A Ghost’s Face In The Bathroom?
Image: Paranormal.about.com
Stephen Wagner’s Paranormal section in About.com is a fairly well known website. Search for “paranormal” in Google and Stephen’s site comes up first.
So there’s no surprise at the volumes of personal stories that are sent to him every now and then. Some subtle, others very vivid and detailed.
A reader who goes by “Melissa”, submitted to Stephen a picture taken of herself and a friend in their bathroom in 1989. Behind them, appears an evil looking face. Translucent with a transfixed stare.
Read Melissa’s letter to Stephen.
Source: paranormal.about.com
The photo was taken by my mother on Halloween day 1989 of me and my friend spray painting our hair before trick-or-treating,” says Melissa. “We were 13 years old at the time. We didn’t realize that there was a third person in the photo for quite some time — years — because we weren’t looking for it. We considered the idea of a double exposure, but there is no overlapping on the picture and also we don’t recognize the boy. He seems to be a young boy, maybe the around the same age as we were at the time. He’s standing behind me and has dark poofy hair, and seems to be looking down or has his eyes closed. You can see his facial features clearly and it looks like he’s wearing a t-shirt with writing on it. He’s standing in front of the tub enclosure; you can see his hair blocking the chrome trim on the door, yet you can also see the towel bar on the shower door through him.
It’s very interesting, but unfortunately I have no answers for it. The house was built for my parents in the early 1960s, so I have no stories of a previous family living there. And like I said, nobody recognizes the boy in the picture. I’d love to hear your feedback. Does this qualify as a legitimate ghost photo? I’d love to have it analyzed or just receive somebody’s professional opinion, like yours.
These days, when you observe such a poignant image in the paranormal, you have to put aside your initial judgment and rationalize what you are looking at, how it was presented and how it could have been hoaxed. I’m one who always dismisses such pictures as a hoax or an “accidental ghost”. In this case meaning it could be that it’s a shadow of the girls head, made by the camera’s flash. As far as the face, well pareidolia can be used.
Again, this is my interpretation. For all I know it’s a reflected face from a movie poster….or, dare I say?…A ghost?
What do you guys think?
Written by Javier Ortega - javier@ghosttheory.com
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if it looks like a duck, acts like a duck and quacks like one, it’s probably a fraking duck
Maybe it’s just me, I could be half blind, but I don’t see the image you are talking about. I can only see two girls. What’s wrong with me? Can anyone tell me? Or maybe it’s not me. Is it you? Is it?
I’m not sure, but I think I do see a face , like a person with an afro, behind the head of the girl with the jeans jacket.
It actually looks like a character of some sort. White face with black stripes, big hair. Hoax IMO. Why would anyone try to pull a ghost hoax on Halloween? If you think that’s a dumb question think about the fact that they say they took the pic on Halloween. Giveaway? Most assuredly.
or a reflection from an image on the back of her jean jacket?
Not a bad call Drew, the angles don’t match up I think, but you also raised a thought in my mind with that. Back in the late 80’s, there were tons of those pop art pictures that were simplistic in colors, and design. Almost stenciled looking, and that is exactly what the ‘ghost’ reminds me of.
Looks a bit like Robert Smith from the The Cure. I had a poster back then with him looking kinda like that. LOL!
As far as I’m concerned, this is a double exposure. If you look closely to the upper right and to the left of the girl’s head, there is an image of a dog…sniffing what looks to be some kind of small garden flower… and these flowers are visible all the way into the upper right-hand corner. I don’t know how your (or in this case your mom’s) film became available such that one wasn’t paying attention, but I am sure that if you check the history of your neighborhood, there was a black family that lived there. Why you, or your mother had pics of this family is something that would be interesting to know.
Best of luck!
Lynn
It is so fake as to be laughable. That’s the trouble with digital photography – no negative to check. Photoshop is excellent isn’t it?
Based on the age of this photo being from 1986 I would say this is caused by double exposure or perhaps the photo was stored over time on top of something, maybe even another photo, and an impression of a face from something else has caused this ghostly image.
The fact that the ‘ghost’ face looks like a person from the same era, with the same ‘big 80’s hair’ leads me to beleive that this is just an impression from another photo and not a ghost.
I wouldn’t go as far as it being a hoax but I can’t make the lead to something paranormal here.
But that’s my opinion.
I’ve seen that same picture before. It’s definitely a fake. I think it’s suppose to be the Exorcist.
It is an illusion caused by the shadow from the left hand girl’s shadow falling evenly onto the wallpaper in the corner of the room which is poorly installed in a symmetrical pattern. That’s all. Cool illusion though!
John
Looks like the Maria robot from “Metropolis” wearing an afro wig.
Why do people celebrate Halloween Its Evil.It doesnt look like a boy it looks like a girl especially on Halloween……thats just dumb
Eric,
Halloween is evil?
Do you even know what the history of the holiday is?
Halloween being “evil” is just an ignorant statement spewed by those who are not tolerant of….you know what..just forget it.
Come back to this site after you’ve taken a ‘comparative religion’ class or something.
-Javier
Eric, while I understand how you feel I can’t exactly say that Halloween in itself is evil. Then again I wouldn’t exactly take Javier’s side either in that much of what is associated with this celebration today can be considered undesirable. While Halloween has some roots in “All Saints Day” it has little to do with that now.
Another basis for Halloween is the festival of Samhain which celebrated the end of the light(Spring/Summer)and beginning of the dark (Fall/Winter). The Celts believed that on this day that the separation between our world and the spirit world was compromised which would allow spirits to cross into our world. People felt that if they dressed up as scary spirits that they would scare away or ward off the “real” bad/harmful spirits.
The point is that over the years there have been more and more celebration and ceremony involving less than desirable elements. Therefore it is my opinion that much of it I cannot agree with. There is history and then there’s how people perceive and act upon it. I choose to stay clear of Halloween entirely.
I’m sure Javier will point out positive aspects of the origins of Halloween and while we agree on many things, we also have our differences of opinion. Friends don’t always agree.
Hi guys,
For the record, I dont know who that fake Eric is, but I did not and do not think Halloween is evil. I love Halloween, and I am way way way funnier then that asshole. god damn having a common first name. Can we start registering user IDs Javier? If not Im going to start posting under Mossblog.
Everyone who isn’t me that uses the name Eric to post a comment on this site can shampoo my crotch.
eric,
Yes sir. Create an account on GT and then use Gravatar (http://en.gravatar.com/) to have your own picture.
-Javier
oh shit…. you mean that one thing that says ‘register’ on the right…. god damnit….
Well, wow, I can’t beleive I missed that. Apparently I am the one besmirching the name ‘eric’…. well sir, thank you for the info, I’ve had enough fake erics besmirching my good name. If anyone is going to make me look stupid it’s going to be me.
eric,
LOL.
-Javier
ps: get a cool looking gravatar. like an alien doing The Robot.