Spirit Photography: The Deceptive Art of William Mumler 📷👻
By Jude Obuseh In the mid-1800s, a photographer named William Mumler gained notoriety on the East Coast of the United States for his uncanny ability to capture spirits alongside living humans in photographs. His skill at creating these ethereal images led to a widespread belief that they depicted departed loved ones. However, the truth behind Mumler's work was far from what his clients believed. Clients were willing to pay a handsome fee for these spirit photographs, as they provided a glimmer of hope in their time of mourning. This was the era of spiritualism, a movement that embraced the idea that communication with the deceased was possible. Those who had lost loved ones found solace in these photographs, believing they offered a way to reconnect with the dearly departed. The reality of Mumler's photographs, however, was rooted in deception. Louis Kaplan, a professor of photography history at the University of Toronto, explains that Mumler used stock photos of in...