I have had this image in books and in my photobucket for years. Being an avid Civil War enthusiast this is one of the premier mortars used by the Union during the war of northern aggression. Look at the image on the man underneath the red arrow I have drawn. You can see the stone wall and country side behind him.......... thru him :eek: And just so no one thinks I doctored this pic type in dictator mortar into a search engine ;) Just noticed this while looking thru a book of CW artillery and discovered it :D Is he a ghost??
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TMM
October 30, 2009, 05:03 PM
i'm not familiar with the photographic technology of the time, but the first (and only) thought that came to me was that it could be a double exposure? but, none of the rest of the photo looks blemished by a double exposure. and his legs aren't visible...
TMM
NobleSniper
October 30, 2009, 05:05 PM
Thats exactly what I thought but saw no one else blurred or whatever. Probably a "photocraphic anomoly" ;)
BlackNet
October 30, 2009, 05:15 PM
Not at all. This is a classic long exposure image where the subjects moves, that is why most of the people in the shot are blurry. If you set up a camera on a tripod at a busy street and used a very long exposure the resulting image would NOT show people or vehicles unless they were stationary.
You can use various lighting techniques to obtain the same results to. Let me demonstrate.
I took this photo at Port Columbus National Civil War Naval museum in Columbus Georgia. This is a 55 second exposure with TMX film (kodak tmax 100 iso black and white film). Single shot and no image manipulations. A few seconds before the end of the exposure I had one of the employee's step into the frame and act like he was opening the door then I triggered a low intensity bulb resulting in this image.
This was taken on the USS Monitor deck to demonstrate these techniques.
Ed
fineredmist
October 30, 2009, 05:29 PM
If you study the head and shoulders of the man in question you will see sharp definition against the backround indicating a solid body. The light colored object on his chest is difficult to identify so I will make no call on that. I think this is no more than a optical illusion.
On a different note, The Dictator mortar is presently located here in Ct. in front of our State Capital building. It is very impressive in photos but it is more so when you get to see the actual piece. A 13" bore diameter 35" in length with a oal of 54.5" it is massive. The 17,120 lb beast with a charge of 20 lbs of powder will throw a 218 lb shell 4200 yds.
NobleSniper
October 30, 2009, 05:31 PM
I did not realize the Dictator was on display anywhere. Guess I will have to mozy up to Connecticut one of these days. My wife will love that :D We drove all teh way to Connecticut so he could see a ***** mortar :D :D
dispatch55126
October 30, 2009, 05:38 PM
I did not realize the Dictator was on display anywhere. Guess I will have to mozy up to Connecticut one of these days. My wife will love that We drove all teh way to Connecticut so he could see a ***** mortar
Tell her its a romantic holiday weekend. What woman doesn't like "Gone w/ the wind".
fineredmist
October 30, 2009, 05:42 PM
It's not just any ******* mortar, it's The Dictator, a huge piece of Civil War history.
sundance44s
October 30, 2009, 06:00 PM
Wouldn`t want them balls raining down on me ...
fineredmist
October 30, 2009, 06:04 PM
It's not just any ******* mortar, it's The Dictator, a huge piece of Civil War history.
rondog
October 30, 2009, 06:11 PM
I'd bet money that BlackNet is right, and the "ghost" was actually squatting down or bending over behind the mortar when the shutter was tripped, then stood up before the shutter closed. Back in that era, shutter speeds were very slow, and the subjects were required to hold very still for photos.
Now, the mysterious red balls in the sky is another story.....
Cosmoline
October 30, 2009, 06:13 PM
Didn't you have to stand still for a spell to get a good exposure? My bet is the fellow held still for part of the time, then rushed off.
Oyeboten
October 30, 2009, 06:29 PM
I don't think there were Shutters in common use yet...one removed and replaced the Lens Cap for timing the exposure.
Yahhhh...the 'Ghostly' fellow's apperance is very likely an artefact of his having remained in position for only part of the exposure.
Exposure time for general decent-light condition images then, 'wet plate', was usually around 5-10 seconds (I think,) or, according to the judgement of the Photographer with respect to his Emulsion 'speed'.
Might have been a little longer...It's been a while since I was reading up on this stuff...
Very powerful image...
I'd hate to FEED that thing!!
Too bad those boys, and, 'The Dictator' were on the wrong side...
...sigh...
ArmedBear
October 30, 2009, 06:40 PM
I don't think there were Shutters in common use yet...one removed and replaced the Lens Cap for timing the exposure.
Yahhhh...the 'Ghostly' fellow's apperance is very likely an artefact of his having remained in position for only part of the exposure.
Exactly.
Photographers told everyone to hold still.
If you look at some old photographs, you will see that eyes can look very strange, since they lack eyeballs. Moving eyeballs and blinking eyes blur them out.
Dogs, as well as children too young to hold still also often appear as blurs in old portraits.
Smokin_Gun
October 30, 2009, 09:51 PM
Yep I say it's a Ghost ... that chit's freaky...
average_shooter
October 30, 2009, 09:52 PM
Interesting stuff, pictures like this. Looks to me like the two men on the far right are also slightly "ghosted" and the farthest right individual looks like he perhaps moved his head.
BHP FAN
October 30, 2009, 09:57 PM
to him,we're the ghosts,man! [sorry,California moment]
4v50 Gary
October 31, 2009, 12:06 AM
The debbil was indeed on the Yankee's side. No wonder why the South lost.
Smokin_Gun
October 31, 2009, 12:20 AM
Hey now, I never surrendered nor did Texas :O) ask um(grin)
husker
October 31, 2009, 01:05 AM
its Captain Casper
arcticap
October 31, 2009, 02:55 AM
Photographers told everyone to hold still.
Well some of the guys were probably hard of hearing from all of the booms! :rolleyes:
BTW, directly across the street from the CT State Capitol is the the State Library where the Colt Museum and a lot of old bores are located! ;)
Phantom Captain
October 31, 2009, 03:01 PM
NobleSniper!
How are ya? Instead of venturing to CT you can just make the trip out to Petersburg and see the actual location of that photo along with another 13" Mortar that is the same model as "The Dictator". I took these a couple years ago when I did my Virginia battlefields pilgrimage. I have thousands of pics of the battlefields out there in Virginia and in Tennessee and Georgia. I've been to most of the major battlefields and quite a few minor as well. Anything specific you all would like to see just let me know!!
I never surrendered,but they caught my horse,and they made him surrender...
Vonderek
October 31, 2009, 03:34 PM
He may not have been a ghost when the photo was taken but he is most certainly a ghost on this day!
Loyalist Dave
November 2, 2009, 02:33 PM
IF YOU LOOK closely..., the guy fourth from the left, just next to the mortar and just left of the figure you indicate with the arrow, has a blurred head, and his body is standing profile, with a better head looking in the direction of the "ghost", and possibly looking a bit downward. My guess is the camera was exposed, and both move, the "ghost" picking something up from behind the mortar, and the other guy next to it looking on. There is a very faint image on the far left next to a barrel that appears to have been perhaps somebody walking by?
LD
arcticap
November 2, 2009, 08:32 PM
I think that there may be 2 faint ghost images at the far left of the group and both are wearing hats and have moustaches.
Maybe they should have named that mortar The Ghostmaker because it made so many ghosts it was like having a ghost factory franchise!
Calling all ghosts, calling all ghosts, report for duty! :D
jmaubin
November 3, 2009, 02:22 PM
The reason for the images all has to do with "Shutter Speeds". Today on the cameras we use shutter speeds are most like less that 1/60 of a second. Back in the mid 1800's they were as long 10 to 30 seconds plenty of time for some one to move into and out of a picture, leaving the "weak images that you see.
Cap n Ball
November 3, 2009, 03:09 PM
Ok, Not a big believer in spooks and such but there are places that, well, they are just weird. One of them is the Anderson House at Lexington Missouri. We usually sleep or try to sleep in the main hallway of the old house during weekend events. During the night we will listen to footsteps on the stairs leading up to a room where there was a surgery during the battle. Even if it is in the 80s outside sometimes it will suddenly get very cold in places. Often we have ended up outside on the porch just to get some sleep. Almost all battlefields have such 'places'. The sunken road at Antitiam is one for sure along with the Devils Den at Gettysburg. It's Halloween every night in those kind of places.
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