A 1923 spirit photograph by Alexander Martin featuring Harry Houdini and five spirits.
Houdini declared the spirit photograph fraudulent, stating:
I have not the slightest doubt that Mr. Martin’s Spirit photographs were simply double exposures. I think his method was to cut out various pictures, place them on a background and make an exposure. His plates were then ready for his next sitter, which in the above instance was myself. Being an expert photographer he might have used the original wet plate method of making an exposure, developing it, washing the emulsion off the plate and refinishing it with a new emulsion but I am convinced that the two Spirit photos which he made of me were simply double exposures.
A Magician Among the Spirits – 1924
Harry Houdini (1874 – 1926) – Hungarian-American escape artist, magic man, and stunt performer, noted for his feats of escape and illusions. He also dedicated much of his life to exposing fraudulent spiritualists and mediums, and was highly critical of anyone who claimed to have supernatural abilities.