Insects and Photography

Insects and Photography

written for

The S.A. Paranormal Meet-ups

28/7/12

by 

Allen Tiller

Insects are often flying and crawling about in many locations paranormal investigators visit, whether it be cemeteries, abandoned buildings, or even private homes, hotels and mansions, it doesnt matter where you go, the likelihood of a flying insect being present is high.

Most investigators don't even factor in their presence, being more interested in getting EMF readings and other measurements before starting their vigils and EVP sessions.

 At Eidolon Paranormal, we take into consideration the fact that many flying insects may be present at a location and we try to identify them, and if possible take photos of them in action for later comparison, as this is not always possible we have invested in some bug catchers from Toy's-R-Us. 
 

We place our bug catchers in the location to collect a sample of insects, which we can then identify at a later time, making it possible to compare and disregard many photography anomalies based upon the structure of the insect in comparison to orbs and other phenomena in our photos and videos.

There are ways to attract the insects towards your camera for photos, a black light, or insect bug zapper placed underneath the front of your camera tripod will attract certain bugs and moths, allowing you to take the photos you need for later comparison, or you can use our own method from above

What you will notice in your photos is that the “orbs” created from insects are usually of an irregular shape, the further from the camera, the “rounder” they will appear.

If the insect is close to your flash it will usually reflect back to the lens causing a glowing effect around the insect, but the body of the insect, or its wings will usually have shape and definition, but appear glowing and distorted when compared to an insect photo taken without the flash.

Some insects will appear very small and will look like a solid object inside a glowing orb of colour, after trialling the experiments above, you will soon see how to distinguish differing types of smaller insect orbs.

Another common orb is a white orb with a brown “face” like appearance within the orb, in Australia these can often be attributed to Mosquitoes, the smaller body of the mozzie creates less “feedback glow” from the flash but still makes an orb shape, and it's legs often create the illusion, combined with the torso, of a “face" within the orb itself.

For more on Pariedolia please visit our website at:

http://www.eidolonparanormal.net/pareidolia.htm

Many amateur ghost teams and spiritualists post photos of insects online claiming they are “Angels” or “fairies” when quite clearly they are insects, in some of the ones we have come across, even right here in Australia, they are clearly insects, such as moths and gnats.

Eidolon Paranormal is currently undertaking a survey in a local haunted “hotspot” where we are collecting insects at different times of the day/night and in different seasons, to establish the types of flying insects in the area. We are hoping to create an online database for our website, so people that visit the hotspot with little photography knowledge, thinking they have caught something paranormal, can then compare their photo's to our database and debunk their own paranormal photography themselves.

Photo's of our field trips to collect data will be posted at intervals over the coming months.

I would like to thank "MidNite Walkers Paranormal Research Society"  for allowing us the use of some of their photographs for this particular blog

http://midnite-walkers.com/

Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.net

© 2007 - 2014 Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.net

All content on “Eidolon Paranormal & The Haunts of Adelaide” sites, blog and corresponding media pages (eg Facebook, twitter etc) is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any means or process without the written permission of the author. © 2012, 2013, 2014

All photos remain the property of their respective copyright owners and are displayed here for the purpose of education, research and review under the copyright act "fair usage" clause.

Some photo's used here on this site are sourced from The Sate Library of South Australia, and The National Library of Australia and http://www.gawler.nowandthen.net.au - all photos are out of copyright and have no usage restrictions implied.

EXIF FILES - What Are They, and How To Access Them?

Recently, it has been brought to my attention that the term "EXIF file" is being thrown around by paranormal teams and investigators without any real explanation of what it is, what it does, and how it is used. I thought I would take it upon myself to explain to you, Constant Reader, what an EXIF file is and what it does.

EXIF data can also be found in other photo file formats, including RAW (commonly associated with DSLR cameras) and TIFF files. We may discuss these formats at a later date.

The reason behind the recent increase in its use has to do with accusations from some sectors of the paranormal community regarding teams allegedly "faking" photographs of ghosts.

EXIF data can be very useful in determining certain information about when a photo was taken and whether it has been electronically altered. However, this information is by no means infallible, as you will see as we delve further into this discussion.


What Does EXIF Mean?

The acronym "EXIF" stands for Exchangeable Image File Format.

So What Is It?

EXIF is a standard that was created by the Japanese Electronic Industries Development Association (JEIDA) to capture data associated with digital media devices such as smartphones, digital cameras, and scanners. It can also capture geolocation data via satellite technology in certain smartphones and newer cameras.

The stored information can include, but is not limited to, shutter speed, the date and time a photograph was taken, focal length, exposure compensation, metering patterns, and whether a flash was used. This information is known as metadata.

So Who Uses It?

Professional photographers often examine EXIF data to compare photos taken in succession. One photo may be considered successful, while others may not. EXIF data provides valuable clues as to what may have gone wrong with unsuccessful images, allowing photographers to adjust their techniques in future shoots.

Paranormal investigators are often inundated with photographs from members of the public asking, "What is in this photo?" The vast majority of people are genuinely unaware of what they may be seeing in an image. However, there is a small percentage who intentionally alter photographs in an attempt to fool investigators.

This is where EXIF data can be useful. It may help an investigator determine whether a photograph has been altered or manipulated using image-editing software. It can also reveal whether phone apps designed to create ghostly images have been used. However, as I mentioned in my opening paragraph, EXIF data is not infallible.

So How Do I View It?

To view EXIF data, you have several options. The software supplied with your digital camera will usually allow you to access it. You can also find web browser plug-ins online, and most photo-editing and photo-organising programs include options for viewing EXIF information.

You will find that different programs use different terminology. For example, Picasa uses the term "Photo Information", whereas Flickr refers to it as "Properties".

Most internet browsers also have plug-ins available that allow you to view the EXIF data of photos posted online. This can be useful if you are interested in examining different aspects of photography or improving your own photographic techniques.

The following website provides examples of EXIF data from a variety of camera manufacturers:

EXIF Sample Files

 

Does It Have Drawbacks?

Yes. Here is a brief sample of drawbacks associated with EXIF data, sourced from Wikipedia:
The EXIF standard specifies that colour depth is always 24 bits. However, many modern cameras, such as the Nikon D70, can capture significantly more colour information. As EXIF files cannot accurately represent this increased colour depth, many manufacturers have developed proprietary RAW image formats.
EXIF is often used in images created by scanners, but the standard contains little provision for scanner-specific information.
There is no way to record time-zone information alongside the time stamp, making the recorded time potentially ambiguous.

You Stated Earlier That EXIF Data Is Not Infallible. How So?

I always check the EXIF data of any photograph sent to me. It allows me to see what settings the camera was using, which is valuable information. Often, cameras are set to "night mode," which keeps the shutter open for a longer period of time.

If the camera is focused on a light source, and either that light source or the camera itself moves while the shutter is open, the resulting image can show streaking or glowing effects. Many people mistakenly interpret these effects as ghosts, spirits, or other paranormal phenomena.

I also check whether a photograph was created using one of the many ghost-generating apps available for smartphones, such as the infamous ghost-making apps once available through Apple's iTunes store:
Ghost Capture App

 

The truth is that EXIF data can be altered, changed, lost, or deleted, and doing so is relatively easy. A variety of programs are available that allow users to modify EXIF information. Here are some examples:
Editing Metadata and EXIF Data
EXIF Date Changer
Adobe Lightroom 3 Metadata Help

As you can see, EXIF data is not infallible and should not be relied upon as definitive proof when accusing someone of faking a photograph. The reality is that you can never be 100 per cent certain that the data is accurate, complete, or untouched.

I normally recommend that budding paranormal investigators focus more on video than still photography. A photograph provides only a single image, with no context, no beginning, and no end. Video, on the other hand, provides a starting point, an action point, and an endpoint, allowing for a more thorough examination of any phenomenon shown in the footage.

Of course, video is also fraught with possibilities for tampering, editing, and outright fakery... but we'll leave that discussion for another day!

Researched & Written by

Allen Tiller