Quote Fred:
1.
"... Since it is clearly in both photos common sense would suggest that the starboard bow was repainted into a dark grey or blue before Santa Cruz. ..."You finally acknowledge that USS JUNEAU was repainted in late September 1942. That is progress.
2.
"... Also seems safe to assume the TBF camera was not transferred to the ship from which SCAAR 99 was taken, which eliminates the usual camera/film defect theory to explain light or dark colors and blow off the light color CLAA photo with CV 6 ..." Of course they are not the same camera. The TBF photos were taken with a large format camera (likely 4x5) and the image # 99 and all of the images with USS RUSSELL transferring survivors to USS NORTHAMPTON were taken with a 16-mm movie camera. The film size is 4x5-in vs 16-mm square (approx. 0.63x0.63-in). That means the TBF Aerial Camera views have about 112 times more res than the movie film stills. If you had ever took your own B&W photos and DEVELOPED them yourself and MADE prints, you would know that photos will VARY in appearance according to the camera settings used, lighting conditions, filters used on the camera, negative processing, and finally the enlarger process and PAPER used to produce the print.
3.
"... Why 80 G 304573 does not show the lower dark pattern that shows up in SCAAR 99 is the mystery we need a photo expert to explain. Way beyond me. Perhaps brighter sun light, altitude from the plane, beyond me."It doesn't show because it isn't there. The aerial photos taken by the TBF were closer and of course from above at nearly noon on a fairly sunny part of that day. At the range from the camera that image # 99 was taken shadows or other factors are involved. And if image # 99 is USS SAN DIEGO, she does have a faded camo pattern on her hull. It looks to be an overcast time on that day, the shadows on USS RUSSELL in the full frame images indicates that the sun is somewhere behind her. Other views of the RUSSELL transfers taken from the bow of USS NORTHAMPTON, show a much sunnier time period.
4.
"... Meanwhile exhibits A-H in this post viewtopic.php?f=69&t=164112&start=240#p692161 all show a CLAA with a dark hull. Very few of them show the camo pattern on it. Most show traces of the diagonal stripes on the forward portions of the forward/aft superstructure units clearly visible on the multiple San Diego photos on this site. All of the crops are blurred which is understandable. I can see faint traces on the hull in exhibits F and G. The pattern on exhibit I/SCAAR 99 is clearly different from all of the other dark hull crops."Well all of the images you sight in that post, except for the first one of USS SAN JUAN and to a large extent the last one, image # 99, have the sun behind the cruiser. The cruiser appears almost like a silhouette in most views and as one on some views. Image # 99 is turning and has parts of the ship in the sun.
5.
"... Or of a wet water stain at long range which the video sites I posted a few days ago strongly suggest is not going to happen, especially the color close range footage of a WWII USN tanker in MS 12 Mod approx. 50-100 yards away in rough seas."A relatively fresh painted ship getting constant water over her sides is NOT going to show salt-stains. I posted multiple views of ships at close or medium range exhibiting that ships at sea for a lengthy period without cleaning and repainting, will show significant statins and fading. Both SAN JUAN and JUNEAU had been repainted in September 1942. As far as I know USS SAN DIEGO had NOT been repainted nor had significant touch-up since she arrived in the Pacific and arrived at Pearl Harbor in June 1942 and departed with being USS HORNET's escort, unless it was done in late September 1942. Virtually all the available photos of USS SAN DIEGO, when the sun is directly on her and not behind her, show a relatively light photo when compared to the Ms 21 ships around her. While the longer range views won't show salt-stains as such, they do LOWER the contrast of the existing paint on the ship, and reflect more light. That is why many Ms 21 ships at sea for extended periods look very light in shade.
6.
"... There is no photo to my knowledge of any CLAA producing a wake pattern similar to the pattern in SCAAR 99. I would be willing to bet all of those close range wet/stain areas would not appear at the range of the SCAAR crops. It has been well over a month and no one has produced one yet." ... "As far as I know no CLAA photo exists that shows a wake going half way up the rear hull of that class of ship. Or any other WWII USN ship in Santa Cruz type sea conditions. Assuming I am correct there is no other explanation for the dark pattern other than paint."I have posted several images of Atlanta Class cruisers producing a wake/wave patterns that rises pretty high on the ship, even up to the main deck. The at anchor images of ships CLEARLY show salt-satins on the sides of Atlanta Class and other cruisers, etc. So they did get water up high and salt deposits did occur. Put your glass on and remove your blinders.
The two images (full frame and close-crop of USS SAN DIEGO) below are at similar ranges as the series of photos of cruisers beyond USS RUSSELL. USS SAN DIEGO is about 4,000 yards in tactical formation during the Santa Cruz Battle and USS OAKLAND is between 2,000 and 3,000 yards.
Full Frame View of USS SAN DIEGO across from the path of USS HORNET early in the battle.
Close-Crop from the photo above.
NOTE HOW LIGHT SAN DIEGO APPEARS in the full sun. Similar dark patterns appear on her as in image # 99.
7.
"... The 3 photos of CLAAs in this post viewtopic.php?f=69&t=164112&start=460#p731452 to my eyes show the CLAA in I/SCAAR 99 to be closer than the other 2 by putting a ruler vs the aft superstructure unit. Due to the angle of the ship in 99 I might be wrong. If I am right so much for the concept of 99 not being reliable due to distance."Due to the distance and the camera film used, a high speed movie film (B&W or Color) with a faster shutter speed. is much grainer than the larger format 4x5 cameras in use in other cases, NONE of these images is very good for determining details. I have stated that over and over again. Image # 99 is a very small image size on the film, much smaller than the other views because the cruiser is in a turn and is an oblique view. These small size images are ones that I seldom scan while going through photos at NARA, they just don't give you much detail to learn anything like configuration or to help with IDs.
In Conclusion;
Finally why the image 80-G-304513 and Santa Cruz Action Report Image # 99 do and don't have similar features. I posted at this link ...
viewtopic.php?f=69&p=728807#p729169 ... several images of the Atlanta Class hull that shows the unique shapes involved with this class AND common to all of them. There is a noticeable knuckle one deck below the main deck that goes back until it blends into the hull sides. The armor belt starts at about the same place as the knuckle disappears. It starts out following the main deck sheer line on its forward end and as it goes aft becomes parallel to the waterline. If you look close at Image # 99 the area above the bow "dark area" on the knuckle, is LIGHTER than below that area ... hmmm shadow? There are a lot of areas on the superstructure that show up as darker than anything on the hull of Image # 99 ... hmmm shadows?
Look at the annotated images below of 80-G-304513 and Santa Cruz Report Image # 99. Amazingly the "dark" area matches up with features on the Atlanta class hull. I placed lines slightly above the actual locations of the
"armor belt" and the
"knuckle" on both images.
The second version of Image #99 went the other way of "Mr X", who increased contrast, I reduced contrast below the original scanned image. Increasing contrast will only make ANY slightly darker areas even darker.
Finally, the last image. I don't have any other views of USS SAN DIEGO looking at her rear oblique rear quarter like Image # 99. This view is as close as I can get. This image was not dated in the 19-LCM file, so when it was taken in not known. It could be at Pearl Harbor in June 1942 or afterwards. But, you can compare her bow area for "light and dark and shadow" play going on