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Don't get excited, the image above is an example of a double exposure using a traditional film camera. Maria took it several years ago while experimenting with different styles of photography. This technique has been used for ages to produce "ghost pictures" many of which are quite famous but are nothing more than clever hoaxes.

We thought we should go over some of the different forms of "Ghost photography" and explain it a bit for those unfamiliar. Ever since the camera was invented photographers both amateur and professional have had to contend with an occasional aberration from time to time. Most notable are the vast amounts of photos out there that seem to contain people and other objects which were not visible during the film session. These can range from strange wispy forms, clouds, actual physical looking forms or your typical expectation of a "ghost". It was widely believed that most of these photos were hoaxes perpetrated on a world caught up in spiritualism, or that they were some strange double exposure due to camera or operator error. After film cameras came and went the anomalies continued into the digital age, still appearing on the high tech portable film studios that most of us now cary. They appear on everything from pin hole cameras the multi0thousand dollar instruments wielded by professionals. What they are for sure we just can not say, what we can say is that almost everyone knows someone who has taken a ghost photo. Here are some examples we have collected and a brief explanation of what they may or may not be.

"Orbs, orbs, everywhere orbs"

Orbs, yes we catch orbs, everyone does. No matter how hard we try they always seem to show up. A misconception often quoted by new researchers in the field is that orbs are a relatively new phenomena and that they only came about as a result of the digital camera. This is not fact. I and many others have seen and taken pictures with orbs in them on film cameras. In the past you sent your film off to have it developed most people were looking for good pictures for there mantles and fireplaces, not mists and orbs. These were attributed to bad developing or poor lighting, dust on lens etc and were commonly thrown out. The advent of the digital camera made the ordeal of picture taking much easier and put what used to take several days into real time. Now you could see the picture as soon as it was taken and you paid no one to develop it, even a polaroid couldn't do that. So many would-be photographers jumped on the band wagon and now digital cameras are everywhere, and thanks to the internet and social networks around the world, so are ghost photos.

The three pictures below were captured using a Cannon T1I which has dust removal capabilities, lenses were clean so we can rule out dust on our part but we can not rule out dust in the air itself. We also saw EMF spikes in relation to these orbs. However to us this is not proof of a “ghost”, it may be something but without proper measurement we just don’t know what they are. Besides the usual "dust" explanation most schools of thought tend to agree that orbs are a form of energy whether that energy be natural in cause or related to the paranormal we just can not say. As for our stand on orbs, it's a compromise, we tend to dismiss orbs, the only ones we will mention are orbs of high strangeness and shape. These orbs like the one on the right that appeared in the sky above an alleged haunted residence in Georgetown SC do not follow the typical "dust" orb explanation. Note the near 3D look of the object, these orbs also have other measurable occurrences associated with them.

"When is an Orb not dust?"

The answer to that question is not as easy as you may think or may like. Though nearly all orbs can be attributed to dust, water particles, etc there are incidents where these factors were not in play and yet orbs were observed. The general theory is that orbs are reflections of a camera flash or other light source bouncing off of particles in in the air. These particles are usually close to the camera and thus are out of focus which tends to make them look like transparent "orbs" of light. Most paranormal groups and researchers won't touch orbs either for the simple fact that they are far to hard to prove or disprove or simply because it has become a sort of taboo among researchers, it may paint them in a bad light. GWRIP follows a careful approach to orbs, we will address orbs but ONLY when they meet certain criteria. We agree with most serious researchers that most orbs are simply natural events mistaken for super natural evidence.

To GWRIP an orb deserves closer attention when it meets the following criteria:

1. If the orb appears in a photo where a flash was not used.

2. The orb occurred during an EVP session or other validation experiment.

3. The orb occurred during an EVP session or other validation experiment.

4. The orb appears partially obscured by a solid known (focused) object.

If we get orbs during these types of investigative techniques then we will look at them a bit closer before ruling them in or out. In short orbs are the bane of this field. They could be something paranormal but they could just as easily be dust on a lens, an odd lens flare, mist in the air etc. This makes it hard to use any orb photos as proof of anything. This is why we like to stick to more harder to explain photographic evidence. So if you like orbs, here are a few for you to look at, if you don’t like orbs join the crowd.

In the above examples we see "ORBs" that were caught with a camera with anti-dust feature, plus they occurred where high EMF readings were recorded. Note the look of these orbs. These are the variety which are much harder to explain away. However we typically do not include orbs as part of our findings unless they meet certain criteria.

Note the orb in this image and how different it looks. This is a typical dust orb. The flash of the camera is reflected off of the dust or pollen grain which is close to the camera. These are the orbs which we will not address except to show that they have a valid explanation. All of these dust orbs do in fact seem to retain the same shapes making them easy to spot.

Note the next image, there are orbs but that's not what we are interested in, look at the comparison photos A and B and you will notice a strange form that appears between the frames. What is it? we have no idea.

"Mists"

This next one is a mist, note the comparison as to what is there after the image light levels are enhanced a bit. This one was taken in a cave which some believe are conduits for great amounts of earth energy. The amount of mist in this image is amazing and can not be attributed to breath.

The next two are a good example of "matrixing". This is when the brain tries to form familiar shapes and patterns on everyday objects. This is not an apparition it is simply a trick of light and shadow, but when combined they form a great phantom.

"Apparitions"

Now we will look at some images that are a bit harder to explain away. The following were taken during EMF spikes at a supposed haunted location. Legend of the area says a woman searches this dock looking for her husband who died at sea. This is frame 1 from a video shot on location visible at this link. http://www.ronedmedia.com/GhostWatch/Greenghostenhanced2.avi

Here we have brought up the contrast a bit to help bring out the anomalies. Nothing else has been done to the image except to darken it. This brings out details which are not visible in the original. There seems to be a face visible. This apparition if that is what it was vanishes as I move into the screen closer to it.

These types of images are a bit harder to explain away as there is nothing near to cast a green light so we can rule out reflection. This is a video as well and was shot only with the available light and over head street light. Next we have one that was shot on the Queen Mary, a documented "ghost ship". The frames have been sequenced for you to show the amount of movement and apparent speed of the apparent apparition. No one was in the room as it is sealed note that what ever this is seems to move in front of the bench in frame 2&3 which would suggest it is in the room. Any ideas at what it is? It took some time but we think what we are seeing here is a reflection of shopping bags in plexiglass. With that in mind watch it a few more times. You can see how easy it can be to mistake something normal as something paranormal. You can also see how the area this photo was taken in could easily have played into interpreting the image as paranormal. With photographic evidence you must keep an open mind and look for all possibilities and report your findings.

These are some of the examples of what ghosts photography can look like. There are many other examples of ghost photography on the web, in fact a quick search on google will lead you to many but remember not all ghost photos are legitimate and hoaxing ghost photos has become a past time for some seeking attention. If you run into a good ghost photo and would like us to have a look at it feel free to send it. We will see if we can find an explanation for you and maybe we will display it here in the gallery for everyone to see as an example of what ghost photography is.

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