What kind of equipment do you need?

I did most of my research online for what types of equipment I needed when I decided that it was time to test my ghost investigation abilities. Other researchers I had asked tended to be a bit closed mouthed on this subject. I have yet to find out the reason why but I do not plan on keeping my mouth shut about anything I use now or in the future. I hope this helps all new investigators in their search for the perfect equipment. By no means are any of these items required! A simple notebook and pen is perfectly acceptable, these items are what works for us and is in no way set in stone as to this is what you have to use.

I knew some basics off the top, a flash light, camera, EMF detector (rarely used now and is not pictured), and a digital voice recorder. But what else? What else do they use on these TV shows, well of course they use the most expensive equipment out there like the Thermal Imager. That particular piece runs for over $4,000.00 on Amazon, USED! No one in their right minds can afford equipment like this. Other websites attempted to sell me a "Ghost Hunting Box" which is ridiculous, I am not a hunter and never wanted to be. I didn't even know how to use half of the things in their box, nor did they explain why the use of such items is important. Let's go over each item that my team and I currently own and I will explain its purpose, pros, and cons.

 
Infrared Digital Camera (1): Bell Howell S7-R, Slim and fits in any pocket easily. It has 6 IR lamps that light up an indoor darkened room perfectly but it makes every picture come out as a circle. Unfortunately it is not the best camera for outside night use. Sometimes the photos come out really blurry and shaky, I need to get a tripod for it to prevent this and use it only as a stationary camera.You can order this from Amazon for $89 and it comes with a 2GB memory card. Using an IR camera allows you to take pictures without using a flash that will ruin your night vision and it does not blind everyone in the room.

 


Digital Camera (2): Any digital camera works well for the purpose of taking pictures. I have used many and broken many more. The Canon Sure Shot is the only one that has stood up to my testing. I can find nothing wrong with this one. I really like it.




Infrared HD Camcorder (1): Bell and Howell DNV900HD 1080P Infrared Night Vision Camcorder With Accessory Kit. I LOVE this camera! It allows you to shoot footage with an incredible 16-megapixel maximum resolution, ensuring spectacular detail and vivid colors in every shot. LCD touchscreen makes it easy for you to see the subjects and surroundings you are shooting crystal clear. It has 32MB of internal memory and you can expand the external memory with cards up to 16GB, 8GB in each slot. 1080p Full HD Video Output and 4x Digital Zoom. The only bad thing I have found with this camera is the one little IR lamp is not strong enough for outdoor use. You have to get an external IR lamp for that.



Digital Voice Recorder (2): You can purchase these online or at your local Radio Shack, Walmart, Kmart. (I bought mine at Kmart.) They came with a crappy software for listening purposes but the recorder is amazing. I got a microphone that is noise canceling and takes out all the ambient hiss when using the recorder. It also has a speaker for immediate playback if you want. It has 4 folders for memory and holds up to 70 hours of recordings. You can download the Wavepad Sound Editor that I use for free which allows you to amplify and edit your recordings. Although I never "edit" simply amplify for better understanding.



 
IR Thermometer: Gun with laser guide ST-380, Light weight and cheap. You can get this one on Amazon for $30. We use it for checking the temperature on surfaces around us before, during, and after, the investigation. It seems to be extremely accurate when tested against another temperature gauge.I have not found anything wrong with this piece other than it takes surface temps and NOT ambient air temps. So don't go waving this thing around and expect it to keep a steady temp.




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Changelings

Okay, so anything to do with small children happens to be my biggest fear. Think, "Children of the Corn". So last night being bored to tears and not being able to watch any of my normal ghostly shows Hubby and I put in Supernatural Season 3. The very first episode happened to be about changelings. Which, of course, made me wonder. Do they actually exist? The voices of small children can be heard at most haunted places without having any connection to children in its history. Is this the changeling? What is it? When has it been seen? Under what circumstances? Of course most of the idea of the changeling has been embellished for the television series. But isn't fiction based on some form of truth?

I set about my limited research. What I found from ever faithful "Wiki" was that a changeling is a creature found in folktales. Generally it can be described as the child of a fairy or troll that is able to take the place of the human child. Basically, the idea stems from the inability to define the sickness or deformities of afflicted children. The reason the child looked or acted the way they did was because they were the "changeling" and not the real human child.

As a parent of three small children, I believe that the idea could make sense to a mother who is helpless to do anything about her sick child. As a researcher I find it ridiculous that this would still occur today. However, it does and in many cases the mother has a mental illness. While I didn't answer my own questions just yet, perhaps one day I will be able to.

Please, tell us what you think and leave comment below. Remember to "like" us on facebook by following the link on the right. You can also follow us on twitter @WNCPRS as well. If you would like us to investigate your area, send us an email here.