Spirit photography is a controversial topic within the paranormal field. In the modern world, it mainly consists of 'dust orbs' or seeing faces in mist, which is often dismissed as pareidolia. When there is something of interest, there are a lot of factors to take into consideration. Shutter speed, low light photography, could someone have walked by you didn't notice and even now we have AI to worry about. If we go back a century, the concerns were there but they were different. They mainly surrounded the large amounts of fraud that were prevalent during the spiritualist era.
In the 1860s, photographer William Mumler developed a self-portrait he had taken himself. He was surprised to see a second person in the photo that wasn't really there. It was found to actually be a case of double exposure, where he had accidentally reused one of the glass plates, which already had an image on it (remember, cameras operated differently back then. Nothing was digital). He found it was easy to create your very own ghost. When developing the photos, he would use a pre-prepared glass plate that already had the image of a person on it. This would be the 'ghost'. It would then be inserted into the camera in front of an unused plate, which was used to shoot the photo. When developed, it would capture both the image that was on the pre-prepared plate and the person sitting in the photo.
After discovering the concept of double exposure, someone convinced him that the figure looked ghostly. He in his mind, knew that it was not a ghost, but saw that there would be a big market for this kind of thing. He promptly started working as a 'medium' with a talent of being able to photograph the deceased alongside a living person. In particular, he worked with a lot of families who lost members in the Civil War. In the late 1860's he produced one of the more famous ghost photos. Mary Todd Lincoln came in under the fake name of Mrs Lyndall wanting to make contact with her deceased famous husband - Abraham.
By William H Mumler - Original CDV held by The Lincoln Financial Foundation Collection, Fort Wayne, IN (http://contentdm.acpl.lib.in.us/cdm/singleitem/collection/p15155coll1/id/56), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20276887
In 1869 after a lot of growing speculation that the ‘ghosts’ that appeared in the images looked a lot like people who had sat for a photograph with him recently and were very much living people, the Police Department charged him with fraud after sending an undercover officer to sit with him. His biggest critic was famous showman PT Barnum (The greatest Showman) who felt Mumlar was preying upon vulnerable families in grief. Other allegations against Mumlar were that he had broken into the houses of families to obtain photos of the deceased for his sittings. Barnum himself replicated fake photographs and produced his own photograph with Abraham Lincoln to show how easily it could be faked. Although the police department was able to prove that it was a case of double exposure, William Mumlar had such a strong loyal following of ‘satisfied customers’ that he was acquitted, but his career as a photography medium promptly finished.
And so the ghosts and photography would forever be intertwined. Many followed, as did the people who tried to debunk them. Harry Houdini and Harry Price were both regularly consulting on cases of 'spirit photography' to get to the bottom of its true origins. Was it a case of fraud, a case of misunderstanding or geniune paranormal phenomena? There are many books covering this evolution, and that is what we are looking at today in Paranormal Book Club.
The Case for Spirit Photography by Arthur Conan Doyle (1922)
"The Case for Spirit Photography" by Arthur Conan Doyle is a scientific publication written in the early 20th century. The work presents the author’s arguments and evidence in favor of the phenomenon known as spirit photography, following the controversial claims against a medium named Mr. Hope. The text delves into various cases, accompanied by photographs, which purportedly show spirits or messages from the deceased, advocating for the validity of these experiences from a spiritualist perspective. At the start of the book, Doyle introduces the Crewe Circle and the medium William Hope, who has faced accusations of fraud regarding his ability to produce extra figures in photographs. He counters these allegations by discussing the extensive evidence he believes supports Hope's abilities, including testimonies from credible sources who have witnessed his work firsthand. Doyle emphasizes the importance of considering a broader context of Hope's long career and success in obtaining photographs with supernatural elements, arguing for a sympathetic understanding rather than a dismissive view based solely on select criticisms. He sets the stage for a detailed exploration of specific cases that he hopes will substantiate the claims of spirit photography.
This is available to read for free via public domain. When reading, it is important to note Doyle's unwavering bias towards spiritualism and always seeing the 'good' in people known for deception.
The Case Against Spirit Photographs By: Patrick C. Vincent, Smith W. Whately
"The Case Against Spirit Photographs" by C. Vincent Patrick and W. Whately Smith is a critical examination of spirit photography, written in the early 20th century. The work delves into the widely popular claims surrounding these photographs, challenging their validity and exploring potential methods of fraud. The authors aim to present a thorough analysis of the historical context, fraudulent techniques used, and the psychology of belief surrounding spirit photographs. The opening of the text introduces the subject of spirit photography, highlighting the ongoing public fascination and the significant claims made by spiritualists regarding evidence of life after death. W. Whately Smith articulates that while photographs may seem to offer objective proof, the possibility of deception is ever-present, especially in poorly controlled environments such as photographic séances. The section sets the stage for an in-depth exploration of the historical cases, fraudulent methods, and personal experiences that lead to skepticism about spirit photography, suggesting that the authors will seek to dismantle claims surrounding its authenticity throughout the remainder of the work.
This is available to read for free via public domain. This presents the other side of the arguments written in a similar time period to Doyle. Whenever we are doing paranormal research, no matter what our belief is or which side of the fence we sit on, it is important to read all sides of the arguments and gain a full understanding so that we can start to form our own opinions and that they are as informed as they can be.
More titles I definitely recommend is A Magician Among Spirits by Harry Houdini and Confessions of a Ghost Hunter by Harry Price. These are also available to read for free via public domain. Check out the LLIFS Resource Directory for links.
My own bias is coming through here but I found them to be entertaining and valuable, not just on the topic of spirit photography but these are covered in this book along with work they have done in investigating it. (Plus if you are a reader of my blog, you will know I am a fan). I guess I am also a fan of Doyle for his willingness to stand up for what he believed. He always stuck to his guns, and his weakness was always believing in the best of people and sadly, his kindness was often mistaken as weakness, and he was fooled. He didn't let this stop him though, he kept pursuing, and this resilience is something I see in many investigators. I think this is why the dynamic of Houdini and Doyle always fascinated me. If they met somewhere in the middle, I think they really could have done some amazing things together! I think it is also a lesson that stubbornness only gets us so far, and we have to be willing to admit we could be wrong!
Obviously there is a large range of books either dedicated to spirit photography or that are written about the paranormal or spiritualism in general and contain a few chapters. As we move more into modern-day paranormal investigation, it is really hard to recommend books written by modern paranormal investigators as above, they are biased towards belief. The technology however, is much more advanced, which makes it a much harder area to understand. For this reason, I am not recommending any modern books right now, however, to know where we are going, we have to understand where we have been. While the technology was different, many of the arguments are the same.
Is it possible to photograph a ghost?
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