they are fake plates and it's not a conspiracy theory.
ever see a very old photo of mike christian with a group from golds gym standing on one end holding out a few 45lb plates like he's a waiter serving a plate? from memory, lyle alzado and pete grymkowski (spelling?) were also in the photo along with the usual suspects from that time. i was only a kid then and i remember thinking wtf? i got a little wiser as i grew into adulthood and yes, i did witness fake plates in the flesh.
that is the best photographic example i can give of some fake plates being held up. of course one could simply open up a copy of flex magazine and check the ridiculous plates being hoisted on exercise bars by bodybuilders in perfect form that powerlifters wouldn't dream of, but sadly guys like pumpster would just believe those guys lifted those weights in that condition.
fake plates have been around for a very long time and they are obviously mostly used for photo shoots.