Viral Photograph by Annie Leibovitz of Two Soccer Rivals is a Composite

A photograph by Annie Leibovitz of soccer rivals Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo shared over the weekend is already among Instagram’s most-loved posts. The picture, captured as a part of a advertising and marketing marketing campaign for Louis Vuitton, present the 2 deep in focus over a sport of chess being performed on the checkerboard sample of one of many model’s trunks somewhat than a chess board. However whereas the photograph is being praised for getting two of the upcoming FIFA World Cup’s hottest gamers collectively, behind the scenes footage reveal that they weren’t—the picture is seemingly a composite.

Leibovitz used a Fujifilm GFX100S for the shoot and will be seen displaying pictures on the again of the digicam to Messi. The 2 athletes had been supposedly requested to pose of their respective positions at completely different occasions and in several studios, earlier than being composited collectively by Leibovitz throughout post-production. In accordance with Digital Camera World, “Messi is within the pure location that was chosen for the ultimate picture, and Ronaldo was truly posing in entrance of a plain grey wall, to make it simpler to fuse him into the unique setting.”

The photograph by Annie Leibovitz has already garnered greater than 37 million likes on Ronaldo’s Instagram web page and 28 million on Messi’s IG—together with greater than 5 million likes on Louis Vuitton’s IG. Ronaldo, with 496 million followers, is essentially the most adopted individual on Instagram and Messi is the second most adopted with 373 million followers. Put the 2 most adopted individuals in a single photograph, and the publish simply entered Instagram’s high ten most preferred posts. An egg with a want for viral fame nonetheless holds the document. However, the publish has handed the second most-liked photograph on Instagram, which, paradoxically, was additionally on Ronaldo’s account—a being pregnant announcement for Ronaldo and Georgina Rodriguez. That announcement had near 33 million likes.

[Read: Vogue Cover Controversy Over Annie Leibovitz Image]

On Instagram, some followers are calling the picture the “image of the century,” “iconic,” and “legendary” because the picture juxtaposes the athletes with a sport of chess, seemingly making an announcement concerning the psychological technique concerned on the sector. The photograph’s caption reads, “Victor is a frame of mind.” The trunk additionally bears a resemblance to the Louis Vuitton case used to move the precise World Cup.

With BTS footage displaying Leibovitz photographing the athletes as the alternative facet of the chessboard-trunk seem empty, most followers are nonetheless calling the photograph iconic however realizing that the 2 gamers weren’t truly sitting throughout from one another, and even in the identical room, has left different followers dissatisfied. The FIFA World Cup started on Nov. 20 in Qatar and is anticipated to complete on Dec. 18.