Although I am an avid collector of news photos I must admit that my knowledge of dating photos is much more limited than others that have responded before me. That being said I am uncertain exactly how reliable the use of news bureau stamping is to determine the age of a photo. I have doubts about the accuracy of using the two year printing window for original type one photos.
Below are two images of Hank Aaron I have in my collection. The first is from spring training 1954. The stamping on the back came into use after the 1958 merger of United Press and International News. Due to this the photo is considered to be a type 2 photo which is far less valuable than a type 1 version of the same image.
The second photo is of Aaron being carried off the field following his 1957 pennant clinching homer. The Wide World Photo stamping was used between the mid1940s through 1954. What is it doing on a 1957 image? I believe that this is evidence that out dated photo stamps were not always discarded when new versions came into use. Based on this I don't think that the use of News Bureau stamping to date a photo is exact which is concerning when considering the value of type 1 photos in comparison to type 2s.
If such a three year discrepancy in stamping can exist is it possible that the 1954 image was printed in 1954 and only marked with the pencil notation and the subsequently stamped four years later after the merger? I will never know with any certainty but the possibility certainly exists. Nonetheless, I paid little for it and really love it so it really doesn't matter. Until I can be more certain about the current system of photo classification my purchases will remain conservative.
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