odd Ebay photo

[helmetbuyers]

Hello forum

the photo below just posted a few minutes ago on EBay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/WWII-ORIGINAL-GE...item2a1126432f

I didn't want to post the image since I did not ask for permission from the seller.

It appears to be a reprint of an actual image... but... I noticed both soldiers wearing army helmets... but... one appears to be wearing a Luftwaffe tunic, based on the seagull wing I see on the collar?

Luft personel never wore army helmets, did they??

Robert

[Mainemilitaria]

Under normal conditions, of course a member of the Wehrmacht (Armed Forces) would wear the correct helmet for the branch he was in....however, there are many photos of Luftw. wearing Army, W-SS wearing Army, etc.....
especially in the field....

Why the LW guy is wearing an Army helmet in a "studio" portrait is unknown, of course....maybe it was the only thing available at the photo shop....maybe he was an Army Paratrooper recently transferred into the LW or a member of the "Brandenburg" unit....(Collar tabs would be "ffy" for those possibilities unless he's a medic or an engineer......)

Just one of those "Quirks" of history.....
John G.

Change "many photos" to a few photos......don't want to get carried away!

[12thPanzer]

yeah this is a Russian Archive fake IMO. So you were correct calling it a reprint. But sometimes in studio portraits the studio or photographer themselves would have "prop" helmets for image poses, and you had to wear what was available. That is my guess.
Sometimes a whole company would take photos using the same helmet, gun, etc etc

Here is one from my collection. RAD men getting issued Luftwaffe helmets, which was common I guess. But, still an example of 2 different branches wearing the same type of helmet