whoa whoa ryan. the 2nd photo was not staged, just misinterpreted. it was a 2nd raising of the flag, but it was a replacement flag that time. the commanding officer over iwo wanted the original flag preserved and ordered the replacement put up. the photographer that took the picture almost missed the shot and essentially "fired from the hip" to get it.

its an incredibly powerful photo with a lot of myths behind it. read "flags of our fathers" and you will understand a lot more about that time.