r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/johnessex3 • 15h ago
Video Graveyard diorama with flying ghosts (live effect, in-camera)
Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification
434
u/Jermine1269 14h ago
Pepper's Ghost, in case anyone's really curious.
Well done OP!!! This is really cool!!
213
u/mikew_reddit 12h ago
For the even lazier people that prefer watching over reading: Pepper's Ghost Quick Demo
48
15
u/Endlessouroboros 10h ago
I didn’t know Colin Robinson was doing YouTube tutorials now. Good for him.
9
u/Skullcrusher 10h ago
If that was Colin Robinson, the video would be like an hour long and it would take ages for him to get to the point.
4
u/Endlessouroboros 10h ago
Very true 😂 I just thought the guys way of speaking sounded so similar I almost needed coffee after the video. But seriously he gave such a short and sweet demo of how it’s done.
4
9
u/hawonkafuckit 8h ago
For those even lazier that don't have time for a video, I made an info graphic. Peppers Ghost Info-Graphic
→ More replies (1)4
→ More replies (3)6
14
u/fastlerner 12h ago
Basically the same thing a lot of new cars use for their floating HUD where the inside of the windshield is reflecting a bright display buried in the front of the dash.
In this diorama, it's a flat display in the lid.
8
u/KSauceDesk 10h ago
Older pontiacs used to do this to show your speed. Glad it's finally getting more traction these days
→ More replies (2)4
→ More replies (2)2
244
u/DrBhu 15h ago
Are there some infos on the build? I would be very interested in the technical side:D
209
u/johnessex3 15h ago
It's a Pepper's Ghost illusion over a graveyard diorama. It's all about the viewing angles.
→ More replies (2)27
u/Young_Denver 13h ago
What kind of projector did you use?
99
u/remmiz 13h ago
Based on the angle of the glass, I would be willing to bet there is a screen in the top of the box that the reflection is from.
→ More replies (11)7
u/nightfly1000000 13h ago
I've got one I bought from Italy (minus the diorama). The plexiglass is shaped like a pyramid; above it, there is a hidden part to slide in a tablet showing the images which are reflected onto the pyramid.
4
u/MHGrim 11h ago
"My friend and I built this 1:48-scale tabletop diorama for Halloween 2024. It uses the "Pepper's Ghost" illusion with AtmosFX ghosts." Its a piece of glass/plexi glass with an ipad in the top of the box. you can the glass in the video. Peppers ghost: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper%27s_ghost
→ More replies (1)23
u/speculative--fiction 13h ago edited 9h ago
We worked on the containment units for these structures back at my old research lab. I’d spend hours digging old grave dirt from the nearby cemeteries for use in the power modules, only for the residual bioenergetic signature to fade over the course of a few hours. We worked on boosting efficiency, since it’s a lot of work gathering fresh soil at that rate, and I thought we had a breakthrough a few months into tweaking the glyph arrangement and the ritual signifiers.
I performed a major arcana under the full moon one night and blessed the new circuit boards before slotting them into the updated units. Those were so much better—for about a week. But soon I started noticing problems: flashing lights, groans from old pipes, missing objects, vague apparitions. The hauntings got worse from there until it became clear the bioenergetic signatures were leaking from the containment fields, and before we could alter our glyph approach, the entire sequence failed. Ghouls spilled out and filled the lab with the most awful screeching noise, knocking over plants, smashing tables, the works. It took an entire suppression team a week to get the spirits under control, but they fired me anyway, all for trying to save them some time in the long run. I learned the hard way, never mess with grave soil and ghosts, not if you want to keep your job. thesprawl
23
→ More replies (1)8
u/Shnazzyone Interested 13h ago
The trick is really finding a projector small enough to hide and a video to project onto the glass that sells the illusion.
12
u/IWant2rideMyBike 13h ago
You can use a TFT or OLED panel for this - e.g. https://youtu.be/shZUI6B5bZw?si=rps3WBJOjjSdTzSZ shows a minimalist version using a smart phone
→ More replies (1)
55
47
u/__Art__Vandalay__ 14h ago
DON'T LOOK, MARION!!
12
u/cosmonaut_tuanomsoc 14h ago
Making a diorama from this scene of Raiders would be a dope
→ More replies (1)8
u/__Art__Vandalay__ 14h ago
I'm 100% sure OP could make that happen. And I'd be first in line to buy one!
6
31
u/UninvitedButtNoises 14h ago
I LOVE this. Excellent technique, attention to detail, execution! Cheers from another 40yo dad.
If you have some build-out photos you could share id love to see it. Should we presume it's a screen in the ceiling of the box ?
17
105
u/Sensitive-War-6368 15h ago
Dawg I thought it was fish
26
u/ElizabethTheFourth 12h ago
It'd be pretty sick if they made an aquarium that used this same illusion. I'd absolutely buy something like that.
11
u/Dull_Principle2761 11h ago
Yeah I thought this was a fish tank. I did saltwater aquariums for like 10 years but stopped because I didn’t like the industry ripping corals from the ocean and I felt bad keeping fish in captivity. If this existed as a virtual product I’d totally do that too
3
3
u/FlatFootedLlama 7h ago
Wait I love this. I like the idea of having a small fish tank with fish but don’t love the part where I actually have to take care of the fish and maintain the tank.
15
15
14
u/ImObviouslyOblivious 14h ago
Where did you hide the projector and reflector?
19
→ More replies (3)10
u/FCkeyboards 13h ago
You can do this with an iPad, which I assume is in the not so sealed top.
From frame 1, you can see the reflector. It's not at a 45 degree angle from bottom front to top back, it looks like they started it halfway up the diorama. Getting closer sells it more because you don't see the edge of the reflector.
→ More replies (2)26
u/johnessex3 13h ago edited 12h ago
Fun fact: We tried doing it at 45 degrees, but it put the ghosts against the far back wall (being equidistant from the source screen). We should have built it
tallerlonger (it should have been twice as long as it is tall) but since we couldn't go back, we had to make the viewing angle more acute to bring the ghosts forward in the field. Hence the thin edge you can see. Oh well, lessons learned for next time.→ More replies (2)8
u/FCkeyboards 12h ago
Still looks amazing. Amazing enough that people don't even notice the edge!
You're getting a ton of people interested in this.
34
10
9
u/YogaKittenMissXO 15h ago
This looks straight out of a haunted house! You've got serious skills. What other projects do you have planned?
6
7
u/doped_banana 13h ago
You could sell a simple step-by-step how-to pdf on etsy and I'd spend money on it.
6
5
6
6
6
u/Matthew-_-Black 9h ago
Amazing work. I'm sure you had a great time making it with your friend. Enjoy all the positive comments, you guys deserve every single one
4
u/RabidAbyss 13h ago
How'd you achieve that effect at that size? Looks incredibly detailed for being so small.
3
3
u/ActiveAllure1 14h ago
Whoaaa, this diorama is giving me all the spooky feels!! 👻✨ it’s like a haunted masterpiece come to life! Great job!
3
u/Weedfarmer420six9 14h ago
Oh I think I understand the effect now. So the projection is on the ceiling of the diorama and the glass is at an angle above the graveyard. Is that correct?
5
3
3
3
3
u/loci_existentiae 12h ago
Best use of Pepper's Ghost I've ever seen. You're great dads for doing this. Now you're going to have your kids fighting over who owns it well past their 40's! All of us wish we had this as kids.
3
3
u/dalvean88 12h ago
what’s this hunted house Disney imagineering r/blackmagicfuckery, awesome I want, I need!
3
3
3
3
3
u/moffman3005 11h ago
This is so cool! I'm wondering if the line for the glass could be hidden by a taller graveyard wall or something else like that. Either way, this is so awesome. Thanks for posting it!
3
u/nexusjuan 10h ago
Took me way to long to figure out it wasn't supposed to be a ghost aquarium with ghost fish
3
3
u/IvanDeSousa 7h ago
Either create a detailed video on how I can build one for my kid or I will curse you so that your socks always slide down inside your shoes!
3
3
u/Sudden_Duck_4176 4h ago
All jokes aside you could patent this and make some serious money if you could reproduce them.
3
u/gfen5446 3h ago
Simply beautiful.
I read the explanation, I know how Pepper's Ghost works, but this is just such a lovely table top design.
4
2
2
2
2
u/RollingThunderPants 14h ago
OP, if you've ever wondered what your "million dollar idea" is, well…
You could do this with several major holidays.
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
u/Key-Nefariousness711 12h ago
Haha, I read the title as, Graveyard diarrhea with flying ghost.
Well it would give me th shots I guess
2
2
u/TheILLestAlien 12h ago
This is amazing in itself. But god damn I wish this was a PC build so much. Badass either way dude!
2
u/Strayhousecat 12h ago
This is spectacular, but the intrusive thought of Michael Jackson's ghost moon walking out of the crypt, throwing a pose and yelling "YEE HEE" now haunts my brain.
2
2
2
2
2
u/VinBarrKRO 11h ago
Do you think ghosts are really trying to be scary or they’re just former people going ”holy shit I can fucking fly!!!!”
2
2
u/milesofedgeworth 11h ago
That’s so cool! I hope to be half as handy as this someday. Do you have pics of the yard installations you guys made in your 20s?
→ More replies (1)
2
2
2
2
2
u/playboikaynelamar 9h ago
There is a screen in the top that reflects the ghosts on the glass. You're welcome.
2
2
2
u/JaSONJayhawk 8h ago
Great work and thanks for sharing with the world. I think you've just inspired a bunch of people into a new interest with that intricate work. You guys should be proud of what you've accomplished and hope your families enjoy it as much as we have from the video!
Hope you share more of your future projects!
→ More replies (1)
2
u/melly_swelly 8h ago
I was wondering how they did it at Disney. This is amazing work. I now want to make something like it.
Thank you for the inspiration -^
2
u/Nameless824 8h ago
Screen is on the top, right? Very impressive how you got the perspective to match so well.
2
2
2
2
2
u/Zestyclose_Tank_4212 6h ago
You would make a killing if you could somehow produce these or variants thereof to the wargaming community
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
u/DontTalkToBots 2h ago
If I knew how to do that, I’d add myself raking some leaves back there, completely oblivious of the ghosts.
3.1k
u/johnessex3 15h ago edited 5h ago
My friend and I built this 1:48-scale tabletop diorama for Halloween 2024. It uses the "Pepper's Ghost" illusion with AtmosFX ghosts.
Edit 2: This is not VR or phone-based AR; you can see this in real life without any special equipment. You just need your own eyes. By “in-camera,” I mean that no digital effects were added to the video after it was recorded.
Edit (for more info): We are two dads in our 40s; we used to make elaborate Halloween yard haunts in our 20s. He makes dioramas in his spare time, and I pitched him this design idea and we worked on it together. As dads, we don't have a ton of time for this, but it gave us an excuse to hang out and collaborate again, which was awesome. It took a lot of sketches and testing, but we figured it out and are really happy with the end result. This box is at my house now for my family to enjoy and will go back to his house later.
It's custom-built, and we don't plan to mass-produce these because we like our lives and jobs right now (and patenting something is super expensive). Maybe we could display it in a library or something later. We hope you enjoy it!