Across the Great Divide
Investigation Procedures: Analysis of Paranormal Activity (Part 4 of 5)
Any paranormal investigation is only as good as the data collected and how well it is analyzed. Some groups do a lot of their analysis on location as it happens, such as Discovery Channel’s Ghost Lab. This has a lot of advantages in that you can quickly determine a course of action, or an area of higher priority. You can also readily debunk claims by being able to recreate activity while still on the site. If you get a shadow figure you can quickly refute or substantiate it by recreating it in the very location at the same time and with the exact same environmental factors still in play. The down side to this is that if you’re spending all your time analyzing the data as you collect it, you’re lengthening the investigation cycles and the potential for missing activity increases. Find a happy medium ground and maybe mix it up with a little on-the-fly and a little post-investigation analysis. Do what works best for you and your team.
Personally, I think it’s advantageous to wait until after the group has had a good amount of rest but do NOT put off analysis for a few days. After a good rest, assemble your analysis team and go over things as soon as you all wake up and eat immediately following investigation. You’re refreshed, alert, and your tummies are full. You’re able to scrutinize what is in front of you while still having the experiences very fresh in your memory and all team members are present for questions and clarification.
Split the data up between several group members and go through everything together. That way if something anomalous turns up it can be immediately reviewed by the others as to its validity and provides a sounding board for bouncing opinions and reactions off of each other.
It helps to have members who have technical knowledge or skill in key areas. I have psychology training and knowledge and can lend opinions related to the psychology of perception; another member of ours is a forensic profiler for the courts and a skilled professional photographer. These are just some examples of the kinds of members who can be an asset to your investigations. If you don’t have such membership then you may want to present your findings to reputable experts before presenting your final report to your client. Follow up with professional video and filmmakers, photographers, physicists, geologists, and psychologists, for example. To be honest, even if your crack team does have superior knowledge and skills, it’s always wise to send the data off to third-party experts for an unbiased second opinion.
Save all raw data files, be it audio, video, or photo in a secure backup location! I can’t stress this enough, as I know first hand the disappointment of losing valuable data. Put all raw, original data files on a large server and work with copies on individual computers. This ensures that the original is safe in case your conclusions are questioned. Remember to manipulate COPIES ONLY when analyzing them and save anomalous findings in a separate folder.
With photos you’ll want to import them into a computer and view them on a large screen. Be aware of the matrixing effect and go through each one to look for differences in lighting, shades, and shadows consistent with a vortex, apparition, or various other paranormal activity. Using the hundreds of tools available in programs like Photoshop, increase levels and clear up the image as best you can by adjusting for light, contrast, and color balance. Be careful not to adjust a picture in such a way that you artificially create the activity you’re looking for. Any professional photographer out there with expert-level knowledge of Photoshop can slam your claims. The most important thing is to differentiate between reflections and objects that are emitting their own light. Look at how lights and shadows are affected by the objects in question and their positions three dimensionally. Light bends around objects, not hover in mid air.
Next are the audio and video recordings. A photo is a photo- look away for a moment and it won’t change. Unlike photographs, audio and video must be highly scrutinized and paid attention too; if you are distracted by any means you may miss that fleeting apparition or otherwise ghostly encounter. A glance away from the screen or drowsiness could result in you concluding there was no evidence when one of the field’s best verifications is sitting on your hard drive unaccounted for because you were too tired or lazy to see it.
When listening to audio for possible EVPs use noise cancelling headphones that effectively remove other noises from the room you are in. Turn the volume up to a reasonable level as to clearly and accurately listen but not result in a burst ear drum. Too loud is as ineffective as too low.
Effective EVP analysis is something of a special skill that is developed with practice. The more you do it and recognize sounds and effects, the better you’ll become, and the more accurate your findings will be. Listen to everything, even long periods where no one is conducting an EVP session. Just because no one in the group is asking questions doesn’t mean the spirit isn’t asking his own questions or making a statement. Listen for whispers, words, sounds, taps, and bangs. When specific questions are asked listen for intelligent answers. Listen to everything in the context of what is going on at the time of the recording- the conversations between team members, a neighborhood dog barking, cars driving by, or various other factors. Again, this is where time stamping is if importance. If you do have something that is agreed upon by the analysis team to be worthy of further analysis, save a copy for later study.
Most digital recorders these days come with bundled software to listen to your audio. If you’re lucky it’ll be a robust program that has hundreds of tools to bend, pitch, clean up, and adjust the volume of audio samples.
Personally I use Nero’s Wave Editor. The tool kit in this program is simply amazing. With this you can see a visual representation of the file with spikes indicating verified sound. You can adjust for noise reduction, hums, hisses, and clicks. You can also adjust volume. One of the best EVPs I ever caught might have been missed because the word was said so softly it was almost overlooked. Once the volume was increased it was clearly a direct answer to a specific question! EVPs are among the most spine-chilling but awe-inspiring evidence of paranormal contact.
When looking over video you not only have sound to pay attention to but the visual happenings as well. Just as with photographs, use a large monitor but not so large that you’re darting around trying to watch everything. A 15-19 inch screen works just fine. Look for light and shadow effects, objects in the environment being affected by unknown means, strange glitches in the video and defined shapes. That glitch most probably is interference from other equipment but it could also be the manipulation of an entity. This is where the IR motion detectors pay their cost. Suppose the room you’re watching has an object move apparently on its own. If the motion sensor guarding the room is not tripped then you truly have something paranormal. Is it a ghost or spirit? Only further analysis will tell, but it is definitely not an easily explainable event.
After you’ve gone over all the data hopefully you will have something worthwhile to report back to the client with. Even if you don’t, it doesn’t mean a failure for the investigation. All investigations are a gamble. Sometimes you catch good evidence but most of the time it turns up no valid results whatsoever as far as evidence goes but each investigation is a learning experience and that has no price tag. Also the client may be comforted by the fact nothing paranormal was going on and whatever logical, natural explanations you may have for the events in the house could put them at ease. If substantial evidence is found it can also comfort the clients. When friends and family give them a crooked eye they can present professional proof to support their claims.
Quality analysis comes from fair, grounded, unbiased attention to detail and hinges on the knowledge and experience of the collectors and those who go over the results. All of these things come with honest, serious practice. Even the most skilled investigators should still seek second opinions. So don’t get too over-excited or discouraged. Be diligent and keep at it. Even I am always learning something new.
Next month we will wrap up this series with the final component of investigation procedures- The Reveal & Follow Up. Until then, Happy Thanksgiving from yours truly. Next month is also special because it’s the first anniversary of Across the Great Divide. I have had an amazing and fun year providing you with, what I hope, is an enjoyable and educational romp through the world of paranormal research.