Forums · Another bizarre pic.
Although honestly I'm not convinced that there isn't a logical explaination, I just haven't figured it out yet =)
I set my web cam to cap my living room the other night just to see if anything showed up. Kids were in bed, husband was gone and I was in another room watching tv. I came back to the cam later and checked the pics and got this. There are 3 pics in this album, the first is what was caught, then the following 2 caps. The last cap is the normal look for the room. Previous caps had nothing odd.
First thing I thought was it capped as my husband was leaving and that was his jeans. But I was sure he was gone before that and when he came home I looked at his pants and he had on tan shorts, nothing blue. I also was wearing nothing blue. I've been playing with the cam trying to recreate the pic, but so far have had no luck since I always can see the solid part of my hand or myself when I am walking in front of it.
I'd love to hear opinions on it though, especially if you think it's nothing paranormal and can give other things to test. My husband thinks I'm nuts, but I want to try capping it all night one night. But really he thinks I'm crazy about the whole thing, sheesh.
Pic[/URL]
I set my web cam to cap my living room the other night just to see if anything showed up. Kids were in bed, husband was gone and I was in another room watching tv. I came back to the cam later and checked the pics and got this. There are 3 pics in this album, the first is what was caught, then the following 2 caps. The last cap is the normal look for the room. Previous caps had nothing odd.
First thing I thought was it capped as my husband was leaving and that was his jeans. But I was sure he was gone before that and when he came home I looked at his pants and he had on tan shorts, nothing blue. I also was wearing nothing blue. I've been playing with the cam trying to recreate the pic, but so far have had no luck since I always can see the solid part of my hand or myself when I am walking in front of it.
I'd love to hear opinions on it though, especially if you think it's nothing paranormal and can give other things to test. My husband thinks I'm nuts, but I want to try capping it all night one night. But really he thinks I'm crazy about the whole thing, sheesh.
Pic[/URL]
Hi Remo,
Interesting capture. =) It does look a bit like a blue jean pant leg with folds in it, but then again, no. You can see the chairs, etc. through it, but motion blur can also cause that (if it's someone walking in front of the camera). But.... was the camera in such a position that it would have caught a close up of anyone's pant leg? Where was the cam placed.... up on a table, or?
Kell
Interesting capture. =) It does look a bit like a blue jean pant leg with folds in it, but then again, no. You can see the chairs, etc. through it, but motion blur can also cause that (if it's someone walking in front of the camera). But.... was the camera in such a position that it would have caught a close up of anyone's pant leg? Where was the cam placed.... up on a table, or?
Kell
It was actually on my keyboard slide since the cord to the cam isn't very long. So there is a hallway between the cam and the room. But with the hight of where it was it would have caught more of the theigh area. And no one was wearing blue jeans yesterday, not even the kids. But that was the first thing that caught my attention as well.
I've been waving things in front of the camera since Monday night to try to find a similar result, but there is always a solid portion to anything I've capped so far.
I've been waving things in front of the camera since Monday night to try to find a similar result, but there is always a solid portion to anything I've capped so far.
I have to agree with Kell. It looks like a blue jean pant leg, but then, it doesn't. Very interesting. The only other thing I can think, and I don't even know if this makes any sense as I don't know how web cams really work. What if the exposure for each picture was slow or long and your husband walked infront of it while it was being exposed, that may explain the transparent image. Like I said though, I have no idea how they work or even if that statement makes much sense. Kevin P. would be the perfect person to figure that out ![[Wink]](wink.gif)
Although, you had said that your husband wasn't home and you have been trying to recreate the image. I would think in trying, that if that was indeed what happened, you would have been able to recreate it at least once.
I would be interested to see what happened if you ran the cam over night. Definitely let us know if you do that.
Although, you had said that your husband wasn't home and you have been trying to recreate the image. I would think in trying, that if that was indeed what happened, you would have been able to recreate it at least once.
I would be interested to see what happened if you ran the cam over night. Definitely let us know if you do that.
Funny how I'm always mentioned in these threads. =) I'm not even a camera/photography expert, or a ghost expert. Well I try anyway. =)
I looked at the 3 pics, and see what others have seen. The first pic looks like a semi-transparent pant leg. The other two pics look normal, though #2 is brighter than #3, perhaps because the camera was still re-adjusting its exposure. What interval were the pictures taken? Was it in a video mode (capturing several frames per second) or just snapping a pic every few seconds? If it was in a video mode and only one frame showed the "pant leg" then whatever it was flew by pretty fast.
Was it breezy or windy with a window open? It could have been a drape blowing in the wind in front of the camera. It's a far-fetched possibility but you never know. Or maybe someone's arm (with a long sleeve), real close to the camera? Maybe your ghost wanted to check his email! =) I take it you experience paranormal events in your house, thus prompting you to try the webcam?
Do you have a regular video camera (camcorder)? If so, try setting that up and see if it picks up anything. It likely operates at a higher framerate and resolution than a webcam would, and could pick up more detail, and motion across more than one frame.
KJP
I looked at the 3 pics, and see what others have seen. The first pic looks like a semi-transparent pant leg. The other two pics look normal, though #2 is brighter than #3, perhaps because the camera was still re-adjusting its exposure. What interval were the pictures taken? Was it in a video mode (capturing several frames per second) or just snapping a pic every few seconds? If it was in a video mode and only one frame showed the "pant leg" then whatever it was flew by pretty fast.
Was it breezy or windy with a window open? It could have been a drape blowing in the wind in front of the camera. It's a far-fetched possibility but you never know. Or maybe someone's arm (with a long sleeve), real close to the camera? Maybe your ghost wanted to check his email! =) I take it you experience paranormal events in your house, thus prompting you to try the webcam?
Do you have a regular video camera (camcorder)? If so, try setting that up and see if it picks up anything. It likely operates at a higher framerate and resolution than a webcam would, and could pick up more detail, and motion across more than one frame.
KJP
I did some fiddling with the pic in Paint Shop Pro, tweaking things like color balance, contrast, etc. to see if it brought out anything interesting. I also looked at a negative version of the pic. To me it looks more likely to be a shirt sleeve than a pant leg. The wrinkles, the angle, color, seem to confirm this. Also, I don't know where the light sources are in your room, but the light hitting the wrinkles appears to be coming from the same direction as the lights hitting other objects in the room. I take it the primary lighting in the room is off the top left side of the pic?
Another thing I noticed is the arm (or leg, or whatever it is) appears to be relatively stationary. If the object was flying or moving quickly in front of the camera, I would think it would make blurred streaks, which I don't see. But it is transparent as well. If it were a fast moving object, at least part of the image would be opaque, but this image appears to be transparent all the way across.
It doesn't look faked to me either. Unless someone else comes up with a logical explanation that I haven't thought of, I think you may have captured something.
Another thing I noticed is the arm (or leg, or whatever it is) appears to be relatively stationary. If the object was flying or moving quickly in front of the camera, I would think it would make blurred streaks, which I don't see. But it is transparent as well. If it were a fast moving object, at least part of the image would be opaque, but this image appears to be transparent all the way across.
It doesn't look faked to me either. Unless someone else comes up with a logical explanation that I haven't thought of, I think you may have captured something.
Kevin ... face it man ... you know your stuff.
I have a bad habit of looking at the pics and then coming back and reading the story. My first impression of the pic was either double exposure or someone moving past the camera as it frame snapped. After reading the story a discovering it was a webcam that ruled out ... double exposure. So I will have to agree this was either a pants leg or a shirt sleeve... I do not know the shutter speed of a webcam but assuming it is a low light cam the shutter would stay open longer... and the image of the room would be more set ... and just before the shutter closed someone could have moved in front of the lens ... and thus the image of the sleeve of pants leg would be there but not as solid as the image that had been there the duration of the shutter being open.
I have a bad habit of looking at the pics and then coming back and reading the story. My first impression of the pic was either double exposure or someone moving past the camera as it frame snapped. After reading the story a discovering it was a webcam that ruled out ... double exposure. So I will have to agree this was either a pants leg or a shirt sleeve... I do not know the shutter speed of a webcam but assuming it is a low light cam the shutter would stay open longer... and the image of the room would be more set ... and just before the shutter closed someone could have moved in front of the lens ... and thus the image of the sleeve of pants leg would be there but not as solid as the image that had been there the duration of the shutter being open.
I studied the picture looking for evidence of motion artifacts that would occur if the arm/leg (I'll call it an arm to save keystrokes) moved into the frame with the shutter open. I don't see any. The arm has definite boundaries on both sides. One boundary is a little blurred, but even if the arm was moving across the frame while the shutter was open, wouldn't you see a blurred image of the arm all the way to the edge of the pic? The right hand edge of the sleeve is distinct. The light reflecting on the wrinkles is distinct too, and that would have smeared across the frame if the arm moved into the frame with the shutter open.
Another possibility is the arm was moving slowly relative to the shutter speed of the camera. This would minimize motion artifacts, but then the arm wouldn't be transparent in this case either. About the only way to make a real arm look like this would be to either double-expose (a bit hard to do with a webcam, though with some help from Photoshop it could be done after the fact), or the arm would have to "appear" in that spot, or "disappear" from that spot, without any visible motion, while the shutter was open.
What I'd really like to know is what the frame rate of the camera is. Being a webcam, it might be one frame per second or slower, but I can't be sure. I assume this "arm" appeared in only one frame, right?
Another interesting tidbit of information, that might be useful to someone who's more of a photo expert than me, is the exposure level across the 3 pics. If you look at the 1st pic's background (behind the arm), and compare it to the 3rd pic, the brightness is similar. The 2nd pic is brighter. I'm guessing that the "arm" partially blocked light from entering the camera, and it raised its exposure level momentarily, after the shutter closed while taking the arm pic. Thus the pic immediately afterward was overexposed, then the camera re-adjusted itself back to the level consistent with the light level in the room, resulting in the 3rd pic. Based on that, I wonder if the "arm" appeared in front of the camera during the exposure of the 1st pic, and remained during the interval between the 1st and 2nd pic, then disappeared right before the 2nd pic was snapped, causing the lighter exposure. By the time the 3rd pic was taken, the camera finished adjusting its exposure level.
Another possibility is the arm was moving slowly relative to the shutter speed of the camera. This would minimize motion artifacts, but then the arm wouldn't be transparent in this case either. About the only way to make a real arm look like this would be to either double-expose (a bit hard to do with a webcam, though with some help from Photoshop it could be done after the fact), or the arm would have to "appear" in that spot, or "disappear" from that spot, without any visible motion, while the shutter was open.
What I'd really like to know is what the frame rate of the camera is. Being a webcam, it might be one frame per second or slower, but I can't be sure. I assume this "arm" appeared in only one frame, right?
Another interesting tidbit of information, that might be useful to someone who's more of a photo expert than me, is the exposure level across the 3 pics. If you look at the 1st pic's background (behind the arm), and compare it to the 3rd pic, the brightness is similar. The 2nd pic is brighter. I'm guessing that the "arm" partially blocked light from entering the camera, and it raised its exposure level momentarily, after the shutter closed while taking the arm pic. Thus the pic immediately afterward was overexposed, then the camera re-adjusted itself back to the level consistent with the light level in the room, resulting in the 3rd pic. Based on that, I wonder if the "arm" appeared in front of the camera during the exposure of the 1st pic, and remained during the interval between the 1st and 2nd pic, then disappeared right before the 2nd pic was snapped, causing the lighter exposure. By the time the 3rd pic was taken, the camera finished adjusting its exposure level.
Let me try to answer some of this to clear up things. The webcam isn't that great, a logitech express. It was set at 30 second intervals for the caps. It was on my computer which is kind of in a hallway (odd house layout). It was pointing across the main part of the hall and into my living room. In the living room the only light is a ceiling fan in the center of the ceiling. The next light would be down the hall (further to the right of the pic) there is a small chandelier hanging. I do have a lamp at the top of my desk, but I honestly can't remember if I had it on that night or not. It's a desk lamp and I have it angled down and back so it would have been behind the cam, then the light points to the top shelf of my desk. Any other way it washes out the webcam too much. But I don't remember if it was on or not. The shutter speed does seem a bit slow since if walking in front of it part of me is blurry while there is still a solid portion. One problem I've always had with the cam is the light level. Even if there is no light change the cam seems to change, like it's not consistant with things.
It's winter in KS, so no, no windows open. The heat may have been on at that moment, but there are no vents nearby that would have caused anything to blow by. And even then the air coming out of the vent isn't strong enough to get something up to that height. I was in a room behind the camera. I was sitting on the couch and could easily see the computer and cam from where I was sitting. So I know none of the kids sneaked back downstairs, and I never saw anything move. But I was watching TV, so my attention wasn't on the computer at the time. I was surprised to see anything at all, especially to see it that close to the cam, if I caught something I was expecting it to be in the living room.
I do have a regular camcorder, but would need to pick up some new tapes to try it. I plan on capping again tonight around the same time period (since my husband will be gone again and he thinks I'm nuts when I mention ghosts). I may set the caps to a shorter time though to see if anything else shows up.
If you look at the bottom left corner of the pic the brown spot is the hallway trim, and it's a big archway into that room. The cam was angled to face that room. From where the cam was sitting and the corner of trim is a distance of 7 feet. The right side of the pic is the other side of the archway. So whatever it was was in the hallway and less than 7 feet from the cam. The archway opening is 8 feet 9 inches. In the second pic where the big glow is in the top left of the pic is below the ceiling fan in the room (fan was off). We have 10 foot ceilings so that's why the lights aren't seen in the pic. I don't know if that would help figure any size in or not, since there's no telling how close it was to the cam. But definantly less than 7 feet.
If this helps This pic[/URL] is of the hallway, that is the archway on the right. The opening at the end of the pic where the thermostat is is where my computer is, where the stairs cut off the rest of that wall is the computer desk. The light that is hanging in the hallway is lined up with the wall of the arch that is in the front of the pic. So the objust was at the back part of the arch and going across to the front of the arch if you compare the pics. That pic is nearly 2 years old, but the walls haven't moved since then =)
I hope I've answered your questions. I tried to give a lot of detail (probably too much) to hopefully answer any other questions. But personally I'm not convinced it was something. Mainly becuase I didn't feel anything odd at the time. But that could have been becuase my attention was focused elsewhere. Though usually I get a feeling of being watched and it's always coming from that living room, so that's why I put the cam facing there.
It's winter in KS, so no, no windows open. The heat may have been on at that moment, but there are no vents nearby that would have caused anything to blow by. And even then the air coming out of the vent isn't strong enough to get something up to that height. I was in a room behind the camera. I was sitting on the couch and could easily see the computer and cam from where I was sitting. So I know none of the kids sneaked back downstairs, and I never saw anything move. But I was watching TV, so my attention wasn't on the computer at the time. I was surprised to see anything at all, especially to see it that close to the cam, if I caught something I was expecting it to be in the living room.
I do have a regular camcorder, but would need to pick up some new tapes to try it. I plan on capping again tonight around the same time period (since my husband will be gone again and he thinks I'm nuts when I mention ghosts). I may set the caps to a shorter time though to see if anything else shows up.
If you look at the bottom left corner of the pic the brown spot is the hallway trim, and it's a big archway into that room. The cam was angled to face that room. From where the cam was sitting and the corner of trim is a distance of 7 feet. The right side of the pic is the other side of the archway. So whatever it was was in the hallway and less than 7 feet from the cam. The archway opening is 8 feet 9 inches. In the second pic where the big glow is in the top left of the pic is below the ceiling fan in the room (fan was off). We have 10 foot ceilings so that's why the lights aren't seen in the pic. I don't know if that would help figure any size in or not, since there's no telling how close it was to the cam. But definantly less than 7 feet.
If this helps This pic[/URL] is of the hallway, that is the archway on the right. The opening at the end of the pic where the thermostat is is where my computer is, where the stairs cut off the rest of that wall is the computer desk. The light that is hanging in the hallway is lined up with the wall of the arch that is in the front of the pic. So the objust was at the back part of the arch and going across to the front of the arch if you compare the pics. That pic is nearly 2 years old, but the walls haven't moved since then =)
I hope I've answered your questions. I tried to give a lot of detail (probably too much) to hopefully answer any other questions. But personally I'm not convinced it was something. Mainly becuase I didn't feel anything odd at the time. But that could have been becuase my attention was focused elsewhere. Though usually I get a feeling of being watched and it's always coming from that living room, so that's why I put the cam facing there.
Maybe my 'putor is playing tricks on me, but when I run the photos in slideshow, two little white dots (like eyes??) appear and dissappear under the long table, far right side, at the bottom.(slide 2 and 3) However, they don't show up when I look at the photos individually. Is that some kind of critter eyes? Or light reflection? (Maybe my poor 'putor is on it's way to the graveyard.) Just wondering if anyone else saw that.
No indoor critters. But I think it is just pixelation from the cam. The pics it takes aren't very clear, so from one pic to the next the pixels seem to change a bit when there is no change in the room at all. I think I definantly need a better quality cam if I want to find anything with a web cam.
The webcam hasn't turned up anything since that night. Which still makes me think that it was more a man made thing than something else, but I think others would look at it the opposite. I did take a ton of pics today and got no orbs, then orbs, then none again. It was rather odd and I'm still going over the pics and haven't had time to upload any. My daughter had wanted her pic taken so I said "If you want your pic taken get in the chair" I took a few of her, then more of just the room and later orbs appeared in the chair. So I thought that was odd/funny. But I'll try to add those pics later tonight. I took about 50 pics one after another and still want to animate them to see how the orbs move from one pic to the next. Also I had the cam running while I was taking pics and while I got stuff on the digital I didn't get anything on the webcam. Not that I think it means something, but I'd like to get somethign on both around the same time, just for more of a confirmation that it's not a camera thing.
The webcam hasn't turned up anything since that night. Which still makes me think that it was more a man made thing than something else, but I think others would look at it the opposite. I did take a ton of pics today and got no orbs, then orbs, then none again. It was rather odd and I'm still going over the pics and haven't had time to upload any. My daughter had wanted her pic taken so I said "If you want your pic taken get in the chair" I took a few of her, then more of just the room and later orbs appeared in the chair. So I thought that was odd/funny. But I'll try to add those pics later tonight. I took about 50 pics one after another and still want to animate them to see how the orbs move from one pic to the next. Also I had the cam running while I was taking pics and while I got stuff on the digital I didn't get anything on the webcam. Not that I think it means something, but I'd like to get somethign on both around the same time, just for more of a confirmation that it's not a camera thing.