One of my daughters, Serena, and her friend Kalisha are staying with us at the moment. Aside from the pleasure of their company, it also gives me a perfect excuse to go off exploring with them and spend lazy days on the beach here in Bali. Much as I love our local beach in Sanur, I decided that it was time for a change of scene so on Wayan’s recommendation, we headed over to Jimbaran for the day.
Jimbaran is an absolute delight and I shall be devoting a lot of time to writing about it in future posts but for the moment I wanted to show you these photographs that I took on our first visit there.
After an hour or so of idleness and greedily eating more than my fair share of the picnic, I decided it was time for a post-prandial walk. I left Wayan to her writing beneath the shade of a coconut palm, the two girls lazily soaking up the sun’s rays and headed off. There was a full moon a few days before resulting in huge waves that crashed noisily onto the white sands while the fishermen sat in the shadows of their boats, mending their nets. This extraordinarily beautiful this beach had surprisingly few people on it.
I walked along beside the crashing waves lost in my thoughts whilst taking few photos of the waves and the fishing boats. After a while I spotted in the distance, a fisherman walking towards me.
I took the first photo when he was quite far away from me. As he drew closer I noticed that he was looking out to sea so I quickly took another photo. At the point that we both approached each other I said ‘Selamat Sore Pak’ and he responded with a smile and said ‘Selamat Sore Ibu’ before passing me by. I turned round and took another photo of him from behind as he continued walking up the beach. Up until that point, I had taken no other photos save for those of the waves and the odd fishing boat. My iphone was set on HD which means it takes 2 photos of the same shot. I don’t always use the HD because it can be annoying having to wait the few seconds for the camera to reload especially if I’m in a hurry and there’s lots going on around me but on this particular day I hadn’t bothered to change it.
After an hour of walking and lots more photo opportunities, I turned round and walked back to our spot on the beach. It was only later when I was showing Wayan the pictures that I had taken that we spotted the ghost. Just occasionally when I take a picture I get a double image, a sort of mirage effect but this picture is not like that. These are two distinctly different people. The figure on the left is carrying a fishing rod and looking ahead, whilst the figure on the right is carrying a net and looking to the left. The figure on the right also has a shadow. If you look at the first picture and then the second picture, you can see that it’s the same shot as the waves are indentical – the only difference is that the second image has another figure in it.
Can anyone explain what this is? Is it really a ghost or just a trick of the light and the camera? There must be many spirits on the beach. For hundreds of thousands of years fisherman have earnt their living casting their nets into the perilous seas around Bali, and I know from Wayan that many families have lost their loved ones out at sea.
If this is a ghost I truly hope that his restless soul can find the peace that it deserves soon. Next time we go to the beach Wayan and I shall be paying a visit to the temple to leave a blessing for him.
Lottie Nevin - The Red House Diaries 
Interesting! Look very similar in a different size and foot step’s stage..
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It’s strange for sure. The reason that I’m interested in this picture is that I use my iphone camera a lot and this has never happened before. Two images of the same person, yes, but never like this. Thank you for your comment and for stopping by 🙂
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Lovely work, Lots. I have only very recently – yesterday actually – applied my ancient brain to the world and workings of BLOGDOM. The ghost clearly (but not very) is a ghost. No question, otherwise how could we all crowd into the afterlife and not sometimes surruptitiously slip down to the tranquility of our old fishing grounds? Love A
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Your sentiments are mine! Thanks Amanda. Does this mean you are going to start blogging too? I jolly well hope so xx
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This story and pictures are fascinating and oddly disturbing. LOL
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Hello Lovely. Yes, it is oddly disturbing and fascinating. I guess we will never know for sure unless there is some whizz out there who can supply the answer – I’d be really interested to hear from them! Either way, it was a great day out 🙂
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Yes, it’s a ghost! Wonderful! What does Wayan say?
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Martha, Wayan was totally freaked out. I repeat, totally freaked out. She thinks it’s a ghost which is why we have to go back to Jimbaran, complete with sarongs and do a blessing. I am still very ignorant about Balinese Hindu religion, but I know that ghosts are something that Hindu’s are intrigued and also scared by – like most of us let’s face it. I’m convinced it’s a ghost too but I’m also open to anyone who can argue otherwise, someone who knows how HD works on an iphone for instance. I’ve taken something like 4,000 pictures on my mobile and this has never happened before. I love how you thought of Wayan and how she felt, that’s really special 🙂
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How totally cool, Lottie! Amazing shots and I say that you’re absolutely right. I can also see these two figures as distinctly different, including the position of their feet. And they appear to be dressed differently, as well. So interesting! Maybe the spirit fisherman is a guide or relative of the “live” fisherman. Or perhaps he does hang out on the beach because he doesn’t know how to move on. I think it’s great that when you go back that you’ll leave a blessing for the spirit. I’m excited to hear about your next trip!
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Hey! I was SO hoping that you would read this post and leave a comment because I know that you are a photographer and au fait with all the techy stuff. I don’t know whether you have an iphone IK, but if you are familiar with how HD works on it, you will totally understand why I’m more than a little intrigued. I have taken so many pictures on it and this has never happened before. Interesting also that it was the HD part of the shot that caught the other figure. I was on the same beach yesterday watching the ritual that the fishermen go through before they take their boats out to sea, and it happened again – just one shot out of maybe 100 and there was another ghost figure. Wish that I could sit at the kitchen table with you and go through them on the computer so that we could discuss further!
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Oh, I would love going through those shots with you, Lottie! I think it’s bizarre, especially now that you’ve said it happened again. Bizarre in a wonderful way, of course, because I love stuff like this! Did you post the other ghost figure on Facebook? Definitely would like to see it! 🙂
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This is intriguing Lottie. You can actually see through your second figure and, as you say, it isn’t the camera producing a double image! He also appears to have a hood up covering the top of his head (if you enlarge the picture) and possibly be wearing glasses.
Glad to hear you are having a great time with the girls. You’ll need to brace yourself when you come home next week. It’s cold here at the moment! x
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Thanks Pam 🙂 I’m getting very excited about going back to London. Thanks for the tip off about the crap weather…..! I’ve been living in flip-flops and sundresses for 7 months so it’s going to be a very rude shock! What happenend to ‘Flaming June’?
It is intriguing. Pete is convinced that it’s a ghost. he also knows how terrible I am on the computer and that I never, in a month of Sundays could have conjured up this image via Photoshop! Looking forward to seeing Malcom and love to you both x
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Two distinctly different people? Not at all. The image is of the same person in a slightly different position. Notice the bag is the same, the horizontal net is the same, the backpack or whatever it is is the same, and the head is cut off where the hat is.
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Hello I’m not a ghost either – Thanks for stopping by and for your comment. I thought the same when I first looked at it too. However if you look at the two figures why are the leg positions different and the shapes of the bodies? The figure on the left is slimmer and is facing ahead whereas the figure on the right is looking to the left. I can’t blow it up large enough to put on here as it wouldn’t download but when i zoom in on the computer the figures do look very different. The figure on the left is definitely carrying a fishing rod. If it is the same person, (and you may well be right) I’m still intrigued as to how this picture happened.
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The images come from a fraction of a second apart. The image appears slimmer because of the lack of shadowing. Both images are looking to the right. The figure on the left is definitely carrying a net, you can see the outline of it.
Digital cameras don’t take the image all at once. The image is taken bit by bit, not simultaneously.
Considering that you have gotten double images like this on this camera before it really is quite a stretch to think that this double image contains a ghost but the others do not.
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Reblogged this on studio nevin and commented:
Not sure what this is, or how it happened. Lottie used a one shot HD app and on the camera, on the ordinary shot no figure on the HD this other figure emerged. It is different in many ways slimmer build, facing a different way carrying a rod not a net. Is it a feature of HD to record ghost. lol
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The problem is obviously with the HD app. No image on the original, image appears after an app is run, pretty obvious.
I don`t get why people start thinking ghosts when the problem is a badly written application.
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Chill out Scooby Doo, kinda wound up I hear prozac is good. lol
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Chill out, scooby doo. You’re kinda wound up about your nonsensical belief that this image is a ghost being destroyed with a little critical thinking and honesty.
Seriously. If you are so afraid of honesty that you need to attack me for speaking then you have issues that ought to be dealt with.
I hear prozac is good. I’m not sure it would help you though since your problem is admitting that this just isn’t a ghost. Don’t get so fixated on that belief that you have to ignore evidence and attack the messenger like some grade school kid.
An apology would be even better. Do you treat people like this often?
I’m serious about that apology. Integrity matters in this world and it would be nice if you showed some.
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HEY! will you two stop fighting on my blog post please? I shall aplogise for what my husband said and I am sorry if he offended you. His words were not meant unkindly, just to maybe lighten things up a bit. I’m sorry that it backfired.
Going back to the title of the post ‘Is this a ghost?’ I was asking an open question and you have spent time and trouble in coming up with an answer for which I am very grateful, thank you. I have never seen anything like this before which is why I was intrigued. Double images yes, mirror images yes, but not two different figures as I see in this picture. I have taken over 4,500 photos on my iphone camera and this is the first time that this has happened.
Thanks again for your comments. Lottie
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Excellent diffusion, Lottie 🙂
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Thanks IK. BTW did you check out Irishmans photo on his blog?! He is so badly behaved, he deserves a slap! Also I love the way he now uses my blog as an advertising space for his! The cheek of it …..
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Hey I am not a Ghost I apologize, this was my comment not the writer.
My comment was meant to be in good humour not serious. I added lol (laugh out loud) to underline it. if I upset you that was not my intention.
BTW I just found I took this yesterday which is I think more compelling evidence http://studionevin.wordpress.com/2012/06/10/oh-no-another-ghost/
😮
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and no I don’t believe in ghosts
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I think it’s the same guy..you can see his pole.
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That’s such a Nevin response I’m not even going to bother to comment! X
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I absolutely love this photo…Yes in my opinion it’s a spirit.
He may be a relative of his companion, a spirit guide or simply a fisherman of days gone bye.
Spirits often pop back to visit us, walk with us and if seen/ captured on film etc, it doesn’t mean they are restless or unsettled. They are always with us….only ever a heartbeat away.💜
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Evie, thank you 🙏 I agree, and I find it very comforting to think they are always with us. This post got a lot of attention when I first posted it and then I forgot about it until the other day when I showed it to someone and they too, believe it’s a spirit. I think it’s very special and I’m glad you do too xxx
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Lottie it is special, V special.
Many people spend a lifetime searching and hoping for a glimpse through the mystical window, thus opening up the possibility that there is something else and we do live on in a different form…V few ever get to witness this.
I’m unsure why some “See” and others don’t . But count myself as one of the lucky ones or unlucky depending on personal opinion 😆
Xxx🙏
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I think that you’re lucky, Evie. Pete has had various experiences with spirits. Aside from this photo, I’ve not ‘seen’ a spirit but I’m very sensitive to energies and can pick up atmosphere very easily. It’s one of the first things that I tune in to when looking at houses for example. I’m sure that you’re the same . Besos 😘 xxxxx
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