Spooky Madison's Haunted Places

To be a ghost hunter, one that goes on hunts whenever time allows, does not mean you have to go out and buy thousands of dollars of equipment. You’re ghost hunting bag only needs a few items and most can be found around the home.

First, get some friends together that have the same interest and begin researching your area for local stories and well known haunts. If that isn’t your thing, try researching more well known ghost hot spots and make a weekend out of it. However, the most important thing needed for this trip is permission. Make sure the area you are going to visit allows visitors, especially at night. Nothing ruins a hunt more than having the cops kick you out of the area because you are trespassing or worrying the neighbors. Most cemeteries have posted hours and you are not allowed in after them. So please, check before you begin! Now, onto all the basic items a novice ghost hunter needs.

Flashlight. This will come in handy when you need to see where you are going, or whenever you need to get into tight spaces. To make sure this doesn’t interfere with any photographs, a bit of red cellophane can be placed on the lens and held in place with a rubber band.

Camera; digital or otherwise. Digital cameras are great. They offer instant evidence of what is going on around you. If you do not have a digital, a regular old 35 mm camera will work just fine. Just make sure you have plenty of film on hand.

Video camera. Also great for live action, or to go back and see what you may have missed.

Some sort of recorder to check for EVP (electronic voice phenomena). These can be purchased just about anywhere for pretty cheap.

Before you are at your investigation site, you should already have specific jobs lined up for certain people, that way, when you arrive, equipment can be handed out and things can be quickly.

There really is no specific time to take a picture. Take one when the moment strikes you. It’s important however to make sure your lens is clean, and that no one smokes at any time during the investigation so the smoke does not interfere with the picture and the evidence.

Video cameras should be running at all times to keep track of what goes on. If something happens, it’s important not to tell someone else exactly what you see. Doing so sometimes will make someone believe the same thing is happening. Discuss everything after the event is over, so you're not in any way, encouraging another's ideas about the event. Having a watch, pen and paper on hand to document when an event occured is a nice reference.

Keeping track of the weather conditions (if you are investigating outside) is important because fog can skew photographic and video evidence. If it’s cold, someone breathing while a picture is taking can be viewed as a ghostly presence. Check all of this a few hours before the hunt.

To make sure nothing is embellished when an event occurs, always go in pairs. Having two people to a team helps keep those who may be a bit scared more calm because they are not alone in strange surroundings. Two way radios are nice to have on hand so you can keep track of all teams as they are out doing their thing. If two way radios are not an option, a cell phone is always a second option.

To achieve any possible EVP results, walk around the area asking questions. It’s important to know where all crew members are at the time, so when the evidence for this is checked, their voices aren’t mistaken for something else. Also taking note of the sounds going on at the time is a good idea. Did a car drive by at a certain time? What about animals? Were any making noises at the time a specific question was asked that may have been interpreted as something else?

The next day after the hunt, examine your evidence, keeping in mind any notes a team member may have made about any event that occurred at the time. Always approach your evidence with a skeptical mind until you know for sure what caused the event. If you are sure no outside forces caused said event, congratulations, you’ve caught a ghost!

EVP, otherwise known as electronic voice phenomena or "ghost voices", is often seen as a skill that paranormal investigators know how to do. One of the main misconceptions is that someone not "trained" in recording for EVP can't or shouldn't try it. The fact of the matter is that anyone can record for EVP and be successful. If you are wondering why I keep saying "record for EVP' instead of just "record EVP" it is because you don't just sit down and record EVP (normally). You are actually doing this to try and get EVP with no guarantee that you will get anything. Until an EVP is found upon playback the recording is simply called an electronic voice recording (EVR). In the following I will walk you through a basic EVP recording session step-by-step.

Prep:
Before beginning you will need a few basic items.

The first item is obviously a recording device of some sort. The most commonly used recording devices utilized by paranormal investigators are: digital recorders, cassette recorders, camcorders, mini cassette recorders and cameras that have a recording feature.

The second item that you will need is a good pair of headphones (The term "good" does not mean they have to be expensive, just not the cheapest. Go for mid range and you should be fine.). The number one rule that many investigators stick with is that they do not listen to their recordings without having ear/headphones. There are a few reasons for this, the main one being that headphones allow you to keep the sound as close to your ears without interference as possible. As some EVP (most actually) are rather quiet this helps you to know where you need to focus when you "clean up" your recording later.

The third item you may or may not need is an external microphone. I say, "may or may not" as if you are only using a digital recorder you do not need an external microphone as they have a tendency to leave your digital recording with more static, and not less. If however you are using a cassette (either mini or regular) you will want to be sure that you pick up an external microphone. The reason for this is to decrease how much of the recorders gears are recorded, thereby giving more interference. The longer the microphones cord, the further you can place the microphone away from the recorder. Most investigators don't worry about what kind of external microphone they use as all external microphones can work. I tend to use Omni directional microphones though as they record sound from every direction whereas Uni directional microphones record what they are pointing at first and fade out from there. Omni directional microphones do cost a little bit more though, so it's up to the person recording really. Uni directional microphones do work and I have gotten some great EVP with them.

The final basic item that you will need is a watch. If you have a digital recorder then you can use that to watch how long you are recording for. Generally recording sessions should range from about 3-5 minutes in length each. You can do as many sessions as you would like but sticking to 3-5 minute sessions helps you in several ways. Keeping the sessions short breaks up the time it will take later to go through each session on playback and this gives you time to listen back to see if there are any answers that you can use to ask more questions in coming sessions. You will also probably notice the more you do recordings for EVP that if there is a spirit/ghost who is answering they tend to start quiet, get a little louder and then wear out (again, not always, but most seem to go this way). Taking breaks seems to help them keep the conversation going longer and you can always have another recorder running in the background to record the breaks in between your sessions.

Now that you have all of your gear there are only a few more steps before beginning to record for EVP. Though some of these may not seem all that important you will soon find out how each can affect your recording.

1. Location: Where do you want to record? A location does not necessarily have to be rumored as haunted in order to capture an EVP. Many of our clients have been surprised to hear what they have said to be voices from past loved ones. Obviously, if there is an active spirit in the area you are more likely to get intelligent replies to any questions that you ask, but it can be interesting to find new places that have not been reported as haunted and still get EVP. Knowing where you are going to record is also helpful in that you will know if you need to bring anything else such as a flashlight, folding chairs, folding table, etc. I will caution here though that if you are not comfortable with hearing EVP recorded from your own home to NOT record there. Far too many people joke around recording for EVP in their home only to end up with an EVP and become scared or terrified. If you do not think you could handle that then go to another location.

2. How much regular noise is in/at the location you picked? External noise is the all time biggest problem to anyone who is recording for EVP. Some things that many people overlook until they try recording are: passing airplanes, birds chirping, wind on the microphone, footsteps of those walking around, the sound of a hand against clothing, air conditioners or fans, sirens, dogs barking, rain, etc. Small sounds that you generally don't notice make listening for EVP in a recording very hard sometimes.

3. Do you know what you are going to say or ask? Especially for your first time, you are going to want to have a list of questions to start out with. These will need to be written before going to the location. Having a list to start you off will lessen the amount of "um's" and "uh's" that you end up saying when trying to think of another question or statement to make. Most investigators hold to some unofficial guidelines when it comes to asking questions when recording for EVP. Those guidelines would be:

Do not provoke the spirit/ghost with rude jokes or taunts. Though this is a popular tactic in movies and on some TV shows it can actually lead to harm coming upon an individual present or the spirit not answering any of your questions.

Treat the spirit, as you would like to be treated. This means that you should not demean the spirit/ghost in a way that you personally would find rude or offensive. Don't get silly and ask for things such as the winning lotto

numbers or such as you will more than likely get no reply. If someone asked me such a silly question, I would think they weren't taking talking to me seriously, so why would I bother to answer? And besides, as my friend David Chastain points out in one of his articles, "They're dead. One day you will be also. Any chance they'll be waiting for you on the other side?"

Be respectful. This comes easier to some than others but a little respect seems to go a long way in obtaining EVP's. As an example, let me use this: The rumor is that the ghost of a woman who was beaten to death by her abusive husband haunts a certain house. When that is a possibility you do not want to enter the house and have a male member of your team hit a female member, even playfully. That is one good way to either get very bad things happening or to make the ghost/spirit totally ignore you or stay away until you leave. To most investigators it just isn't worth the chance.

A good rule of thumb is to not bring up the whole "them being dead" aspect. Some spirits/ghosts do not know that they are dead and they could become angry, ignore you, or think you are talking to someone else and not answer.

4. How many people are going to be with you? This may not seem all that important, but you really need to make sure that everyone is on the same page in regards to how they are going to act. Obviously, different approaches head different results so decide before going in what approach your group is going to be using. If there is no organization you will more than likely end up with a mess that you recorded because everybody will not be working together for the end result.

Now that you have your gear and all of the details worked out its time to record! Follow along as I talk you through a basic recording session:

Step 1:  There are various methods used to record, pick which one you are going to be using (see my other article, Methods Used To Record EVP for more information on each method).

Step 2:  If possible have you and anyone else who is with you sit down and sit still. If you are standing remind yourself and others to try and hold still. If a noise is made during recording make an audible note of it so you don't have to try and remember who did what when. While you are getting where you will be staying for the duration of the recording session get your recorder ready to go by placing it on a flat surface, or as flat a surface as you can find. Unless you are doing the walking method do not hold onto the recorder or microphone. Make sure that the microphone (if applicable) is turned on and the volume on the recorder itself is set at the loudest it will go (Special note: Some recorders have a little static if they are turned up all the way. If your recorder is one of these then turn the recorder to full volume and then turn it down just a tiny bit.) If you wrote down some starter questions be sure that they are also on a flat surface that you can easily read from. As many groups/teams do other activities during a paranormal investigation be sure that anything that makes noise is either shut off or silenced while doing recording sessions.

Step 3:  After making sure everything and everyone is settled then, and only then, hit the record button on your recording device.

Step 4:  Start every first session in a new location by noting the time, date, exact location (if you are in a house or building state what room you are in), temperature, who is present, etc. This way you will not have to try and remember everything later when you listen to the recording again months down the road.

Step 5:  For your first recording in each location you should also introduce yourself. Let it be known that you would like to talk to whoever is there with you and that you will be asking some questions that you would appreciate some answers to. Explain what it is that you are attempting to do and what your gear is. An example would be to say, "I am here to talk to whoever would like to speak with me. My name is ________. This (point to recorder as you never know if they can see you or not) is a recorder. It has a microphone (point to the microphone) that will record your voice if you talk to me and I will be able to hear you when I play it back. If you can speak as loudly as you can I should be able to hear you better. Now let's begin." This should all be recorded on the first session but the 3-5 minute recording time does not start until after you are done with your introduction.

Step 6:  Ask your first question or make your first statement. Pause for approximately 20-30 seconds (count in your head or watch the time) before asking your next question or making your next statement. This gives the ghost/spirit time to answer. Try not to make any noise during the pauses. The only exception is if someone coughs, shifts their feet, makes noise, etc. Then one person (this person can be designated prior to arrival) should make a vocal note that the sound was heard. Keep interruptions as short as possible.

Step 7:  Repeats Step 6 for the remainder of your 3-5 minutes.

Step 8:  Even if you are planning on doing more sessions be sure to thank the spirit/ghost for talking with you (even if you are not sure there is anything there to talk to acting as if you know they are there seems to get more results for me) and leave a few seconds pause before stopping the recorder to give them time to reply.

Step 9:  Congratulations. You have just completed your first EVP recording session. Now you get to plug in your ear/headphones and listen to your recording. Turn the volume as high as you can bear (your voice will be much louder than the EVP most of the time) and listen carefully. It takes awhile to train your ears to pick out quiet EVP but practice is the only way you will get any better at listening for them. In between the sessions you can do other investigation activities. Some groups upload their recordings right after getting them to process and others listen at the location and save them all for processing later. Still others just do sessions and no listening. Personally I would recommend one of the first two. Depending on where our group is we will either listen and then keep going or upload the file to our laptop and process it right at the location. This can be very helpful in getting more answers and in speaking to the spirit/ghost by name (if they give you a name).