We have a large array of technical and not so technical equipment we can take along to investigations.
EMF Meter. This is the famous meter as seen on Most haunted. It is a magnetic field detector. It's fairly useful for localising unusual magnetic disturbances. One problem with these meters is that they also pick up mains interference as they are calibrated at 50Hz which is mains frequency. We use two different types, one of which is not calibrated for 50Hz. We use these meters in conjunction with each other. If we get a reading on both meters, then we assume we're onto something unusual.
New Addition. We now have access to a tri-field meter. This is a top of the range meter which measures magnetic field, electric fields and summation of both. We recently used this meter on an investigation and got some really interesting results.
Video Camera. Standard commercially available, low light capable digital video cameras. Nothing particularly special about these cameras. They have infra-red emitters on them which allow them to see in the dark in a limited fashion. One advantage we have is that we can use specially built infra-red illuminators. These act like spotlights and give us a very much better coverage in a blacked out room or hall. We also have a high definition 3 CCD camera which we will be using for interviews and lit walk rounds.
Digital Stills Cameras Again, standard commercially available digital cameras. we try to use as high a 'megapixel' rating as possible. The higher the number of pixels in a shot, the more information we can glean from it. The shots are sharper than low level cameras and allow us to zoom in with more detail available to resolve any strange artifacts which appear on the shots.
Recently I began using a Canon 400D 10.2 Megapixel camera on investigations. The strange thing I've found is that orbs on this camera are a rarity. Photos taken at the same time as shots from lower rated cameras show nothing, while the smaller cameras sometimes have obvious 'orbs' in them. This is leading me in the direction of thinking that 'orbs' may not always be paranormal as some people claim but could in fact be artifacts created by the smaller camera optics and the fact that on most of these cameras, the flash is closer to the centre line of the lens. The Canon uses an external, high power flash with a much higher guide number than the small built in flash of the smaller cameras. I intend continuing my experiments in this field and I'll post a new page on the site when I find out more. Until then, I'm going to treat 'orbs' with a moderate amount of scepticism.
Polaroid Camera. An old fashioned kind of camera nowadays but still very useful to us. Polaroid film can't be easily tampered with and allows us to capture an image other than digital which is viewable within minutes. Only problem is the film which is quite expensive so we tend to use the Polaroid quite sparingly.
35mm Stills Camera. Standard 35mm film with no secret filters etc.
Digital Voice Recorders. We use several digital voice recorders during an investigation. They may record as MP3 files or as .wav files. They are very useful as they are fairly sensitive, lightweight and easily downloadable to a laptop on site. Assuming we have plenty of batteries, we can have almost unlimited recording time using these recorders.
Professional Cassette Recorder We use a broadcast quality JVC cassette recorder to allow us to capture sounds in a whole room using a PZM microphone. This mic is a specially designed unit ordinarily used for recording conferences. It is very useful for recording witness interviews as the mic is discrete and the witness soon feels comfortable talking to our investigator without a microphone 'in their face'. This recorder also allows us to record 2 channels using the PZM mic and a radio microphone. It allows us to tie in the sound in two rooms at the same time.
Various Other Microphones. We also have several different types of microphone available for use with the recorders and video cameras. 2 x Shure SM58 mics. Anyone who has ever used a mic on stage etc will probably have used an SM58. It's a great vocal mic with a cardioid response that makes it fairly directional. Useful for detecting the direction of a sound especially if we use two as a stereo pair. We also have a reasonably good rifle mic which can be used with the video cameras to improve the voice pickup. If required, we can use a small 8 channel portable mixer to allow us to mic up several areas and feed them to the recorder.
CCTV and Web Cams These are either wireless or hard wired cameras recorded by a time-lapse VCR or a laptop computer. We now have low light capability on both wired and wireless cameras. We would tend to use these to monitor experiments left in a sealed room. August 2005. We've just obtained the kit to allow us to view and record multiple cameras. We'll be using a timelapse VHS recorder in conjunction with a 4 channel CCTV Multiplexer. This lets us connect 4 cameras together onto one tape and view them independantly or all together.
Micro Cassette Recorder Used mainly for taking notes during an investigation although we have captured EVP on them occasionally.
Motion Detectors. We use various types of motion detectors including active and passive infra-red units, laser beams and ultra-sonic types. We also have easily mounted door opening alarms which can be placed on doors or cupboards to allow us to hear if a door is opened when the room is empty.
Ion Detector. This is a pretty specialised piece of equipment. Spiritual energy is reported to increase the amount of positive ions in the vicinity. This detector sounds an alarm when the ion count rises or falls between two preset levels.
Thermometers Digital, laser and mercury thermometers are all used. A recent addition to our kit is a thermocouple. This is a very fast acting thermometer which can take point readings of the air or of a surface. We also use a hygrometer to measure the relative humidity in a room.
Other stuff. Other equipment carried includes note pads, plenty of spare batteries, compass (almost as useful as an EMF meter), torches, two way radios, Radio Frequency detector and lots of string, tape, thread and BluTac. It's almost impossible to completely list all the equipment we use but the above list is a fairly normal kit used by us on most investigations.
Experimental. We're currently experimenting on detecting Infra-sound. This is low level, very low frequency sound (anywhere around 5 to 10 Hz) which is below the level that humans can hear. Infra-sound is thought to be able to induce halucinations and to make people feel unwell. We are planning on using a specially constructed microphone, amps and an oscilloscope to give a visual representation of any low frequencies encountered. We will also be experimenting with ultrasonics using basically the same equipment with a variation in detectors.
The Most Important Piece Of Equipment We Have?
Trust in our fellow team members
If you have any questions on the equipment used by us, please contact us at our email address albapara@btopenworld.com
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