Spirit photography: Real or hoax?

Do you believe in ghosts? The horror movie "Shutter," based on a phenomenon called spirit photography, is currently in theatres and stirring up debate online about whether those flashes of light in your photos are actual ghosts. The movie's official site even has a section encouraging visitors to upload their spirit photos for a chance to have them analyzed by "spirit photo experts."

I have a hard time believing "orbs" that appear in my photos are spirits, but I'd be creeped out if actual faces or figures showed up in my snapshots like the one that showed up on this photo taken with a mobile phone or those seen in some of the images already uploaded to the site.

Alan Boyle from the Cosmic Log blog takes a closer look at the whole spirit photography spookiness in a recent article. He interviewed several experts who believe most of the anomalies caught on film can be explained as either optical glitches or hoaxes.

Glowing orbs, for example, are probably the most common type of optical glitch seen in photographs taken with digital cameras, but these can be easily explained. Skeptics believe these spheres of light are caused when dust, moisture, or insects in the air bounce the flash back into the camera or the camera has a dirty lens.

Other explanations for ghostly figures can be associated with the camera's settings, and maybe the lack of image stabilization options.

Barry Taff, a psychophysiologist involved in a real-life paranormal case that inspired the movie "The Entity," was one of the experts interviewed by Boyle. After reviewing more than 4,000 cases that "don't go beyond one interview," Taff says he's seen a correlation between psychological instability and spooky visions. He does believe there's a link between high magnetic readers and optical anomalies, but he's sure this electromagnetic phenomena is caused solely by the living.

The topic of spirit photography is fascinating whether you believe in ghosts or not, so I encourage you to check out the complete article on chasing phantoms on film. I'm not a subscriber of the whole ghost theory, but maybe you can change my mind. Have you captured any ghostly images in your photos? Send me a link.