A ghoulish face appears in an old tree, a ghostly apparition of a little girl peaks over a gravestone and the spirit of a man seems to literally jump out of his skin.
These strange images were all captured on camera and were part of a collection of photos and stories the Paranormal Adventurers shared with Malverne residents Wednesday night.
About 20 locals, mostly teens, gathered at the Malverne Pubilc Library on Sept. 21 to hear from ghost hunters Joseph Flammer and Diane Hill.
The pair has traveled around the country to haunted places like Salem and Gettysburg, but they have become experts on paranormal encounters on Long Island. They have published two books on the area - Long Island's Most Haunted: A Ghosthunter's Guide and Long Island's Most Haunted Cemeteries - and have a third due out this spring.
Much of their paranormal evidence comes from the famous Sweet Hollow Road at Long Island's Mount Misery but they have even captured compelling images from as close by as St. Georges Cemetary in Hempstead.
"I love graveyards," Hill says, but explained that you won't find her investigating prisons or asylums. "I'm not a fan of negative energy."
A number of teens in the audience asked whether it was possible for ghosts to possess or hurt someone.
"That's Hollywood," Flammer said. "In our experience ghosts are usually friendly...people usually see their grandma."
Hill added that some people have sensed a familiar touch, smell or taste when they think of a loved one who has passed. A few members of the audience even shared their own experiences of unexplained encounters. For instance, one young girl said her mother has felt an invsible force hold her down as she tries to get out of bed.
"Sleep paralysis is a real thing," Flammer said, adding that experiences like this could be paranormal or not.
"We don't really understand ghosts," Flammer said. "We don't know what they are."
Although thanks to advancements in technology, he said people like himself are "on the edge of getting a better understanding."
