PEPPER'S GHOST ILLUSION
Here's a sample illustration of Pepper's illusion in action, as illustrated in a turn-of-the-century guidebook. Note that the "ghost" in the top panel with the actor is the audience's perception, not an actual actor. The only actual performer in a sheet is the actor below the audience, as pictured.
WHAT IS IT ?
So how exactly does this illusion work? The most common effects-related question people have involves the transparent ghosts that seem to waltz, duel and party while vanishing and reappearing at will. This is a simple trick; it actually is based on a common theatrical illusion from around the turn of the century which was named after John Henry Pepper, a professor of chemistry at the London Polytechnic Institute. In 1862 he published a manual entitled Wonders of Optical Science which outlined this effect among others, and "Peppers Ghost" became famous, largely through stage performances of Dicken's A Christmas Carol, which adopted the illusion immediately.
All that is needed for this illusion is a piece of glass and a light source. At its simplest, this effect works because you see what is reflected off of the glass at the same time as you see through the glass to what is behind it. You may have seen this effect in action when you're trying to drive at night and a passenger decides to turn on the overhead light making it hard to see through the reflection in the windshield.
HOW CAN I DO IT ?
HERE IS AN EXAMPLE !
The illusion is relatively simple achieve, even a beginner can easily create this illusion.
Using glass, or clear plastic, allows the viewer to see a reflected "ghost" image, while viewing an entirely different scene "the tombstone" behind the surface.
Imagine an "L" shaped room with a sheet of glass or plastic set across the elbow of the "L" at a forty-five degree angle. Check out the animated gif above. It is important to note that each segment of the "L" should be the same size.
The forty-five degree angle allows something that is properly lit and placed on side A to reflect on the panel and appear inside of B as a ghostly image.
Lighting is crucial to this effect. The "ghostly" object you wish to appear must be placed in front of a black, or light absorbing surface, and be brightly lit.
A constant light source will supply a constant ghost, where a light source that can fade in and out will supply a ghost that seems to appear and disappear.
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