A Kick
In The Buttock
I'm not saying that there are no
pictures that capture paranormal events. As a matter of fact, I'm 99.9%
sure that things are captured every day. Can these pictures be
considered solid evidence? I personally don't think so. Even a picture
of an apparition is just a small piece of a very, VERY large puzzle
that nobody knows how to build, or has ever seen before.
Pictures will always come in handy. They're only a small
piece of a puzzle, but you can't complete the puzzle without them. Keep
snapping your pictures! Just don't get too excited about them, and
accept them for what they are.
You may notice that on a lot of the pages on this site, I
try to give the reader 'a swift kick in the ass' about the silly things
that we think and do in this field. I can do this with a clear
conscience because I kick myself all the time! Every time I
get a picture of a mist or something, I get all excited, and for a
short time, I think that I actually have something. After that, I slap
myself in the face, and ground myself back into reality.
Reality
I'm going to go through each type of alleged paranormal photograph to
give you
an idea what's out there. I'll also give you an explanation of each of
them. When I say 'explanation' I mean I'll tell you what to look for.
As for what they REALLY are, I'm not even going to try to explain them.
I'm not arrogant enough to claim to know.
Orbs
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Orbs... This is one of the most
controversial subjects among investigators and ghost hunters. Some
think that they're absolutely nothing, while others believe that
they're actually evidence of the paranormal.
Some even claim to see faces in them. I've tried to see them, but I
gotta chalk it up as matrixing at
its finest.
There are ton of different theories about what they are.
These
explanations include dust, pollen, moisture, rain, energy, or
paranormal entities.
My mind is open to the possibility, but I gotta tell ya, I
see nothing
in an orb that even remotely SUGGESTS paranormal activity, let alone
proves it. When I take pictures of them, I try to figure them out.
There's just not enough data in that picture for me, for ANYBODY, to
pretend to form an
educated opinion.
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It always boils down to dust, moisture, pollen, whatever. Some will say
that a paranormal orb will have its own light source because it's a
form of energy. I know of MANY forms of energy that don't normally
produce light, so I gotta throw that theory out the window. I just
don't know what to make of any of it. As for the immediate future,
since all orbs, dust, spirit or otherwise look almost identical, they
cannot be submitted as evidence of anything. At present, there's no way
to know.
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Vortexes... Vortices... Um, glowing squiggly lines
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The word 'vortex' to me, suggests a tornado or a portal to another
place, or something. It doesn't describe a squiggly line or a camera
strap.
Vortices are a goofy subject with me. Go to other websites. Every
website has a different explanation of these things, and not one of
those explanations are based on anything that you could call a fact.
Most of the pictures that you'll see are of something long
and slendar that appears to be out of focus, which is why camera straps
are often the culpret. Some even think that they're actually orbs that
are moving at such a fast speed that it's leaving a long trail. I have
no idea what they really are.
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To be honest, I'm rarely impressed by pictures of them. The ones that
appear to be out of focus are EASILY dismissed as something too close
to the lens when the picture was taken. Granted, that IS a closed
minded view, but hear me out. Everyone who looks at this picture will
judge it. WE have nothing to prove. YOU DO. As the photographer, can you prove
that it ISN'T something too close to the lens beyond any doubt? If you
can, then great. If you can't, then you've wasted everyones time.
The picture above was taken with a Sony, 6 mega
pixel camera at
one of our investigations.
It's not too close to the lens. Its not out of focus. If you look, it
even appears to emit its own light. Still, I see nothing necessarily paranormal
here. It COULD be, but again, it's just one frame of whats really going
on, so there's not enough information to go on. It's GREAT evidence of
a squiggly line though.
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Mists (Ecto)
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Ecto-Plasm, or mist photos are easily faked or accidentally taken, and
misunderstood. Oddly enough I find them more interesting than most
other 'paranormal' pictures.
There are a lot of possible explanations for these
pictures. Someone smoking near where the picture was taken can create
these anomalies. If it's cold, and some selfish person decides to
actually breathe, this could also create a mist. (Who would do such a
thing? Just selfish.) Moisture in the air that may not even be visible
with the naked eye may actually appear with the reflection of the flash.
Like I said, there are a lot of reasons why these may show up.
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There's also the paranormal possibility. Unfortunately, there's no way
to positively identify the difference between selfish people breathing,
or the possibility of paranormal activity. If it's not cold outside,
and nobody's smoking, that's a definite step in the right direction.
Fog in itself is spooky. I think that may be why it's easier for me to
believe than the other forms of photos. Don't let my love for spooky
stuff sway your opinion. Be inquisitive, and find the truth, whatever
it may be. |
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Apparitions
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As a ghost hunter, or paranormal investigator, this is the best that
you can do when it comes to still photography. Some consider it 'The
Holy grail' of evidence.
As for the picture to the left, I call it 'Fun With
Photoshop'.
There isn't much to say about apparition photos. They look
like the stereotypical Hollywood ghost in a still photo. Sometimes
they're completely indistinguishable from an actual person.
If
and when you actually capture one, you're going to be bouncing off
walls with excitement. Be careful.
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I offer this warning to anyone who is viewing someone elses
'apparition' or to anyone who captures one of their own. People see
what they want to see. Matrixing is a BIG problem with apparition
photos. Look at these photos with a bit of skepticism. It's pretty
certain that people have captured some real ones, but being strict in
your judgment is the only way to weed out the crap from the legitimate
ones. Once you've done that, keep in mind that it's still only .002% of
a much bigger story.
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If you're interested in taking your own paranormal photos, you're going
to want to decide what type of camera that you'll want to use. I've
written a short guide to help you make that decision. Camera Guide
Lastly, I want to say that I know that this page sounds a bit cynical
about paranormal photography, but that isn't really the spirit in which
it was written. Everyone who knows me, knows that I AM a true believer.
It's just that over time I've seen far too much bad and opinionated
information being taken as facts by those who are either inexperienced,
or ignorant. After that, those people go on to teach that bad
information to others. It's hurt this field. Too many people are trying
to move forward with false assumptions. If someone doesn't try to break
that cycle, we'll never get out of the proverbial hole.
I hope you got something out of this page. If you believe me to be
wrong, and wish to show me the error of my ways, I can be found at
beyonderbill@yahoo.com, or on
Yahoo Messenger under the name Beyonderbill. I'm easy to get in touch
with, and I promise I'll hear you out with
an open mind.
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