Tricks of the Paranormal Photography Trade (Part 1)

The following is an effort to parlay my own investigations into “spiritual” paranormal phenomenon into practical information on capturing “evidence” --

I was once an amateur photographer with a passion to go pro; but in fear of being pigeonholed into shooting weddings the rest of my life, I gave it up.  Well, sort of.  I decided to employ my knowledge of photography into my profession of studying the paranormal.  I found that the hobby was a perfect match to the profession (though some of you will probably argue as to which one’s the hobby and which one’s the profession – for me, there is no debate).

My preferred method of capturing paranormal evidence is to rig an HD video camera to my Polaroid camera.

Earlier in my life, I might have hesitated to reveal this information, as perhaps a Michelin Star chef might hesitate to reveal the secret ingredient to his most famous recipe.  But as I’ve gotten older, the urge to leave a part of my mind “behind,” as they say, has become an important stimulus to me.  And what better venue than the blogosphere to throw my proverbial “caution to the wind”?  


Furthermore, in revealing such information, I can’t help but acknowledge the possibility of conspiracy.  Perhaps the notion of conspiracy is more sincere of a motivation for my hesitation than anything else.  I can’t tell you how many of my connections to various organizations, like The Department of Defense, The Congressional Subcommittee on Paranormal Phenomenon, interagencies that examined UFO sightings within the Washington D.C.’s Federal Bureau of Investigation, have been erased from virtual existence.  It appears as though I never worked for them.  The government’s penchant for secrecy is overwhelming and far-reaching.  


I do not think it’s such a stretch to suggest the possibility of an insidious link between the collapse of the Polaroid Company, and other film manufacturers, and the rise of digital cameras, as a way for the government to protect the paranormal, to safeguard the mysteries that they’d like the masses to not pry into.  If paranormal phenomenon is only captured digitally, it’s easy to debunk: “Oh, it’s Photoshop;” “Oh, it’s a pixel;” “Oh, it’s digital noise, static, feedback, etc.”  However, with film, what’s on the negative is on the negative, it can’t be ignored or altered via a computer – it’s much harder to debunk.  It’s hard evidence.

Exposing and developing film is a chemical process – it is an organic process – just as the spiritual process of the paranormal is.

Photography: Film vs. Digital

When it comes to attempting to photograph a spirit, there is an inconsistency present in the frequencies of modern digital cameras, and a divide in exposure and materialization of the photo – the light, how it’s absorbed into the camera’s electronic sensor, and the subsequent digital translation of the visual information.  


Whereas film, specifically the nature of Polaroid instant film, is “instant” in the truest sense – the image is bounced from a mirror and exposed immediately on film.  And perhaps the most important element to this, which further distinguishes instant film from other types of traditional small, medium and large film formats, is that instant film develops in the exact same environment in which the ghost/paranormal subject inhabits, or just inhabited.  


You see, temperature is critical, as sometimes temperature is altered by the presence of a paranormal entity, thus the development of the picture in these same environmental conditions, the very conditions altered by the subject, is crucial to the process – and crucial to capturing an image of the entity...


For some interesting, but mostly fake, examples that exhibit the unique inconsistencies in modern digital photography, visit: http://ghostphotographs.blogspot.com/

True Blood, Shmoo Blood.

POSTSCRIPT to my last entry:

For the record, I believe vampires are the hackneyed imaginings of novelists and screenwriters.  Be that as it may, students (most of whom resemble vampires) still choose to attend my lectures.

I’m a novice in the area of biology; however, I find it inconceivable that an organic creature (alleged vampires may be inhabited by a mystical entity, but the bodies they inhabit are organic human remains) can accelerate the growth of its teeth at such a rate as to replicate the speed that’s portrayed in the mouths of “vamps” who release their fangs in movies and television.  Those vampires, Bill and Eric, in TRUE BLOOD have the fastest retractable fangs I’ve ever seen on screen, and furthermore, I cannot fathom why or how they can run so quickly – when they run like that they remind of me of Wile E. Coyote.  


I don’t know what Sookie Stackhouse sees in them.  The human tooth is made up of highly condensed tissues that surpass the durability of bone, which is why dental records are so often used to identify the dead.  Teeth last, much longer than bone.  Teeth are much harder than bone, and much less likely to be malleable, no matter how supernatural the force is that tries to manipulate their molecules.

I’m open to the idea of the existence of such a creature, perhaps one outside of what Hollywood’s depiction of it is – I just haven’t come cross any evidence of one yet...

For Vampires, Fashion is Undead Too.

I’m not sure whether the latest vampire craze has anything to do with my students’ interest in “ghosts.”  They certainly can’t get enough of stuff like the Twilight series, The Vampire Diaries,  and True Blood, I would argue that vampires fall into the category of “ghosts” as opposed to the category of “cryptids,” even though they are portrayed as being physically in our world, they are technically dead – the physical body is controlled by an ethereal force, a force outside, or beyond, our spiritual world.

This popular “gothic,” or simply “goth” as the kids like to call it, sensibility has driven up the numbers of students registering for my fall class.  Whatever it’s called, I’m a fan of this sensibility, as it’s currently keeping me employed at my university.  I have noticed that along with the rise of student numbers has come the rise of piercings, tattoos and black leather exhibited on their persons.  I have no opinion on their personal disfigurements or lapses in fashion sense, that is their business and their business alone.

The more extroverted kids have taken to actually wearing “fangs;” in fact, you can get your own pair of dental-fit fangs right here if you’re so inclined:

http://www.vampfangs.com/

As for me, my business is the business of ghosts, and other paranormal phenomenon, et al.

A Ghost, an Exorcism, and the spirit world. Are they real?

I’ve spent most of my career focusing on category 1, Spirits (AKA “ghosts”), notwithstanding various paid freelance jobs with a government I cannot identify, per the guidelines of my contracts, on which I focused on category 2 (extraterrestrial life).

In my experience, the idea of the existence of ghosts seems to be the most publicly acceptable.  This may seem contrary to logic, as this category of the paranormal specifically deals with entities from another existence, another dimension if you will; whereas “alien life forms” and “cryptids” are purported to exist within our own realm, be it on another planet or not.  This may stem from the idea of the “soul” and a person’s intrinsic desire to be in touch with spirits (whether the spirits of those friends and family members who’ve passed on, or the spirits of strangers) outside of our own.  Demonic possession is a “happening” that has been, and continues to be, accepted by those inside and out of various religious communities.  Exorcisms continue to be practiced, just as they once had been when they were first practiced by the Jesuits at the College of The Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts.  To this day, this small liberal arts college is rumored to keep a light on 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, in an upper floor room in their main academic building that was used to conduct exorcisms in the late 19^th Century.  This does pique the students’ interest there, as it remains unexplained as to why the light remains on, and it does seem like a ridiculous waste of electricity.

Although my students, and others their age, may find it boring by today’s standards, I still maintain that THE EXORCIST is the scariest movie ever made; and judging by the unending explorations of this “dark art” by Hollywood, it’s still relevant.

This widespread embrace of the spiritual world may be a result of another intrinsic desire to not only comprehend what happens to “us” after we die, but to determine whether or not there is life, or a form of life, after death...

A Recent Development...

I have begun uploading video comparisons to these blog posts. If you would like to watch them, I am told you can do so by visiting YouTube or clicking this link: http://www.youtube.com/user/ProfessorLamott?feature=mhee

Mothman, El Chupacabra, The Jersey Devil (Cryptids Pt. 2)

Regardless of the sarcasm in my previous blog, it is the lesser-known cryptids that I am most fascinated by.  Perhaps it’s an appeal similar to the appeal wine enthusiasts have for lesser-known, smaller vineyards – maybe it’s the fact that the lesser-known resources are shared by fewer people, and therefore less diluted.  That somehow the smaller the mystery, the bigger it is, and the more authentic it is.

Some of the lesser known cryptids include the Mothman, the Chupacabra, the Yeti (more widely known as “The Abominable Snowman”), the Jersey Devil, and another creature that I have recently become aware of potentially existing –

It’s this last creature that fascinates me the most, specifically its speculated connection to the spiritual world.  More on that later...

The Yeti, Loch Ness, and Bigfoot... (Cryptids Pt. 1)

Cryptids.

Despite the macabre nature of its name, this classification involves creatures that are believed to be alive, but are presently unconfirmed by science.  The ubiquitous example is, of course, the Loch Ness Monster.  Even though it supposedly does not exist, there is a picture of it –

You’ve probably all seen this picture before, but I guarantee it has probably done more for tourism in the Scottish Highlands than it has done to advance the studies of Cryptozoology.  It is probably more realistic to assume that if such a creature exists, it is most likely an example of a relic left over from a long-lost generation of plesiosaurs. 

There are literally hundreds of “cryptids” thought to be in existence at this present moment, though evidence of such a claim is scarce.  Some of the more famous ones include: Bigfoot, Werewolves, and Trolls.

Here’s a rather amusing montage of “cryptids” on youtube that’s certainly a farce, but it has over 7 million views…so what do I know?

Aliens and Divine Cults

In more recent years, there has been a push to connect UFO sightings to the spiritual world.

In believing that alien life forms have the ability to see beyond the scope of what’s possible for a human being, some secular and religious groups believe that if contacted they can be a conduit to a spiritual world, a divine world, that’s beyond our current ability to reach.  

In other words, some believe they are, or possibly are, our connection to God.  The possibility of such a connection though fascinating, and hopeful for some, can also be quite dangerous; as evidenced by the members of the Heaven’s Gate religious group who committed mass suicide in the late 90’s in order to board an alien spacecraft that they believed was following an eternal comet.

Although the comet was at its brightest, the promise of reaching a space ship in this manner is to me, at best, a reach.

About Aliens... Part 2

In the 1950’s, excitement over UFO sightings was at a fever-pitch.  This was reflected in the newspapers and, more dramatically, in the science fiction movies of the era.  There was even a title for those who were enthusiastic for the rage:

“UFOlogists.”

In 1952, various fast-moving objects appeared on radarscopes at three separate installations in Washington DC, including the Capital building and Andrews Air Force Base. Fighter Jets were launched, but did not come across anything.

The same thing apparently occurred again the next night, however this time the objects were confirmed by witnesses on the ground.  The largest press conference in the government's history regarding unidentified phenomenon was called by Major General Roger M. Ramey, USAF operations chief, and Major General John A. Samford, USAF director of intelligence, to explain to reporters that radar traces were caused by thermal inversions, despite the absence of proper weather conditions on the nights in question for this phenomenon to have been the cause of the incidents.

Here is a clip of the press conference addressing the 1952 Washington D.C. UFO Incident:

I cannot confirm the veracity of these sightings; I can only confirm the government’s “sweeping-under-the-rug” of them.

About Aliens...

Extraterrestrial Life, aka "aliens" (including UFOs):

Many believe that this category of unexplained phenomenon is not technically “paranormal.”  To these ghost snobs, I disagree, for as we just learned, the definition of the word “Paranormal” is that which is not scientifically explainable.

It also helps to embrace a firm distrust of the government and what the government allows the general public to be aware of.  An unidentified flying object may very well be an alien, or it may very well be an F-15 fighter jet, or it may also be an otherworldly spirit: as long as we’re kept in the dark, all three options are equally likely.

They are all scientifically unexplainable, as long as the scientists are not allowed to explain them.  And, I must admit, the mystery surrounding such incidents and claims of UFOs, and the reticence of the government to elaborate on such incidents and claims, does make you wonder…what are aliens and UFOs?

Viva Don Quijote!

In response to a number of your confused messages regarding my last blog entry, I must clarify that my reference to Don Quixote as being in the running for “most logical character in literary history” was my attempt at a joke.  Don Quixote was anything but logical.  He challenged windmills to duels.

I was also attempting some irony, something that’s lost on a lot of my students, at least with respect to my personal use of it, as many in the field of science (and those outside of the field) consider my forays into paranormal studies, essentially, a quixotic enterprise.  Many believe attempting to procure evidence of the paranormal is about as constructive as tilting at windmills. 

To all those challenging my enterprise, I challenge them to a duel.  After I’m finished slaying these particular windmills.

Viva Don Quijote!!