

[mike]

Ansel Adams?

[Michel Hardy-Vallée]

St. Ansel.

[robert]

ansel?

[Woody Delp]

Is it a young Ansel dressed up for a piano performance?

[Mike Fioritto]

Ansel Adams.

[jim woodard]

ansel adams

[Mark OShaughnessy]

ansel adams

[Burdette Parks]

That would be a somewhat dandified Ansel.

[Geoff Smith]

My guess is fine art photographer and Magnum member Alec Soth.

[owen murphy]

Ansel Adams?

[Dale]

Mike,

That looks like Ansel Adams.

Dale

[Jason in Hawaii]

Anel Adams. The nose gives it away.

[George Pappas]

Ansel Adams...I can see it in his eyes..(I think)

[Winsor]

Ansel?

[Greg]

Ansel Adams?

[Michel]

Unbelievable! Ansel Adams, but with a different hat... His piano days?

[Steve L.]

Ansel Adams maybe? Looks like his eyes. Just saw an exhibit of his work yesterday at a museum in Utica N.Y. It was my first time seeing any of his own prints. Stunningly beautiful...

[Marty Knapp]

Isn't that Ansel?

[Tony Roberts]

Ansel Adams, probably dressed up for the Bracebridge Dinner.

[Walt Cleveland]

Ansel... Look at the nose!

[Ray Hunter]

Ansel Adams

[Andrew Burday]

A very young Ansel Adams? Also, the portrait looks Berenice Abbott-ish. (I expect to be pretty embarrassed when the actual subject and photographer are revealed.)

[kevin]

Broken nose = Ansel Adams

[spence]

ansel adams

[Harrison Cronbi]

Maybe time for a small clue? I don't think it's too much of a gimme to reveal this is a self portrait.