Photographing ghosts

In the 1900s, William Hope claimed he could capture the image of ghosts on camera

William Hope was a well-known name in the British spiritualist movement during the early decades of the twentieth century. Based in Crewe, England and first employed as a carpenter, his interest in 'spirit’ photography started to develop in the early 1900s, when he claimed to have captured a spirit on camera while photographing a friend. The photo showed an extra person behind his friend, who supposedly was, as Hope claimed, the man’s dead sister.

The word quickly spread, and Hope garnered fame and controversy with his photographs. Coming to prominence in paranormal circles, he went on to form the Crewe Circle, a spiritualist photography group formed by six other photographers (they first worked in secret, fearful of being accused of witchcraft). People were especially vulnerable during World War I, and Hope took advantage of that: if you had lost a loved one in the war, he could take your portrait with your deceased relative/friend making an appearance somewhere in the shot, he claimed.