The Case Against Spirit PhotographsPatrick, C. Vincent
History
The Case Against Spirit Photographs
Patrick, C. Vincent
Parapsychology; Spirit photography; Spiritualism
The most important contribution to the discussion which followed was
made by Sir William Barrett, who demonstrated that the result could
be duplicated by taking a several minutes’ exposure of a chair, in
which someone was seated for a part of the time. The sitter would
naturally not keep quite still; hence the outlines would be blurred and
the features indistinct. Sir William published a photograph which he
had obtained in this way, reproducing the features of the Combermere
photograph, even to the leglessness. He suggested that someone,
possibly one of the four men-servants in the Abbey, had entered the
library during the prolonged exposure. He had sat down in the chair
for a minute or so, when, noticing the camera, he beat a retreat. The
photograph showed double outlines to all the sharp edges, indicating
that the camera had been moved slightly during the exposure, and
suggesting that someone had entered the room and jarred it. As it was
eight months after the event that the photograph was developed, it was
impossible to ascertain whether anyone _did_ actually so enter the
room. In any case it was a remarkable coincidence, but there is no
proof of it being anything more.
A somewhat similar case is recorded by Podmore. The photograph was
being taken, this time, in a chapel. On development a faint face was
seen framed in a panel. This was described as being the likeness of
a friend of the photographer’s who had recently died--“a handsome,
melancholy lad of eighteen.” Another critic thought that the face was
that “of a woman of thirty”; it must have been very indistinct. It may
well have been caused in the same manner that was suggested for the
Combermere photograph; a visitor to the chapel standing in the field of
the camera for some moments, probably not realising that an exposure
was in progress.
Several accounts have been given by amateurs of seeing spirit faces
develop, only to disappear again on fixing; one such is published in
Vol. VII. of the _J.S.P.R._ These are evidently of a subjective nature,
the finished negative showing no evidence of any abnormality. If any
reader of this article knows of any case where an “extra” has been
obtained in the absence of a professional medium, and where the plate
can be produced, I should be very grateful for particulars.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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