This topic will go round and round, it seems like. It makes for some good discussion and debate.
First, I agree with jay, that yes, there will be differences in the way a poster looks in a photo, based on lighting setup, the kind of lights used, type of camera used, and how the digital image is then loaded and handled in whatever photo program is used.
Hi resolution pictures that can be zoomed in on, to show flaws, tiny pin holes, faint creases or even subtle printing errors at the time of the poster's creation are all great and important to show- there is no doubt about that.
But what it being discussed is the artificial enhancement and saturation of colors to a poster's digital image, in order to make it look more vibrant and "pretty." When someone chooses to perform this function, it is done so with that purpose. (I am not even going to use the word "deceptive" here as that can get tempers and emotions going).
But, if a seller decides, before listing a poster, to play with the contrast and saturation settings on a particular poster, in order to make it artificially "pop," when in reality, the colors are more muted or subdued, he or she is then,
not showing a true representation of that particular poster to potential buyers or bidders.
Again, I know variables can be taken into account as reasons to adjust these components. That is not what Bruce, myself and others are talking about. It is the 'over the top' adjustments that make aged/tanned borders look whiter, (and obliterating small flaws from view) or adjusting a setting that makes colorful titles almost vibrate and glow on the paper. That, IMO, is a no no.
As a quick experiment, I grabbed a random poster image of Bruce's from an auction last week. I loaded it into my photo program and only boosted the saturation setting, and did a slight adjust on the contrast. As we know, Bruce prides himself on his images being true representations, showing accurate color, flaws and dings (if any exist).
Here is a side by side comparison of that same poster. The adjustment I made had Nothing to do with my monitor settings, lighting or camera used. It is about playing with the image's saturation to make it look more appealing. I think most, if not all, (who were interested in this poster) would choose to own the poster on the right: