Image: Paranormal.about.com

Stephen Wagner’s Paranormal section in About.com is a fairly well known website. Search for “paranormal” in Google and Stephen’s site comes up first.
So there’s no surprise at the volumes of personal stories that are sent to him every now and then. Some subtle, others very vivid and detailed.

A reader who goes by “Melissa”, submitted to Stephen a picture taken of herself and a friend in their bathroom in 1989. Behind them, appears an evil looking face. Translucent with a transfixed stare.
Read Melissa’s letter to Stephen.

Source: paranormal.about.com

The photo was taken by my mother on Halloween day 1989 of me and my friend spray painting our hair before trick-or-treating,” says Melissa. “We were 13 years old at the time. We didn’t realize that there was a third person in the photo for quite some time — years — because we weren’t looking for it. We considered the idea of a double exposure, but there is no overlapping on the picture and also we don’t recognize the boy. He seems to be a young boy, maybe the around the same age as we were at the time. He’s standing behind me and has dark poofy hair, and seems to be looking down or has his eyes closed. You can see his facial features clearly and it looks like he’s wearing a t-shirt with writing on it. He’s standing in front of the tub enclosure; you can see his hair blocking the chrome trim on the door, yet you can also see the towel bar on the shower door through him.

It’s very interesting, but unfortunately I have no answers for it. The house was built for my parents in the early 1960s, so I have no stories of a previous family living there. And like I said, nobody recognizes the boy in the picture. I’d love to hear your feedback. Does this qualify as a legitimate ghost photo? I’d love to have it analyzed or just receive somebody’s professional opinion, like yours.

These days, when you observe such a poignant image in the paranormal, you have to put aside your initial judgment and rationalize what you are looking at, how it was presented and how it could have been hoaxed. I’m one who always dismisses such pictures as a hoax or an “accidental ghost”. In this case meaning it could be that it’s a shadow of the girls head, made by the camera’s flash. As far as the face, well pareidolia can be used.

Again, this is my interpretation. For all I know it’s a reflected face from a movie poster….or, dare I say?…A ghost?

What do you guys think?