Magical Realist
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Ghost caught on Dover Castle CCTV
- Thread starter Magical Realist
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Yah, either that or a bug walked across the camera lens!
Should read:
'Alleged CCTV footage of a guard investigating a "shadow" at Dover Castle'.
After all if you want to make out that people should observe some footage and make a decision for themselves, then you need to make sure you aren't spoon feeding them your opinion otherwise your articles are overly biased.
Magical Realist
Valued Senior Member
If you're claiming it is a shadow, what is it a shadow of? Shadows aren't known to walk around on pathways all by themselves.
OP is now edited to read "alleged ghost"..
Magical Realist
Valued Senior Member
Not likely. Here's what a bug on a camera lens looks like:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfFvMfhQZh8
That's a flying saucer.
Depends - the one you showed is one of the dome cameras - the lens itself is inside the dome, which is why you can see the full outline of the insect.
Many cameras, especially security cameras where they WANT you to know you are on camera, don't use the dome, so the insect is on the lens itself - this puts it well beyond the scope of focus, and so you get a blurred outline.
Think of it like the difference between having a hair between your glasses and your eyes as opposed to on the outside of your glasses.
Many cameras, especially security cameras where they WANT you to know you are on camera, don't use the dome, so the insect is on the lens itself - this puts it well beyond the scope of focus, and so you get a blurred outline.
Think of it like the difference between having a hair between your glasses and your eyes as opposed to on the outside of your glasses.
Magical Realist
Valued Senior Member
I'm not buying it. An insect would appear well-defined in shape and opaque on a CCTV lens:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfiXG7r3gs8
No, it wouldn't - an insect crawling on the final focusing lens (or even the protective shroud on the end of the lens assembly) of the camera would be a nondescript blob. This is due to the focal point of the camera.
Again - you are posting insects further away from the final lens, which is why they are in focus.
Here's one you can do yourself - stand about fifty feet away from an object and look at it. Close your left eye. Bring your fingertip up at arms length, and slowly bring it closer to your right eye. Continue to focus on the object 50 feet away. Notice how your fingertip goes all blurry?
Again - you are posting insects further away from the final lens, which is why they are in focus.
Here's one you can do yourself - stand about fifty feet away from an object and look at it. Close your left eye. Bring your fingertip up at arms length, and slowly bring it closer to your right eye. Continue to focus on the object 50 feet away. Notice how your fingertip goes all blurry?
Magical Realist
Valued Senior Member
No I am not. The last two insects are clearly crawling on the lens and are defined and opaque. So your theory doesn't wash. Also, the figure in the Dover Castle video doesn't even move like an insect. It is vertical and humanoid shape, yet moves horizontally. There's no bug that does that. Try again?
Every lens and obstruction can produce different results. For telescopes, for example, there are equations to help you find the exact location of a speck of dust based on the specs of the image train and diameter of the fuzzy blob.
Note, while your example is focused to infinity, narrow field of view, the OP link is short focus, wide angle. Very different.
You really should start educating yourself about photography.
Magical Realist
Valued Senior Member
And you want so desperately for this to be a bug you're clearly blinding yourself to the obvious. What's so hard about just admitting you were wrong?
Magical Realist
Valued Senior Member
And you really should educate yourself about what a bug on a security camera lens looks like. Perhaps you should start by asking that security guard. I'm sure he knows.
I'm not admitting I'm wrong because I am 99% certain I am not.
We have had similar incidents where I work with our outdoor security camera - security guards were losing their heads thinking they were seeing something creeping around outside - looking at it, the only explanation was an insect on the lens. We got an in-dome camera, and suddenly the "freaky shadows that move by themselves" stopped.
It isn't just a pet theory of mine... I got to watch it play out first hand.
[Sigh]
1. You are the one presuming the guard thinks there is a ghost. The burden of proof here is 100% YOURS.
2. What is the exact Google search term you used to find the second example? Didn't you find any that weren't in focus?
Quick caveat: I'm 99.999...% sure it isn't a ghost but only 60% sure it is a bug. There are other possibilities such as smoke which are also quite possible.
Magical Realist
Valued Senior Member
I've already shown that a bug on CCTV camera will be defined and opaque. I also showed that it wouldn't be a vertical shape moving sideways. So your vast wealth of experience examining bugs on camera lenses hasn't helped at all. If anything it's simply giving you a false security that you know something you don't know at all. As if the security guard couldn't figure this out for himself.
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