Starting Out in the Paranormal

Cemeteries and Urban Legends are a good place to start investigating.

A commonly asked question is, “How do I get started doing paranormal investigations?” It’s a hard question to answer because many people today are thinking about becoming social media stars and being famous, and I don’t think that should be your motivation for joining the paranormal community. Starting out is also hard, especially when you don’t have an invitation to join an established team.

So, what should you do in the beginning? First, don’t go out and buy a lot of equipment. I know veteran investigators are against using cell phones, but really, they are the best tool to have. They already have a quality camera, and you can download a voice recorder app for EVP’s. If you have a point-and-shoot digital camera or camcorder, you're another step ahead. Go to the Dollar Store and get a steno notebook and a pack of pens for two to three dollars. Believe it or not, you will have built a beginner's investigation kit. You can go to your neighborhood’s Goodwill Store and find a used digital camera or camcorder. What I'm trying to get at is, don’t spend a lot of money in the beginning.  If you have the ability and planning to modify equipment, modify used, second-hand equipment.  It may take some searching to find a piece of equipment you can modify, but it's worth the search.  Because screwing up and breaking a new piece of equipment right out of the box can become a very expensive learning curve.

You also need to gain experience and places to investigate. It’s hard enough for established teams to get investigations; if you're starting out, it’s almost impossible. Plus, the more you know, the better your chances are for being recruited by an established paranormal team. Also, buying tickets for ghost hunts can be rather expensive, so I don’t recommend doing this at first.

How I got started some 40 years ago was when I got my driver's license in high school.  I started visiting cemeteries and researching urban legends.   In the 1980s, how I found places to investigate was through word of mouth, books, and Rand McNally map books.  In the trunk of my car, I had a map book for almost every county in Southern Illinois and Southeast Missouri.  Every Saturday night or Sunday, armed with a K-Mart-brand 110 camera and a cassette tape deck, I would head out to find a new place to investigate.  Today, you have it much easier with the internet, smartphones, and GPS.  

So in the beginning, take it slow. Don't worry about social media and gaining clicks and follows. Just find a place that interests you and check it out. Take some pictures, do some EVP’s, and start keeping good field notes. Trust me on this: I miss those days in the beginning. There is no greater feeling than capturing your first EVP or paranormal photo.