Final answer:
Edward Curtis altered his photographs to create images that aligned with the romanticized and stereotypical expectations of Native American cultures held by his audience at the time, which often misrepresented the true conditions of Indigenous peoples.
Step-by-step explanation:
Edward S. Curtis, a renowned photographer, often staged photographs of Native North American peoples to fit a particular narrative expected by his audience at the time. In his pursuit to capture images that reflected a vanishing way of life, Curtis sometimes posed individuals in traditional attire and settings that were no longer a part of their daily lives. This fabrication served the purpose of creating a visual representation conforming to the non-Native public's romanticized and stereotypical notions of what Native American culture should look like, disregarding the contemporary realities that these peoples faced, such as the socio-economic challenges of living on reservations.
It's important to consider the historical and political context in which these photographs were taken and presented. This artistic license taken by Curtis created a visual archive that misrepresented the real conditions and cultures of Indigenous peoples at the time, and reflected a colonial mindset that sought to depict these communities as 'primitive' or 'backwards' in contrast to modern American society.
Through this lens, we can understand that changes in Curtis's photography were often driven by the prevailing attitudes towards Native Americans, the photographer’s personal perspectives, and the desire to fulfill the expectations of his audience rather than to accurately document reality.