Are Shadow Figures Really Evil?

A question often asked on tours and on social media is, "What do I think of shadow figures?”  I usually get a lot of pushback when I answer.   Most members of the community base their reasoning on the apparition’s color.  Because black is the color most associated with evil, most investigators think shadow figures are evil.  My answer tends to be unpopular because I don’t subscribe to the widely held belief that the color of the apparition determines its nature.    

 I have always stated that if a spirit is going to exist in our realm, it must, in whole or in part, obey our physical laws.  Meaning that a spirit, while in our realm, must be governed by the same laws of physics as we are.   The proof for this claim lies in the equipment we use to capture paranormal phenomena.  Because our equipment must operate in accordance with the laws of physics.

Shadow figures have become increasingly prevalent with the advent of digital photography.  Now, a very simplified explanation of how a camera works is that it captures reflected light.  Your eyes work on the exact same principle.    Light has the ability to be absorbed or reflected.  If light isn't reflected off an object, you will not be able to see it.  It’s this property of light that allows us to detect shadow figures.

Light is electromagnetic radiation measured by wavelength/frequency.  Gamma rays, X-rays, radio waves, microwaves, and visible light are examples of electromagnetic radiation.  Visible light, or the range of the electromagnetic spectrum we can see, ranges from wavelengths/frequencies between 400 and 700 nanometers.  From your high school science classes, you should remember the acronym, Roy G Biv, otherwise known as the colors of the rainbow and the colors of the visible light spectrum.  Each color of the visible light spectrum corresponds to a specific wavelength/frequency between 400 and 700 nanometers.

When we see the color red, for example, the object we are looking at is absorbing all visible light wavelengths/frequencies except for the wavelength/frequency of red.  That wavelength/frequency (red) is being reflected back to our eyes.  When an object reflects all wavelengths/frequencies of visible light, it will appear white.  If an object absorbs all the wavelengths/frequencies of visible light, it will appear black.

Matter, which all physical objects are composed of, has the ability to reflect and absorb electromagnetic radiation.  That’s why we can see physical objects.  So, the classic apparition appears white because it reflects all wavelengths/frequencies of visible light.  A shadow figure appears black because it absorbs all the wavelengths/frequencies of visible light.

Now, I admit I made two very big assumptions.  The first is that apparitions are comprised of matter.  I DO THINK spirit apparitions are comprised of matter.  But the explanation of why I think this will have to be the topic for another blog article.   The second reason is that I’m assuming the formation of a shadow figure isn’t due to a blockage of light.  Such as shade from a tree.

  So, in an attempt to make a rather lengthy explanation simpler.  Do I think shadow figures are evil based on their color?  No.  Do I think that apparitions should be classified based on their ability to reflect or absorb light?  Yes.  I propose that shadow figures are a type of apparition that possesses the ability to absorb all the wavelengths/frequencies of the visible light spectrum.  The shadow figure's color is just a physical characteristic of how light reacts to the apparition’s composition.