Spirit Photography

By Crusader1307

As old as the Camera, Spirit Photography was a popular form of "entertainment" in the 19th and early 20th Centuries. Coupled with the "belief" that actual spiritual evidence of "The Afterlife" was possible - and entire industry wad created in Victorian England. Providing actual "proof" of Ghosts, people could purchase pictures or even "pose" with a Spirit. Owing to the fine "art" developing at the time we now call "special effects", great efforts were taken by "Spirit Photographers" to produce some amazing (and doubtful) "real" Ghost photos. The Victorian practice known as "Memento de Morte" - or photographing the recently deceased for Families, no doubt influenced some aspects of Spirit Photography. Photos of the "dearly departed" could be "specterized" or made to look somewhat "Ghostly". Mist, smoke and negative printing was used to place the "dead" with the "living". However, real Spiritualists were starting to claim actual photos of Spirits (many conjured during the immensely popular Seances of The Era). This also led to the new practice of "Ghost Photo" Debunking. Famous personages such as Victorian Writer Sir Conan Arthur Doyle formed "The Ghost Society" to investigate many of the more sensational pictures of the time. The vast majority he debunked - some he could not. Even Master Magician and Escape Artist Eric Weiss (aka Houdini), was an avid debunker. With advances in technology, the ability to fake such photos are commonplace. Many are. However, many more fall into the realm of the unexplained.