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This one's a little
a little more difficult to make out, but it remains among my favorites.
If you look very hard, you can make out what appears to be the face of
a boy among the branches in the upper right hand corner of the photo.
The close-up at right brings the face out more clearly. I don't have much
information on this shot other than that the photographer was supposedly
trying to take a picture of a bird outside his second-story window and
noticed the boy's face after he had the film developed, making it especially
spooky. Normally I'm not a big fan of "faces in bushes" photos
as I think most of them are simply shadows of light and dark tricking
the eye, but since this one is in color and the face has fleshtones, it
takes on a certain authenticity I find hard to ignore.
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This famous photo
of a young girl looking out from a raging fire was taken during a 1995
structure fire at Wem town hall in Shropshire, England. Shot from across
the street by a local photographer, nothing unusual was seen at the time
but once the negative was developed he noticed what appeared to be a young
girl standing in the doorway of the burning building. Firemen found the
photo so disturbing that they sifted through the ashes afterwards searching
for the remains of a body but found nothing, leaving everyone wondering
who the girl may have been. Not surprisingly, there is a bit of local
folklore which claims that a young girl named Jane Churm accidentally
burned the town hall to the ground in 1677 when she dropped a candle,
and her ghost has been reputed to haunt Wem town hall ever since. Once
a firebug, always a firebug.
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One of my favorite
ghost photos is this one I came across on the web back in 2000. It shows
what appears to be a transparent, reflective figure standing in front
of the hood of the car on the left side of the photo (see detail at right).
I don't have many details about the photo other than the boy in the picture
had just purchased the car and he and his Mother were shot washing it
(the flair of light in the middle is sunlight reflecting off the spray
from the hose) when the mysterious figure appeared. I do recall reading
something about the fact that a teenage boy had supposedly committed suicide
in the house on the right, but that sounds a little suspicious to me (though
one never knows.) Easily one of the more interesting ghost photos I've
come across over the years.
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I'm not a big fan
of orb shots but every once in awhile you come across one that makes you
stop and think. I was sent this photo by a lady in Glendale, Arizona who
caught this orb while taking photos of a home she was putting up for sale.
Normally, I would dismiss this as either lens refraction or as the flash
reflecting off of a particle of dust, but that doesn't explain the "light
shadow" the orb casts on the floor, which implies that the orb is
generating its own light (in other words, that it is internally and not
externally illuminated) and that it is well across the room far from the
camera. It is also a strangely layered object unlike most dust particles,
which tend to be flat. Some researchers believe that ghosts (or spiritual
energies in general) may be able to manifest in the form of a sphere (possibly
as a means of travel or preparatory to taking on a more robust form).
If true, this could very well be an example of one. Photo was taken late
morning, November 5th, 2008 using an Olympus D580 digital camera without
flash. (Used with permission. All rights reserved.)
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Another interesting
photo is this one I also found on the web back in 2000. Again, I have
few details about the picture other than the couple who shot it didn't
notice the little girl watching them from the dining room at the time
they took the picture (detail at right), nor did they have any other children.
It has been speculated the figure could be a child's doll, but I understand
that the couple denied they had any dolls (the baby certainly appears
too young for dolls yet) and I find it difficult to imagine the couple
would deny having such a thing on hand when it could be easily checked
out. If it is the ghost of a child, however, what is she doing there?
Could she be attracted to the display of affection being displayed in
the next room—or perhaps could she just be a little jealous at having
to share "her family" with a newborn?
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One of those "too-good-to-be-true"
photos, this one actually has a pretty good pedigree because it was shot
by a professional paranormal investigator (and notice it was also taken
in broad daylight, as opposed to most cemetery investigations which are
almost always shot at night). The picture was taken at the Bachelor's
Grove Cemetery in Illinois by the Ghost Research Society on August 10,
1991. Photographer Mari Huff was using high-speed monochromatic film in
the area where their equipment had detected several electromagnetic anomalies,
and captured this image of a woman in period costume—complete in
a burial shroud of the era—sitting on a gravestone. Note that parts
of her lower legs appear to be transparent. Looks staged, I know, but
then what's a real ghost supposed to look like?
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Another classic and
one of the better captures, this photograph from 1919, taken by retired
RAF officer Sir Victor Goddard, shows his squadron from the Royal Navy
vessel HMS Daedalus. Notice the transparent face peering around
the man in the upper left corner of the photo. Several men from this squadron
identified the face as belonging to mechanic Freddy Jackson, who had been
killed two days earlier when he accidentally walked into a spinning propeller
blade. His funeral had taken place earlier that day. Apparently, Freddy
didn't want to miss all the fun.
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Left: You've got to
love this all time classic.When visiting her mother's grave in 1959, Mrs.
Mabel Chinnery took this picture of her husband seated in the car. When
the photograph was developed, a female figure appeared, sitting in the
back seat. Mrs. Chinnery and several family members insist that the female
figure is that of her mother, who appears to have taken her customary
place in the back seat and is patiently waiting to be driven home. A photographic
expert examined the print and declared it to be neither a reflection nor
a double exposure. Notice that "mom" appears to be a pretty
solid ghost, with no hint of transparency or light from the rear windows
shining through her!
Right: Another famous
photo, this one from 1924, shows the faces of two recently deceased crewmen
who appeared in the waves alongside the merchant ship S.S. Watertown.
Normally I'm not a big fan of faces appearing in grainy photos due to
the brain's tendency to make order out of chaos (known as "matrixing")
but this case is different in that the faces were seen by numerous members
of the crew for several days prior beforehand and were positively identified
as those of two crewmen who suffocated while cleaning out an oil tank
a few days earlier. The Burns Detective Agency analyzed the negative for
fakery and found none.
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I don't know much
about this picture other than it appears to have been taken sometime during
the First World War, making it unlikely to be a hoax. My guess is that
the ghostly figure at the back of the room (enlargement at right) was
one of the group's comrades who simply refuses to admit that he's dead
and sees no reason why he shouldn't be in the picture. Notice that even
as a ghost he still wears his uniform. This would be an obvious Photoshop
hoax if it weren't for the fact that the picture was taken a good sixty
years before Photoshop was invented!
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Left: Taken in 1946
in Queensland, Australia by a mother standing at her teenage daughter's
grave. Nobody was in sight at the time, but when the picture was processed
the image of a child appeared, apparently sitting on the grave. The mother
does not recognize the child, thereby reducing (though not entirely eliminating)
the possibility that it's a double exposure. Some skeptics have pointed
out that the picture looks staged, especially since the apparition appears
to be looking directly at the camera. I find this to be a poor argument
for a hoax, however, as one would expect human spirits to react to someone
shooting a picture of them in much the same way they would during life.
Notice also that in nearly every picture on this page the apparition(s)
appear to be looking directly into the camera lens, further challenging
the logic of this objection.
Right: This picture
made the rounds on the internet a few years ago and though that alone
is enough to make one suspicious of its authenticity, it's still an interesting
photo. Supposedly taken in Manila (Eastwood City) a few years ago, the
story goes that these young ladies had asked a passing stranger to photograph
them with their Nokia 7250 phone camera and the transparent figure on
the right appeared. Further details are unknown and while I admit this
could be a Photoshop trick, if it is, it's a good one.
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Left: Picture taken
in the spring of 2008 at Tulloch Castle near Dingwall, Scotland.The apparition
was snapped by accident by a 14 year-old boy while the youngster and his
family were attending a wedding at the castle. The family only noticed
what they had captured when they downloaded the image on to their computer
and saw the ghostly hand and a swirl of mist around it. Tulloch Castle
dates back to the 1200s and has a long history of ghostly activity. The
Brits seem to have an unfair number of ghosts. Perhaps they could export
a few to the colonies.
Right: Possible image
of a ghost captured on a surveillance camera at Hampton Court Castle in
England in October of 2003. The security team at the castle kept finding
the fire doors left open and went back through the CCTV tapes to figure
out who might have been responsible and found this image. The area was
not used by the staff, and no one knows who might have been in the castle--and
dressed in period costume--who might have been responsible for the image.
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This is a picture
that was sent to me by a lady from North Carolina which, unlike most I
receive, has an air of authenticity about it. The photo was taken with
a Sony Cybershot 3.2 mp in Conover, North Carolina on July 16th, 2005.
Notice the shadowy image of a little girl standing directly behind the
baby (especially clear in the close-up at right). The woman who took the
photo didn't notice the little girl when she took the photo and claims
that her and the baby were the only ones home at the time. In a follow-up
investigation, she told me there is no history of paranormal activity
in the home but the woman's family has had a number of paranormal incidents
in their life that leads me to surmise that she might somehow be prone
to attracting entities. (Photo used with permission. All rights reserved.)
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While I receive lots
of "vortex" pictures from people, rarely do I receive one that
looks like anything paranormal. Usually, it's just exhaled breath on a
cold night or cigarette smoke that someone thinks looks like a ghost.
This shot, sent to me in September of 2008, is the exception.
On the left is a young
girl walking on a street near Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada on August
15th, 2008. According to her father, her friends had taken the picture,
along with several others, on his digital camera and this appeared on
one shot. The closeup on the right shows what appears to be a multiple
series of fairly clear faces—anywhere from three to half a dozen
if one looks carefully. The two lower faces appear to be the the clearest.
While my first impression
was that this is one fine Photoshop trick, I am convinced the gentlemen—who
was quite willing to discuss the details of the photo and had no problem
with me using his name (although I won't for privacy reasons)—has
neither the ability nor the inclination to create such a sophisticated
hoax, leaving me with a pretty spectacular photo. I'm still not 100% convinced
it's a bunch of ghosts, but if there ever was a picture of a real vortex
manifesting itself, this would be it. (Used with permission. All rights
reserved.)
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I put both of these
pictures together not because they were taken at the same time, but because
of the similar look and subject matter. Both supposedly show a transparent
monk or religious figure of some kind standing in front of an alter and
both were apparently shot by members of the clergy.The picture on the
left was taken in the 1960s by the Rev. K.F. Lord at Newby Church, N.Yorkshire.
A BBC team examined this photo back in the 1970s and concluded that it
was definitely NOT a double exposure and that the negative had not been
tampered with, but the picture still generates a lot of disagreement today
due to the creepy appearance of the figure. The photo on the right was
taken at Sefton Church in September, 1999, and shows what appears to be
a figure in the all-black clothing of a vicar or minister. I guess some
religious folks love to hang out at churches even after they're dead.
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This well
known photo—and perhaps one of the oldest examples of a bonifide spirit
photo—was taken in the Combermere Abbey Library in 1891 by Sybell Corbet.
The exposure length was approximately one hour, and the figure of a man
appears to be sitting in the armchair located in the foreground (it's difficult
to make out, but a head and arm can just be discerned sitting in the chair).
At the time this photograph was being taken, Lord Combermere (a top British
cavalry commander) was being buried four miles away and the house was said
to have been locked and empty at the time. One explanation frequently offered
by skeptics is that during the lengthy exposure a servant inadvertently
sat in the chair for a short time, noticed the camera, and hastily left,
leaving what is effectively a fuzzy double exposure. What argues against
this theory, however, aside from the fact that all members of the household
were supposedly attending the funeral at the time, is the lack of lower
torso. A servant caught in a timed photo should have left an image of the
entire torso—particularly the waist and upper thigh—with only
the arms and legs being subjected to motion blur. Additionally, those who
knew Lord Combermere claim the figure looks exactly like the man, so we
have to wonder if the old gentleman wasn't simply just visiting his old
"haunt" one last time. |
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I frequently have
people send me photos of what they believe to be spirits all the time,
most of which turn out to be easily explainable camera aberrations, misidentified
objects, or hoaxes. Once in awhile, however, I get a photo that appears
to be legitimate, one example of which I present here. Sent to me by a
very nice lady from Ravenna, Ohio, the photo of the front of her home
(I cropped this image from a larger photo) was taken by her 14-year old
son in early May of 2008 and shows what appears to be a young girl in
some sort of blue outfit looking out the window (in lower left and in
insert). The woman and her son were the only ones home (she has no other
children) and they have no idea who the little girl might be. Notice in
particular that the face—and especially the mouth—appears to
be somewhat distorted, as though the child has—or had—a deformity
(or perhaps as a result of an incomplete manifestation?).
Ghost or hoax? Clearly
not a camera anomaly nor a case of matrixing (picking recognizable patterns
out of random shapes) nor can I find any evidence of photo manipulation,
Photoshop tricks, etc. I spoke with the lady by phone afterwards and she
struck me as being quite sincere and honest—as well as a little nervous—about
the image, leading me to presume that this might well be a genuine "capture".
The woman tells me the home was built in 1930 and served for many years
as a Methodist parsonage before her and her husband purchased it 14 years
ago. She also reports a history of paranormal activity in the home (lights
switching on and off, cold spots, mild poltergeist activity) but has never
seen any manifestations. All-in-all, one of the most remarkable and perplexing
spirit photos I've ever seen. (Used with permission. All rights reserved.)
CLICK HERE
FOR UPDATE ON THIS PHOTO.
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This classic
shot has one of the best pedigrees among spirit photos because it was shot
under carefully controlled circumstances with numerous witnesses present,
making fakery especially difficult. Taken in 1978 at the Sunnyvale, California
Toys-R-Us by the crew from the TV program That's Incredible! this
infra-red film image of the young man leaning against the wall was NOT seen
by any of the people present at the time, and he does not appear in the
high speed footage shot from the same vantage point at the same time.There's
a story that in 1869 a young man died at the location where the store now
stands from a accidentally self-inflicted axe wound, which might explain
his unusual clothing. The store was known for the intense poltergeist activity,
suggesting that at least some "noisy ghosts" are more than simply
misdirected telekinetic energy as has been frequently suggested. |
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My new favorite photo
is this one, sent to me in November of 2008. The photo was taken by the
little boy in the picture, who was snapping photos of himself when the
face of the rather stern looking apparition of a woman appeared behind
him in one shot. His mother wrote to tell me her son, who is four years
old, claims that he has spoken with the woman as well as with the spirits
of two other teens named Brian and Wolfie (one of whom apparently hung
himself with a rope). The woman in the picture, then, may be a guardian
spirit, or maybe just one of several spirits who inhabit the home (which
has a history of paranormal activity). Picture was taken with a Kodiak
EasyShare cx7430 on the afternoon of October 27th, 2008. There is no evidence
of hoaxing, nor is it a double exposure. If authentic, it is certainly
one of the most emotive ghosts I've ever seen! (Used with permission.
All rights reserved.)
UPDATE: It has
been suggested that the face may be from a television on in the background.
I have repeatedly attempted to confirm whether there was, in fact, a television
behind the child at the time but have been unsuccessful. While possible,
the child would have had to have been immediately in front of the screen
(like inches away), which I imagine the mother would have known. As such,
the photo must remain undetermined. Click here
for more information.
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