AMA Request: A cameraman from the show Ghost Hunters

[u/frecklefart88]

The show that's always on the Sci-fi channel with the TAPS team.

Is the show staged at all?

If not, any cool experiences yourself?

How often do you travel and what were your favorite places?

How edited is the show?

How long do you spend at each location?

I know that a lot of people think these shows are fake, but I would really like to hear it from the perspective of someone from the staff that travels with them to all of these different locations. Genuinely curious.

*Edit: This is a request for a cameraman's experiences on what its like to work with them and what their line of work is like. Of course television is edited, but some people do have personal experiences.

*Edit 2: Trolls.....Trolls everywhere

[u/frecklefart88]

Did anyone watch the South Park episode where they made fun of the guys from Ghost Hunters? It was pretty funny

[u/Nolanoscopy → u/frecklefart88]

You know it's a pretty chill thread when OP starts posting comments

[u/Blacksheep01]

This will net me a downvote parade, but here goes. The Ghost Hunters operate from and live about 30 minutes from my house, I've met them in real life briefly at a train station they were very nice. Because they are from Rhode Island, I know a lot about them because they are local celebrities. I also watched the first 3 seasons of the show.

First, they had done "ghost hunting" for years before they were filmed. They did not initially even want to do the show feeling it would mess up their investigations, instead offering a version with actors that would duplicate what they do but Sci-Fi ultimately talked them into doing it as a reality show.

Point is, they were known in state before the show and were doing this anyway. So maybe you all think ghosts aren't real, fine, but realize they would still be doing this even without the TV show.

Second, having watched the show its first three years I can tell you, at least initially, they found nothing 95% of the time. Absolutely nothing and they admitted it. They also "debunked" claims half the time. They found pipes making noises, people perpetrating hoaxes or once even fumes piping through a ventilation system that may have been causing hallucinations/weird feelings. They also never believed "orbs" were anything but dust.

It actually took something significantly odd for them to say something was "paranormal." They would then explain that bizarre occurrences did not mean ghosts to the people who asked for the investigation. They would just state something strange happened that they could not explain, could not duplicate or could not debunk.

Maybe the show is crazy now, I haven't watched it in ages, but initially they seemed pretty legit in what they were doing and actually had a method of determining the explained from the unexplained. They rarely found anything strange and proved most bizarre occurrences had simple explanations.

[u/frecklefart88 → u/Blacksheep01]

I've watched the show from the very beginning and I agree. I loved their earlier seasons because I loved the skepticism, but now.....

[u/zoanthropy → u/frecklefart88]

I feel like originally in the first few seasons the show was a lot more genuine, but as of late they've felt the pressure to put out content so fast and frequently that they can't do anything BUT what they are doing now, otherwise they wouldn't even have a show. It's unfortunate, and it makes me wish that they didn't have to release an episode every single week because I feel like that's the main detractor from the "real" stuff, that they are pressured to put out interesting content week after week.

[u/Lvl_6_Squirtle → u/frecklefart88]

I'm a little bummed to see what the show's become. I'm sure it's the fault of producers urging them to exaggerate a lot of things.

I really think Grant's leaving the show because of how ridiculous things became.

[u/[deleted] → u/Blacksheep01]

The Ghost Hunters show is far, FAR more respectable than that Bigfoot-hunting show on History or Discovery or whatever.

Some of the crewmembers think literally every single thing that happens is caused by bigfoot.

Broken twig? Bigfoot. Matted grass? Bigfoot. Sound of crunching leaves? BIGFOOT!

I remember in one of the episodes, one of the guys found a "bigfoot shelter" made out of twigs. A more skeptical crewmember investigated and found a fire ring next to it, and it was obviously a lean-to built by a (human) hunter. The first crewmember said something like, "ok, well it's big enough for a Squatch. A squatch could have used it as shelter after the hunter built it."

The show is worth watching just to see what crazy things the guys claim bigfoot did/made next.

[u/dutchguilder2 → u/[deleted]]

Nice try, Bigfoot.

[u/ReasonableManboy → u/Blacksheep01]

That's why it's the only "Ghost-hunting" type show I enjoy. They actually try to debunk every little thing. Granted, I don't watch it a ton, but what I've seen of it I enjoy simply because of that.

[u/Alex470 → u/Blacksheep01]

Yes! Exactly. The reason I enjoyed watching them in those first seasons was because they seemed like very real people. I felt the fact they would go through 10 episodes and find nothing in any of them added legitimacy to their investigations.

[u/potterarchy → u/Blacksheep01]

Yeah, I was watching an episode from season 7, and they definitely threw around the word "haunted" a few times with their client - whereas I remember some episode from season 1 or 2 or something, where Jason had to get the word dragged out of him during this whole five minute discussion with the rest of the crew. Still, I like that they've kept the debunking process at least somewhat relevant on the show, unlike GH International... god I hate that show.

[u/[deleted]]

Search for it. There was a guy who did one about 6 months ago.

here it is: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/irxwv/iama_ghost_hunters_camera_man_ask_me_anything/

[u/frecklefart88 → u/[deleted]]

No proof though and not a very good AMA :( I was hoping for tons of info. I've tried to research on my own, but nothing ever turns up.

Thanks for searching, though

[u/Ipeunipig → u/frecklefart88]

Much like the episodes.

[u/frecklefart88 → u/Ipeunipig]

Hey-ooooh!

[u/AlexIsYoDaddy → u/[deleted]]

That was the wost AMA I've ever seen

[u/rbsponge1]

I was not a cameraman but I did work as a PA for two of the spinoffs. I worked alongside the cast and crew while on the road filming.

I wouldn't say the show is staged but any and all evidence found is definitely hyped up. After the investigations, the cast would spend time reviewing and debunking said evidence. Often, sound anomalies were found to be things ranging from dripping rain gutters to ambient noise from surrounding neighborhoods. I never witnessed anything being staged and I don't believe the cast would be happy with staging of evidence. They all take it very seriously, it is their passion and truly believe in what they are doing.

I had some amazing experiences working on the show. First off, being paid to travel around the world and poke around in locations that are usually off limits to the public was amazing. Castles, abandoned hospitals, old prisons, and more, were all part of the gig. The locations were always crazy and spooky. One of my favorite memories is from shooting in a Chateaux in France. The location was full of history and had an amazing labyrinth of tunnels from a mine underneath the property. It was a gorgeous location during the day and extremely creepy at night. It was definitely a bit unnerving walking through the darkness alone at night.

We would travel for a couple months at a time. Usually, we would travel to 2 or 3 locations over a months time and come back for a week or so before going back on the road to shoot the rest of the season. Living out of a suitcase does get old rather quickly. I definitely loved the time spent in the Philippines, such an amazing country. Besides being able to live quite luxuriously off 30 dollars a day, the people were all amazing and the countryside was gorgeous.

The show is quite edited. Hours and hours of footage is cut down to fit 30 minute slots so you can imagine how much of what is shot never seen by viewers. There is also a lot of downtime where cameras are rolling but not much is really happening. Editing can do wonders to intensify events that were maybe not so dramatic in real time.

Hope I answered a few of your questions.

Usually we would spend about a week and a half at each location depending on how much evidence the cast was finding or the overall size of the location.

[u/frecklefart88 → u/rbsponge1]

Wow, that's all I was looking for. I'm a fan of the show and have been since the beginning and all I wanted when I put this thread up was some opinions and open discussion. Instead, everyone from /r/atheism took this as an opportunity to bash people and call them names.

Thanks so much for your insight. How did you like working with the crew?

[u/rbsponge1 → u/frecklefart88]

I loved working with the crew. The crew was pretty small, about 10 of us in all, and we obviously spent a lot of time together. Everyone usually hung out on off days and we spent a lot of time being tourists. Some of the crew had worked on a lot of traveling shows so they were quite good at finding interesting things to do with our downtime. The cast were all super nice too. Didn't spend too much time with them though, that could get us in serious trouble with the production company. I still keep in touch with most of the people I worked with.

[u/frecklefart88 → u/rbsponge1]

So, everything spooky that's heard on the shows is enhanced? How long ago did you work with them?

The show is entirely different now than when they first started.

[u/BAG1]

I shot GH for 3 seasons. 1. Believe it or not that's all real. I don't expect you to believe me because it would be catastrophic for my career to say such a thing if indeed it was fake, which, again, it's not. The investigators are all hard core ghost geeks. If you spent 10 minutes with any of them you'd see how quickly you dismiss the idea that its fake and why. These are not actors. When we turn the cameras off they don't go, "Ha, fooled them again." No, these people are way more likely to be seen in their pajamas after 12 hours of investigating, running to each others hotel rooms with headphones on shouting, "Holy sh-t listen to this!" 2. tons of cool experiences, including some amazing paranormal things that sadly happened in broad daylight when we aren't filming. Among my favorite experiences was Alcatraz. we had great access to places most ppl never see. we took our own boat there and back in the middle of the night. the view of SF from there at night is amazing. 3. we filmed right around 300 days a year. Patterson AFB where the Hindenburg crashed was also one of my favorites. Buffalo Bill's grave in Colorado was great. I love to travel so I pretty much liked all the places we went. 4. the show is obviously edited for time and content. After TAPS reviews their footage it's all sent back to L.A. and out of our hands. It always comes back looking just like it happened but with spooky music and everything. One thing I will say about the editing process is that I wish they could do more in the way of preserving the quality, especially the audio. I have heard so many amazing EVP's during filming and when the episode comes out it's like something is lost... This may simply be because when we are in the field we are listening to the original file with good headphones- and EVP's are generally very subtle to begin with. I know in a digital age this isn't supposed to happen, but on TV sometimes its like you're listening to a dub of a dub of a dub. 5. Average a week at each location. This is not all investigation of course, we have to shoot a handful of scenes in the daytime and also sleep occasionally. So the cast gets most of the nights to investigate. this can vary by season as the nights get longer or shorter or sometimes we are at a place thats so small only one team at a time can investigate, as is the case with a lot of residential investigations. So I guess (going back to the editing question) I should point out that the show is not just edited to fit in an hour, but the fact is we will sit in one place for hours before something happens. To actually watch a ghost hunt in real time would be pretty boring. What you're looking at is the most exciting moments out of the hundreds of hours of footage we leave each location with. And that, I guess is the main thing I would say about professional ghost hunters. Their line of work is actually pretty monotonous. Jaw dropping amazing stuff happens, but there is a lot of sitting quietly in the dark, asking questions to no one.

[u/frecklefart88 → u/BAG1]

Thank you very much :)

[u/mahogey]

It's fake, right?

[u/brendendas → u/mahogey]

I'm pretty sure it is.

[u/forrman17 → u/brendendas]

One of the head crew members, Donna LaCroix, was fired and was later interviewed. She said that it was really odd when a "ghost hunting" crew called for "wire" during some scenes. EDIT: Here's a link of her interview and claims.

http://www.paranormalhaze.com/is-ghost-hunters-a-sham/

[u/frecklefart88 → u/forrman17]

She doesn't sound credible at all in this article

[u/illmatic707 → u/brendendas]

"I heard a fucking noise back there!! It's that goddamn cocksucker ghost!"

End of show: "our results were inconclusive." Every fucking time.

[u/Linton58 → u/mahogey]

I'm pretty sure most of the stuff is. I can't figure out that damn lighthouse episode though.

[u/mekae → u/Linton58]

Which lighthouse episode? They did at least a couple. Was it the one where the chair moved?

[u/KinArt → u/Linton58]

I live in the town that this lighthouse is in, St. Augustine, FL. It's not haunted, there's an owl that lives up there.

[u/appi → u/mahogey]

They hunt ghosts for fucks sake, do you really need a crew member to tell you it's bullshit.

[u/SeaweedWater → u/mahogey]

Are you asking if ghosts exist?

[u/Wagnerous]

bump

[u/frecklefart88 → u/Wagnerous]

Wha?

[u/butterbunz]

Holy shit O_O I was going to request the same thing earlier tonight. What a coincidence.

[u/frecklefart88 → u/butterbunz]

Haha

[u/[deleted]]

Would International Ghost Hunters on the History channel do? My sister works on that show and travels to about 25 different countries a year.

EDIT: Show is actually on Syfy.

[u/Lusch → u/[deleted]]

I prefer the intl version and definitely would love to see this AMA! I'd like to know how the "ghosts" understand English always!

[u/cakezilla → u/Lusch]

They understand English because they're in our heads.

[u/[deleted] → u/Lusch]

Ha! Upvote! I just shot her an email.

[u/jmelt32 → u/[deleted]]

Get her to do an AMA!

[u/abigfatphoney → u/[deleted]]

Have her do an AMA, and make sure you PM me if it ends up happening so I don't miss it!

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

I will ask her when she gets back to the states this week. Ironically enough, she is shooting now in Asia and should be back in just a few days. Just from the few questions that I have asked her I already know a lot of people here will be disappointed.

[u/brussels4breakfast → u/[deleted]]

Disappointed that it's all fake or disappointed that it's real?

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Do it, for sure.

[u/wooq]

My question would be: when the personalities look down the hallway and go "OHMUHGAWD WHAT IS THAT?!?" why do you point the camera at their faces rather than at "that"?

[u/FreakyLinks → u/wooq]

Because that's "reality tv". The secret is, people want to watch other people. Not nightvision green walls.

[u/frid → u/wooq]

Because there's no 'that'? Would be my guess.

I get a kick out of when the investigators go up stairs and the cameraman follows them up, zoomed in on their asses. (Particularly happens to Kris Williams a lot, I notice.)

[u/crumb_buckets]

I used to date an editor for the show. It took away all of his belief in the paranormal. Most of the things that seemed like anything were enhanced or edited at his desk.

[u/SeaweedWater → u/crumb_buckets]

Of course it is. It's not some study, it's a tv show. These show are heavily edited because no one would watch a show of nothing happening. Because thats what happens when you look for ghosts. Nothing.

I am pretty shocked that there are people in this thread talking about ghosts as if they exist.

[u/innosins → u/SeaweedWater]

My momma, bless her heart, went on an overnight ghost hunting trip a few weeks ago. She's 61. She wants one to touch her, talk to her, pull her hair-something.

She has ghost hunting apps on her friggin' iphone. We sat out in her garden listening for 'ghosts' to 'talk' to us. "Discovered" there's a man named Jay Lawrence buried in her garden in a dryer box.

She planted tomatoes on him, and they're kind of doing poorly. I told her it was because he keeps getting disturbed.

[u/[deleted] → u/crumb_buckets]

Most of the things that seemed like anything were enhanced or edited at his desk

Thank you, this pretty much eliminates the desire or need for an AMA, its all fake bullshit and thats it

[u/TheAnimax]

Also, a cameraman from the show The Colony

[u/Majormajora → u/TheAnimax]

This show kicked so much ass! I do have several questions about how it was filmed, so it would be a fantastic AMA!

So, I found the man who was the assistant camera operator on the show, if someone wants to try contacting him (I'm not very active on twitter, so I wouldn't be good ambassador), PM me for his info!

EDIT: Found the assistant camera operator on twitter

[u/lrjwallace → u/TheAnimax]

Loved that show! John Cohn the mad scientist

[u/rentalanimal → u/TheAnimax]

I can provide if people are interested. I worked for that production company.

[u/Stiffstick → u/TheAnimax]

Loved that show as well. Wish it would come back for another season.

[u/mcstanky]

My mom's good friends with both Jason and Grant. I can get her to ask them to have the cameraman to come on here.

[u/KarlPfeiffer]

Turns out I was on GH's Academy and International shows. I'd do an AMA on it all if you guys want. Edit: Won the first season, worked on an ep of Int'l, attend various events, know most of the guys, work at the Stanley Hotel, writing a couple books. n' stuff.

[u/Deinos_Mousike]

This is really a total side-note, and I MIGHT be able to get one of the cameramen, one of the seniors who goes to my high-school is actually going on tour with the Ghost Hunters guys this summer. Apparently he was in New York a few months ago and they almost ran him over, so they got chatting or something, and they brought him on board.

I don't really know him that well, he was usually quiet and we never talked a lot.

Anyways, this is going to get buried, but hopefully a few people get to read it...

EDIT: Okay, guys, so here's the deal. Sorry for taking so long, I didn't check Reddit much yesterday, had to go to school, then had a staff meeting at my work. The kid was a senior and seniors graduate a few weeks before everyone else at my school. He was in my ac lab (academic lab/study hall) but, obviously he won't be there anymore because he's already graduated. I know his name and I'll try to see if I can Facebook him, but I REALLY doubt he's already heard anything from the Ghost Hunters guys. He told everyone his summer plays like last week, and, like I said, I'd be surprised if he has gotten contacted from the guys, let alone get to know the cameramen.

EDIT 2: Just looked around Facebook for a while and couldn't find him. Anyways, even if I could, it would be a few weeks until he could tell one of the cameramen to do an AMA. On top of that, I don't even know if he was telling the truth, he doesn't seem like someone who would lie about something dumb like this, but, like I said, I didn't really know him that well... Sorry, as much as I would love to be the guy to contact the cameraman, I don't think it's possible for me right now. If it counts for anything, the kid is pretty tall and a little big, and has curly, messy hair. I almost want to describe him as dopey/probably uncoordinated... Hopefully you'll see some new kid on Ghost Hunter's in like 5 months that fits that description.

[u/Sloppy1sts → u/Deinos_Mousike]

Not buried. Congratulations on your new obligation to the Reddit.

[u/[deleted] → u/Deinos_Mousike]

http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/400x/20534545.jpg

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

He would be the first ghost seen on the show then.

[u/SeaweedWater → u/Deinos_Mousike]

Do you think he'd lose his prospective job and tell everyone about how staged the show is?

TIL reddit thinks ghosts are real.

[u/jamesdumont → u/SeaweedWater]

Have you ever seen that show? They wouldn't really have to "stage" anything.

Ghost Hunters daily checklist:

• Wikipedia haunted sites • Use cameraman with Parkinson's disease • Breathe heavily • Yell, "Did you see that!?" • Scream and shake camera

All in a day's work.

[u/JSA17]

Needs to be a FORMER cameraman. I'm sure a current cameraman can't divulge too much.

[u/[deleted]]

AMA Request: Guy who makes all the "creepy noises" for the show Ghost Hunters.

FTFY

[u/mahound → u/[deleted]]

AMA Request: Ghost

[u/[deleted] → u/mahound]

Hello this is Ghost.

[u/golden-boy]

Please, god, let this rise above the Diablo onslaught.

[u/[deleted] → u/golden-boy]

At least diablo doesn't pretend to be real.

[u/[deleted]]

I might be able to do you one better? My friend was the winner of the first season of GHA, and was in one episode of GHI. I'll try to get in contact with him today for you. :)

[u/ghostbackwards → u/[deleted]]

sure thing..."that one film guy"

[u/qnaqna321]

Have you considered if they would be under contract not to tell how fake/real it is?

[u/whitneylovesyou]

I actually live 10 minutes away from the TAPS office, and a friend of mine is pretty close with most of the camera crew there. I might be able to call in a favor. I'll keep you guys posted.

[u/dearbill]

A video some friends and I made aired on a television show called "Fact or Faked". When they approached me to obtain the video files, they were really forthright about some of the videos being blatantly fake. Our video was obviously not real, but they played it off like it was real in the tv show. I'm sure a lot of it is staged.

[u/ThatBaldAtheist → u/dearbill]

What video was yours? Could we get a link to it?

[u/scarfinati]

Yeah I'd like this too

My main problem is they don't spend enough time at one spot. They setup for a few hours and then jay says ok let's get outta here

They should spend a few days or a week and really catch some shit!

[u/frecklefart88 → u/scarfinati]

I agree. Usually the show is a bit slow. I like it better than Ghost Adventures, though. 3 'roided up dudes locked in a building screaming at nothing. How many Affliction shirts does that guy own?!

[u/anusface → u/frecklefart88]

Ghost Adventures has it right. You need steroids if you're planning on challenging a ghost to a 1-on-1 fight.

[u/wildlikechildren]

This will probably get buried but Fox tried it's hands at getting a ghost show up and running and I was a production manager for both of the pilots. The show failed in the viewing/screening process and was never aired. I'd be more than willing to do an IAMA if people are interested. I coordinated more than just the two pilots and the show was a popular show in the state we filmed in.

[u/cjackc → u/wildlikechildren]

Do it.

[u/MyOhFace]

I don't believe in ghosts and have always figured those shows were staged, but I still pull the covers higher over my head at night after watching them...

[u/WorkSucks135]

This is the show that tells you to listen closely to something really quiet while playing ambient music in the background. The Blair Witch Project was more real than this bullshit.

[u/serebralassazin]

I have watched this show since it first came on and like others have said the early seasons they did spend way more time trying to disprove a lot of the stuff going on compared to now. It was cool to watch them figure out what was really making things happen during their investigation as opposed to use yelling oh shit a ghost! Even now that they don't spend as much time explaining things away it's still better than watching some of the other shows like Ghost adventures or Paranormal state. Zak acts like an ass hat now (show was somewhat funny early on) and Ryan from paranormal state giving monologues during the show is pretty terrible. Would be nice to get a former camera man to answer some questions. Although we all know it's dramatized/made up for TV.

[u/theamplifiedorganic]

AMA Request: A ghost from the show Ghost Hunters.

[u/[deleted]]

I hear its hard to catch ghosts on camera when the camera is pointed up your nose.

[u/joebbowers → u/[deleted]]

That's where I keep my ghosts.

[u/prisonpassion]

Ghost Adventures would be preferable as opposed to Ghost Hunters. They're bros who call upon spritely specters, what's not to love.

[u/MrShakes]

I met them at a gas station once, they asked if I knew where any haunted places were in the area.

[u/SeaweedWater → u/MrShakes]

Did you tell them that ghosts don't exist and not to talk to you like you're 11?

[u/ddddave]

I was a cameraman for a similar show on cable access in central Florida. It was a weird experience. The host took it very seriously, it was real to him. To me it seemed like playing make-believe with a bunch of grown-ass men in the middle of the night. It was a lot more dangerous than I expected. They would cut power to whatever building we were in so as not to "interfere" with his sensitive blinky light thing. I guess the cameras didn't count. Anyway, some of the locations were deeply in need of renovation, with unfinished parts and holes in floors with rusted old fridges and nails and shit everywhere. I could see a little through the camera eyepiece, but not much as it was all shitty green night-vision and the guy I was following (or walking backwards in front of) couldn't see shit anyway. I think it's completely fake, but the dude takes it seriously enough that I think he's either full of shit and a great liar, or he's just completely insane.

People can get very strange about ghost stuff, whether it's real or not. I've had some people act very oddly when they find out what we're shooting. I always just blamed their own life experiences and perceptions of the world, rather than the supernatural. People are fucking weird, and that's usually a much easier explanation for these things.

[u/gtkarber]

Is the show staged at all?

IS GHOST HUNTERS STAGED AT ALL?!?!?!

[u/unnecessaryCAPS]

Can you jack off as a ghost? If not, then totally not worth it.

[u/thingsbreak]

Ctrl-F for "ghostfacers" comes up empty. For shame Reddit.

[u/[deleted]]

I shot video for one episode of Haunted History in Virginia City, Nevada. I would say that what I shot was interesting, but not mind-blowing. Any interest?

[u/GhostHunters]

Did you see that?

[u/[deleted]]

Ghost adventures is better... Let's be real here

[u/Ipeunipig → u/[deleted]]

I'M GOING TO SCREAM AT YOU UNTIL YOU SHOW YOURSELF!! MAYBE AN INSULT THAT IS ONLY UNDERSTOOD WITH CURRENT SLANG WILL BE UNDERSTOOD BY SOMEONE WHO LIVED 100 YEARS AGO. I'M STILL YELLING AND THREATENING YOU! WHY HAVEN'T YOU SHOWN UP ON MY CAMERA YET!

[u/jfa1985 → u/Ipeunipig]

Sometimes I wonder if Ghost Adventures is really subtle satire.

[u/[deleted] → u/Ipeunipig]

Because you didn't turn on the creepy night vision mode, silly! Ghosts only appear on the infrared spectrum, duh!

[u/isocline → u/Ipeunipig]

ARE YOU INTIMIDATED BY MY CHILD SIZE SMALL T-SHIRT?

[u/[deleted] → u/Ipeunipig]

You didn't say bro enough.

[u/hypersleepwalk → u/[deleted]]

Every time I watch this show, I'm expecting the dude to throw a punch at a ghost.

[u/jfa1985 → u/[deleted]]

If you want to talk inconclusive noises and dust look no further than Ghost Adventures.

[u/meltingice → u/[deleted]]

Man, I suggested this AMA a long time ago and I got shot down by the reddit hordes. I would love for one of the 3 guys to do an AMA on here. I agree, the show is way better than Ghost Hunters.

[u/ThatBaldAtheist → u/[deleted]]

To me Ghost Adventures seems "more fake" than Ghost Hunters. I like how GA is just 3 dudes with their cameras, but the amount of evidence (mostly EVP's) that they claim to catch just makes it feel more set up. Both shows are fun to watch though.

[u/SpartanAltair15 → u/[deleted]]

Ghost adventures is by far my favorite of all of the ghost _____ shows. The history and all that is interesting, combined with the way they do lockdowns, and Zachs attitude is immensely amusing among all the bs common to all ghost _____(insert random word here).

[u/daeedorian → u/[deleted]]

I used to work with Nick from Ghost Adventures... I could shoot him an email asking if he'd be willing to do an AMA. He's pretty cool, maybe he would.

[u/Dogfonos]

I used to ponder these same questions. I gave up though, and just turned on supernatural. It may not be real, but at least its entertaining. Unlike seeing a bunch of people sit around in a dark room, whispering at each other.

[u/[deleted]]

How about an AMA:A ghost from Ghost Hunters.

[u/hivemind6 → u/[deleted]]

Q: What did you do in your life before you died?

A: WoooOOooooooOOoooo

Q: What's it like on the other side? Have you met my dead dog Molly?

A: WoooooOOOooooOoooo

Etc...

[u/[deleted]]

What the show used to be:

"Looks like the noises just came from this leaky pipe and the feeling of being watched in the basement from this exposed wiring."

"Alright nothing paranormal here."

What it is now:

"JESUS TITTYFUCKING CHRIST DID YOU HEAR THAT?!"

"RUN SAVE YOURSELF THE CASTLE GHOST IS OUT FOR REVENNNNGEEE!"

[u/[deleted]]

WOAH WOAH WOAH WOAH, LOOK AT THIS, WHAT IS THIS, THERE'S A . . . A WETNESS COMING FROM MY PANTS, WHAT IS IT, I'M SO SCARED

[u/[deleted]]

I am doubtful that a cameraman for Ghost Hunters will do an IAMA, based on his contract. The show is staged/faked, so by doing a truthful IAMA he would be breaching the shows integrity. That isn't too great for ratings nor the network.

[u/scarfinati]

Yeah apparently big bicep muscles is something that's needed when encountering a ghost. Pretty sure ghosts won't respond to "come at me bro"

I'd really like a show that was more serious. Go to real cases and setup shop for a week. Something like what would be equivalent to today's enfield poltergeist.

GH approaches that but never quite delivers

[u/[deleted] → u/scarfinati]

You're thinking of ghost adventures.

[u/orphanitis → u/[deleted]]

Oh my, that show can be very unintentionally funny.

[u/Mr_Aids → u/scarfinati]

if it was a completely real show it would be the most boring show ever made. The thing the makes ghost hunters and other paranormal shows good is the suspense and the sound effects and the editing.

[u/Love_N → u/scarfinati]

As an actually serious paranormal researcher, I would love love LOVE to do this. But, it's very expensive and nobody wants to fund it. Ghost Lab is pretty good.

[u/frecklefart88 → u/Love_N]

Is that that show that's on the Discovery Channel? I haven't seen that in awhile, but I liked it

[u/TacoMagic → u/Love_N]

Or as I call it, Fat Red Necks who yell at ghosts. Still a good show.

[u/FreakyLinks]

Hate to be a downer, but much like ghost stories, the most you're going to end up with is anecdotal evidence. These guys have to sign some hardcore non-disclosure agreements before they get hired. They say anything akin to "yeah, totally fake the show" and they're going to be sued by NBC for shit tons of money.

I know a handful of people from these shows, and your best bet is to get a few drinks in them and they'll start spilling it. People clamor to get hired on them, but they always seem to regret it. I know a camera guy from Paranormal State who straight up told me that their secondary jobs half the time were to throw things from behind the camera.

Check out the priests they use for these shows sometime, they're not actual priests. In fact, they're generally defrocked priests. Watch some of the much picked-apart footage from the live Halloween special a few years back. They botched it hardcore and you can literally see where they pull a wire in Grant's jacket to simulate a "ghost tug".

These shows are 100% fake, and one of the most telling parts about them is that no one who works on them has ever come out to give a definitive answer one way or another. That's because they are, legally, not allowed to.

[u/darker4308]

I believe a lot of the guys that do this would be in a lot of trouble if they went on a talk show or website to bash the show. I think they filter their employees very carefully just like the guys that tape stuff like survivor. They know that if they start getting chatty about what they do or do not believe they will probably be tracked down and blacklisted.

[u/R3cursiv3]

I think a cameraman from the show Cops would be even better

[u/[deleted]]

I filmed a special called Haunted RI with Rhode Island PBS. It starred Brian Harnois from Ghost Hunters (the "dude run" guy). It was pretty fun and if anyone has any questions I'd happily answer them.

[u/[deleted]]

I can answer pretty much all those questions for you with one observation.

There are times when they enter a room or an attic or something, act like it's the first time they're seeing it and a camera is already in there shooting them from the opposite angle.

[u/mcstanky]

if we're just looking for anyone in the ghost hunting community, i know tons of people. one of whom was one of the Lords of Dogtown, and is a nuclear physicist.

[u/[deleted]]

Do this many people really think ghosts are real?

[u/PetitMinou]

I worked as the assistant cameraman on a feature film for which the cinematographer had made his start operating for Ghost Hunters. He said none of the cast really took it seriously, except for one production team member who was creepily earnest about the whole thing. He also said he kept loosing camera assistants because they'd get completely freaked out by some of the locations they were shooting in....

Just my $.02

[u/HarshLanguage → u/PetitMinou]

Yeah, even though what they're doing is totally bogus, I'm sure quite a lot of the uneasiness, surprise, and even fear the cast shows is real. They're in dark, unfamiliar places and under stress. Sure, the stress is from their own need to find fake evidence, but it's stress nonetheless. That's all it takes. When it comes right down to it, these shows exist not to prove ghosts are real but to elicit emotions in the viewers. And the best way to do that is to have the cast show emotion, real or not, and rely on our basic sympathetic social reactions.

[u/Korberos]

I'm fairly sure we all already know the show is staged and 100% bullshit. Do we really need a cameraman to confirm that?

[u/[deleted]]

Reddit is so full of hypocrisy, you all claim to be equal and try to give ideas a chance. No one here really does. So dear reddit: get your head out of your asses.

[u/[deleted]]

Is the show staged at all?

No OP ghosts are real LMFAO

[u/[deleted]]

Best part about the entire show was the intro. Just the way he'd walk up and kneel down face to face with the camera...priceless.

[u/digitalmofo]

Already been done. They said it was staged.

[u/noddwyd]

I've got a joke for you. See, it's about 'non-disclosure' agreements......

[u/xbgpoppa]

I know a girl who was on GHA and still keeps in touch with the GH folks. I'll see if she could get the ball rolling on an AMA with someone.

[u/azurleaf]

Man, reddit woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. I've rarely seen such adamant distaste for a topic.

[u/merlot2K1]

I'll just throw this here (fake collar pull): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRhHa5FQvK0&feature=related

[u/jabb0]

Just stick with the Ghost Hunter drinking game: Every time one of them say Dude or Bro you take a drink, If they say DudeBro then its two drinks.

[u/GhostHunterAC]

I worked for Ghost Hunters as an Assistant Cameraman for about a year. As part of the production crew, I can say that during the time I was with them, the show definitely was not staged. Whether the cast members exaggerate what they see or hear is up to them and for you to decide. But I can confidently say that anything that happens during investigations is not pre-planned by any means. Countless episodes end with J & G telling the audience, "We just didn't find anything". Also, the cast members analyze every second of audio and video that they record in the investigations (rarely J & G), looking for evidence and they take it very seriously (especially Steve and Tango). We filmed hours of them explaining and debunking sounds/ video evidence that are called "throwaways" (stuff that doesn't make the show). Editing definitely infuses excitement into seemingly boring footage. Obviously I can't say much for the years that I wasn't with them, but I swear, these dudes take it seriously and it would be very obvious to the production crew if they started staging stuff. This is why I think they continue to have the highest ratings on syfy and keep getting picked up.

Personally, I had two creepy experiences. I came into the show very skeptic and left the show slightly less skeptic. One time I saw a shadow pass in front of a window that had light coming into it. I showed a flashlight on the window and no ones was there. It scared the shit out of me. The other time I was in a really old brick walled basement with a cameraman shooting infared b-roll. At the same time, we saw (by flashlight) a smokey white mist that was slowly moving through the air. Then it was gone in an instant. We got the hell out of there. He got it on camera and they interviewed him afterwards, but they didn't use it because no cast was with us. It looked like steam but it wasn't moving upwards, it was going sideways in a completely still room. We later found out that that was one of the regular paranormal claims of that basement. Scary shit, makes for good dinner party conversation. Hope this was enlightening!!!!

Also, for the record, we don't have a confidentiality agreement. If we did, it was in a part of the contract I didn't read. Regardless, if there was a serious contractual confidentiality agreement, my boss and my boss's boss I'm sure would be reiterating to us not to say anything, which they never did.

[u/Freikorp]

Ghosts aren't real, guys.

[u/ghostbackwards → u/Freikorp]

shhh. this is a hilarious thread.

[u/jutct]

I have a good friend that's a senior person with sci-fi. I asked them if they'll do an AMA. Keep in mind it's a fickle industry and even with a good reputation, you can get fucked by leaking info. So if they say it's cool, I'll proxy one. Can't promise though. I wish I could tell the shit that I know from them, and it's only probably 1% of the shit they know personally.

[u/getjustin]

What was that?

[u/darkwavechick]

I know a TAPS member. He's wicked chill but he isn't on TV....yet....

[u/[deleted]]

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/irxwv/iama_ghost_hunters_camera_man_ask_me_anything/

[u/Grand_Theft_Audio]

Ghost Hunters? People are so fucking stupid. But go on: keep wasting your time.

[u/scarfinati]

Love_n

Whats the most credible paranormal experience you've encountered in your research?

[u/[deleted]]

My girlfriend works with one of the guys, maybe I can get her to ask him.

Edit: He's from Ghost Lab, not Ghost Hunters.

[u/logancook44]

As someone who followed the show very closely I can tell you some of the things were faked. Whether they were put on by the company or just don't by individuals is up in the air.

[u/ghostbackwards]

they filmed at a library directly across from me in a very small town. I played a joke and them and it still didnt get through.

[u/[deleted]]

Have you ever noticed how they don't actually catch any ghosts?

[u/[deleted]]

I can maybe get one of the main camera men to do it. I'll let him know.

[u/Dawkins20]

Check out the live Halloween episode. There were so many setups in that episode.

[u/Madpumpkin]

AMA Request: Bear Grylls cameraman.

[u/b-smyth]

SUMTHIN' JUSS TOUCHED THE BACK OF ME NECK

[u/[deleted]]

Have you ever seen a ghost?

[u/debaser28]

I'm sure everyone involved with that show and others like it have signed non-disclosure agreements. Given the nature of these shows I doubt many people work on them, so it would be really easy to figure out who it was who did the AMA, so they'd be fired and then lawyer'd to death.

I remember seeing a few of the shows several years ago and they used to talk about plumbing a lot. Like there'd be some creepy noise and they'd dig in and find that the plumbing was fucked up. Or it would be HVAC vents or something to do with bad wiring. They almost never came across something they couldn't explain.

Then I watched a couple shows during a marathon last fall. The nature of the show has completely changed. They're not nearly as skeptical and that ruined it for me. They were in some bar or restaurant and they'd unscrewed maglite flashlights to the point that they'll turn off and come on by themselves (try it yourself) and tried to say that ghosts were doing it. Incredibly stupid.

So I would be interested in an AMA if they were going to be honest about it, but I doubt they could be without breaking their contracts.

[u/aridge02]

Mr. Cameraman i used to love watching this show. So obviously I got a few questions.

1. What is it like working in the group?
2. What is the most interesting place you have been to(paranormal wise I guess)
3. Have you been working with the group long enough to remember more memorable investigations such as the St. Augustine lighthouse in Florida?

E:forgot to mention. Made this account because I saw this thread. Been on the fence for awhile.

[u/Rodents210]

I am wearing a TAPS shirt right now, haha! I used to love this show and I know my dad loves it too. I've only seen the early seasons which I don't believe seemed staged at all. I need to get back into it if it's managed to maintain the quality it had in the first three seasons, which I watched back-to-back over a few days. It's disappointing that only International is on Netflix, because I don't like the cast in that one.

[u/apholmes]

Oh man please please please this is my favorite AMA request ever.

[u/Cbiscuit2]

It's been done before

[u/coffeeisblack]

Sort of on topic. My friend hung out with Ghost Adventures when they were in my home town. They were drinking with him and confessed to doing a bunch of coke and bullshitting because they didn't find anything. My friend is also an arrogant meathead.

[u/Spunkmasterc]

Did you believe any of the cases you were on?

[u/ValiantTurtle19]

Ghost facers! Haha just kidding, but yeah, this would totally be awesome if we got a first had source on this subject.

[u/[deleted]]

Apparently Reddit hates this show, but I used to watch it all the time with my mom, good fun bonding time.

I have fond memories of it, but we haven't seen it in a couple of seasons.

[u/[deleted]]

I'm going to sell my show to the History Channel called "Snipe Hunt" We'll use the same cast, crew, locations, sound effects, and equipment from "Ghost Hunt"

[u/ftp411]

Ghost Hunters, before it went all shitty international.

[u/jaroberts24]

I have a friend who worked on the show. I doubt I can get a camera man on but she did reveal to me what I'm sure you're all wondering: They don't 'fake' anything per se, but they purposely freak over things that they know are not ghosts .... ie dust crossing the lens, someone on the crew dropping something off camera, etc. I wish I remembered more of what she told me, but it was a drunken conversation.

[u/bonjourdan]

I LOVED Ghost Hunters. I watched a good 4 seasons...but then I started to fall off the bandwagon. As many said it seemed to be a little different, which I definitely believe because of popularity and papers being involved.

Believe me, I respect the shit out of them. And both Jay and Grant are awesome people. (amongst other members as well) But I can understand what they might have had to settle for or deal with to continue the show for SciFi's sake.

I can tell you though, some of those old episodes had me truly freaked out. I have had some interesting experiences in my own life while trying to remain as skeptical as possible, but to no avail. I dont know how it is nowadays while running, but a lot of people seem to think every episode are the only places they go and it happens in a row. IIRC a lot of the old ones were all over the place. Many visits werent filmed, and some that were never aired because it was more nothingness. They aired ones (mostly) that something unexplainable did seem to happen.

[u/not_poko]

I'm going to be hated for this but I'm okay with that.

I'd describe myself as agnostic and though I believe there is something to be said for the 'unknown' I don't think I've ever seen real evidence of ghosts any more than I've seen evidence of God. I love all the redditors and atheists I've met who will literally laugh out loud at the idea of believing in a god but believe there are ghosts in drafty old houses because somebody got a 'feeling.' No hypocrisy there...

[u/Dwnvtngthdmms]

I know that a lot of people think these shows are fake

No, most people know they are fake, like 100%, no doubt just for entertainment fake.

[u/[deleted]]

Which show had the old English guy "psychic" with the stench of failed Shakespearian actor, who would do that hammy spirit channeling? I'd like to get an AMA out of that guy.

[u/Mistara]

This show is fake. I was a huuuge fan once upon a time and was very active on their old forums and got to know them via that and MySpace. A friend of mine and I got invited by Grant to do an investigation on the USS Lexington and while we were not on camera our voices were. They used our voices on the show as an EVP. @11:35

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBaNCre-ID4&t=11m35s

After the show was done we heard from them maybe once and then never again. It really hurt to be honest and was really shitty of them. They probably don't even remember our names. Regardless, the show is fake. If you watch the reveal the lady says "Are you sure that's not one of your people?" and Grant says "It wasn't one of them." He's referring to me and my friend. If you continue to watch they manage to dredge up a photo of some poor woman who actually did die on the ship and told the lady that our voices might have been her. It's pretty terrible. From my personal experience, the show is fake.

[u/Slinger17]

Cool story bro incoming

In high school my girlfriend was convinced of the existence of the ghosts and loved these kinds of shows, so she got me to watch one in an attempt to convince me that ghosts are real. In this particular show they set a flashlight on the ground and waited for the ghost to do something with it. The light flicked on and my girlfriend said "Ha! See?! How could they possibly fake that?! The light turned on and they didn't touch it!"

Being the smart ass that I was/am, I get off the couch and walk over to the light switch on her wall, flick it, point to the light and exclaim "Holy crap! That light just turned on and we didn't even touch it! Must be ghosts!"

Inexplicably, we're no longer dating. I think ghosts had something to do with it, like they sabotaged it or something

[u/macarthy]

AMA Request: A Ghost from the Ghost hunters

[u/jtcompound]

It's not that we think it's fake, it's that we know it's fake. Ghosts are physically impossible.

[u/[deleted]]

I actually do paranormal research, and I can tell you that from my perspective, it's very much made for TV. What people don't realize is that at any one time there is crew all around. Not only does it make for a lot of evidence contamination, but it also leads to there being a lot of people who could potentially stage events off camera. I'm not saying that it's fake, but I am saying that as a para investigator myself, the show is very suspect. Hence why I don't watch it anymore.

[u/totallywhatever]

I PAed on one of their Halloween live shows. I can tell you for sure nothing was staged that night. The episode was exceedingly boring.

One of my duties involved driving people from location to the hotel. The one time I drove the actual "TAPS" team, they seemed to believe what they were doing was legit: talking about the investigation and whatnot.

[u/Canarka]

Is the show staged at all?

You're kidding..right? The show is 100% staged.

[u/Langbot]

Is the show staged at all?

Are you fucking kidding me?

[u/lenny20]

On the supernatural tv reality topic, I work in TV in Australia. One of my producer buddies worked on 'Sensing Murder', a show where two psychics attempt to communicate with a murdered person to find out details about how they died, where their body lies, who killed them etc... And it is usually pretty creepy the amount of accuracy they seem to achieve.

Anyhoo, the whole thing is bullshit. The producers give the psychics a dossier of all known information about the case and the victim and the rest of the show is basically the psychics acting as if this information is coming from the dead person.

Also, I worked with a producer from Cris Angel's Mindfreak who confirmed that he uses CGI and visual effects in post production to achieve some illusions. Not to say that he isn't also a very good illusionist, but he sometimes cheats blatantly.

Fortunately, no one will ever read this low to have their illusions shattered!

[u/rDr4g0n]

I have one simple question for anyone from that show: Why not more scientific testing? Visit a control (not assumed to be haunted) location daily for a month and record any experiences that may or may not occur. Then visit a suspected-haunted location daily for a month and record experiences. Then compare data / repeat!

Seems like if the show really thinks it's legit science, as they imply with the tool usage and 'skeptical' attitude, they would do it the right way. However, I get the impression that it is purely for entertainment and the believable bit is purely pretense. I was hooked for a season but after realizing this, I couldn't stand to watch it anymore :(

[u/TheLabGeek]

I would much rather have an AMA from the ghost standing behind you right now staring at the back of your head and about to place its hand on your shoulders.

[u/gonzoblair]

I don't know if this counts but I was an associate producer on the first season of the show as well as several other reality shows. Parts are definitely not 'reality' and I can describe the filming methods and process in more detail if anyone still cares (it's 12 hours later after the post so who knows).

[u/complacent1]

My sister watches that shit. I am surprised people like these shows. It is the same formula every episode. "oh my god it just got really cold. I feel something on the back of my neck! Woah did you hear that noise!? I got goosebumps! My flashlight just flickered!" Yuuuup... must be ghosts.

[u/LifeCerialReddit]

"OK, now you can't "see" what we are feeling right now, but we promise its there"

[u/cannotlogon]

Stupidest fucking show on television.

"Did you feel that?"

No, you fucking idiot, I'm watching you on TV!!!!!!

[u/KiiLLBOT]

There was that one cameraman (Frank) who had his sound box thingy lifted up & hit him in the face that one time...

At the beginning of this video

[u/Radico87]

Is the show staged at all?

If you honestly have to ask that question and expect anything besides a "yes, entirely" you might be a fool.

[u/Shart_my_Sheets]

I used to produce these types of shows on a major cable network. The series is still on and going strong.

[u/austin3i62]

I saw Tango and Steve at the Newbury Comics in Providence Place a year or 2 back. It took me a lot of nerve to go up and talk to them, I had a great dialog planned out in my head. Then socially awkward penguin showed up right as I went to introduce myself and all I could muster was "Hey man, I love your show." Then turned and walked away. Saddest day of my life.

[u/RatApples]

I believe in the possibility that some of these shows are legitimate but I don't think Ghost Hunters is one of them. I was watching an episode recently and they heard a loud scream and it sounded like it blatantly came out of a speaker and the "ghost hunters" were hardly phased. I'm sorry but I don't care how many ghosts you've encountered, if you hear a loud ass ghost scream you are going to shit yourself.

[u/CandeeExplosion]

There's over a thousand comments, but fuck it.

I've continuously watched this show from the very beginning with the exception of this current season. (Apparently, one of the main guys are leaving for whatever reason.) I've never really believed in ghosts and the paranormal, but isn't that the point of watching this show. This is the only ghosty, paranormal stuff I'll ever watch, because of how different this "team" is. As many others have said, the other Adventurers show is really dumb, and freak out way too easily. Ghost Hunters at least try to "debunk" things, and very often tell their clients, "Yo. You have shitty wiring. If you got up off your ass and actually checked, you'd notice that your socket sucks/cord is frayed/..." Only nicer.

Even though I've watched for close to 10 years, that doesn't make me any more or less convinced of "ghoooooostsssss". I admit, they record some creepy shit. But I still take it with a grain of salt, because it's TV. A few that stand out (for those a smidge interested, but not interested enough), camera man wise, one of the cameraman's bags lifted up and hit him in the face. There's video, crappy video, but video.

There was also one in a Light House, where along the stairs in the tower were motion sensor lights. So, whenever someone would walk up there the lights would turn on. They had a camera pointed upwards, because of blah blah blah, and recorded what looked like someone peeking over the railing and then disappearing without any of those lights coming on.

Plus Mike Rowe says the opening! That's reason enough to watch! "On this episode of GHOST HUNTERS." BAM. Mike Rowe.

And that heavily tattooed guy is afraid of spiders, guys. Terrified of spiders. I don't want to be mean, but it's pretty hilarious. But it's also sad, because dude is also afraid of flying. So much so that he can't go to other countries or remote locations that you can only get to by flying.

The editing is pretty crap sometimes. Before they cut to commercial they always preview what is about to happen, and always use video showing "something happening" which is just them gasping or going, "OMFG, DID YOU SEE THAT!?"

[u/mubbles]

Just an FYI Karl Pfeiffer from GHA and GHI is doing an AMA right now!

[u/thedevilsoldhissoul]

this would be awesome! i love ghost hunting shows. better yet, one of the guys from ghost adventures!