Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
One of the stranger traditions in photography is "spirit photography", dating back (at least) to William Mumler's work in the 1860's. It was taken very seriously in its day; Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a big believer in it, as was Alfred Russell Wallace, co-discoverer of the theory of evolution. Mary Todd Lincoln had her portrait taken with the "spirit" of her deceased husband Abraham behind her.
These days it's more an amusement. My students and I made quite a few pinhole spirit photographs when I was teaching high school photography, and it's still a fun thing to do with friends who drop by for wet plate portraits. Here are a couple from yesterday, keeping the 150+ year old tradition alive...
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g1...ps88crc0hc.jpg
http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g1...ps1h3uzz1e.jpg
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
This is a self-portrait I did a while ago, using an 4x5 pinhole camera.
http://www.gophotog.org/allphotos/pi...lfPortrait.jpg
1 Attachment(s)
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
here is mine, of a ghost in Paris...
Attachment 165253
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
1 Attachment(s)
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
What a great idea for a thread! I finally got around to giving one of these a try a month or two ago during a return visit to the 1906 South Presbyterian Church in Syracuse together with my architect friend and colleague. His "spirit" is there on the balcony, though I didn't have the timing quite right and he's a bit, well, pale. It was fun to try anyway!
Bruce
Attachment 165316
4x5, Shen Hao. Acros 100, Fujinon 150mm, Epson V750 flatbed scan
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
1 Attachment(s)
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
This is from 1996 in Albuquerque. A note blew against my fence so I staged a ghost photo to suit. It provided lots of entertainment for my neighbors who were having a front yard BBQ at the time. This is scanned from the print. (The house was built in 1883 so a little ghostliness was in order.)
Attachment 165328
1 Attachment(s)
Re: Spirit Photography (Post Your Ghost!)
From Battery GodfreyAttachment 165400