All I see is a deer, trees and a lot of leaves

Oh, it's like one of those optical illusions where the image changes when you shift how your eyes focus. If you look at the sky amongst the leaves over the deer, you get the impression of a face.

It's a lovely picture. Any ghost should be happy to hover there.

No, I see no ghost, but man that is a gorgeous shot of a deer.

Downloaded, enlarged, I see nothing.

I see what he's talking about. Very subtle, in the leaves just above the left antler. Looks like a man's face with glasses.

It's the entire lightened sky area peeking through the trees that forms a sinister face looking down from the sky

So, I and one of my loves pored over the large size of this image. I'm no skeptic--I like the concept of a haunted world, makes it feel lived in--but, after several minutes, I shrugged.

"I don't see it," I told her.

She pointed to the center patch just above the deer's left antler. "There," she said. That collection of light and leaf shadows. If you're completely paranoid, and trying to see things, that might be a face."

So there you go. Our best answer. There's nothing there, but if you're trying to find something, the light through the leaves over the deer's left antler could be interpreted as a posible face...of sorts...that's formed of leaves and light, not ectoplasm.

I see what your friend is talking about. It's in the space just above and to the right of the deer's antler. Although I think we're talking about a phenomenon of shadows, placement and lighting instead of a ghost. But I do see it.

It's worth noting I saw it in the expanded image.

I see it. It's the large white space above the whole deer. Leaves/branches make up eyes, nose, and mouth above a large white chin. Looking down and right.

I think what they're probably seeing is the shape of a face in the light streaming through the leaves about the deer's head.

It does look vaguely facelike.

Can you really not see it, or are you juts hankering for views?

If you follow the branch that slants up under the deer's neck, to where it connects to the tree, you'll see it to the left of the twisted branch that looks like a teacup handle.

They must mean the pattern the leaves make against the sky; the "face" takes up almost all the space between the two trees. But sheesh; that's like going, "That cloud looks like a cheese sandwich!"

I think they're talking about the way the sky peeking through the branches/leaves above the deer creates a large face-like shape (in the top of the middle third of the image). If you unfocus your eyes a little you can see the curve of a jaw and even the suggestion of eyes and a mouth.

It doesn't look anything like a ghost to me, but nevertheless it's pretty cool :)

?

http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/ff142/popnfreshest/bigdeerIMG_0655-thumb-450x337-24309.jpg

Look at the negative space above - it looks like a face looking off to the right in a non Palin way, just as a you can see a shape in a cloud, a piece of stone or whatever. Call it Jesus and you have a real story :)

the only thing i see above the deer's head is a set of antlers.

The white space above the deer. Use the rest of the picture as background. Wouldn't say a ghost, but some shape that the sky portion of the picture is making.

There's what could be interpreted as a large, odd-looking face in 3/4 profile made by the leaves against the sky above the deer's head. That's what I'd assume he was referring to.

I can see what could be construed as a face. Close to and just to the left of the tree trunk the deer is facing. Just up from the diagonal branches that shoot up from the ground. It's a 3/4 profile. The white of the sky could make up the skin and the shadows or grayish leaves/twigs could make up its features. I was a painter for many years and know that when you play with light and shadow you can pretty much construe anything. I wouldn't call the Pope for this one. Beautiful photo though.

I see it! It's the ghost of Christmas past! Nice photograph.

I almost saw it but then it vanished. Ghosts do that a lot.

i suppose if i squint really hard, i can see ronald mcdonald

Now I don't know whether I should feel clever or lame, but I see it. What you do is look at the spot on the screen about an inch or two above the deers ear, slowly tilt the screen back so it makes the picture more contast-y (not a word, I know). The ghost face is light. Tilting your head a bit to your left helps too. Bit creepy at first, but it starts to look quite friendly after a bit. And by the way, you should totally tweet pictures of cute kittens. My freshman year at university is about to start,and what else am I supposed to look at when I'm bored out of my mind in English 1100?

PS: I was going to post a pic on Twitter of it highlighted, but it's SO much more fun to make you work for it, hehe. Besides it reminds me of a certain quote of yours :)

I can see where they got the idea, with the way the sun glows through the trees above the deer's head, but that's all it is. The camera just caught it at the right angle. It is a beautiful picture.
My personal opinion on ghosts however is not diminished. I still believe there are supernatural phenomenon out there that can't be explained. This is not one of them. Have a good evening.

http://s198.photobucket.com/albums/aa52/hawksoob/?action=view¤t=ebert.jpg

I do see a face, though I wouldn't necessarily say it's ghost-like. Her chin is very pointed and starts about 2/3 the way up the picture over the center of the deer. Her cheeks are big, lips full, there are eyes and the head is turned slightly to the right. The picture ends just above the eyebrows and the forehead is cut off. I think she has bangs. When I zoom in though, I can't see it. Distance makes it easier to see - like so many things.

If you blur your eyes and stare at the smaller image like it was at a kiosk in the mall, you can sort of see a giant floating head that I'd describe as being similar to the Wizard's illusion in the "Wizard of Oz".

Of course, it's Saturday night and I may just be seeing blurry, but if you force me to see a face, I'd compare it to this quickly-Googled image.

PS) Nice pic.

I can see what they're referring to. It's just discolored wood in the background in a rounded "shape." Nothing ghostly about it really. Just someone's eyes trying to make sense of what the shapes are by contriving a description.
What I can see are Misfits logo type skeletal shapes in leaves far up near the top. Just a few of those. But again, it's just my brain trying to form a familiar image out of random shapes.

I can see what they're referring to. It's just discolored wood in the background in a rounded "shape." Nothing ghostly about it really. Just someone's eyes trying to make sense of what the shapes are by contriving a description.
What I can see are Misfits logo type skeletal shapes in leaves far up near the top. Just a few of those. But again, it's just my brain trying to form a familiar image out of random shapes.

Maybe this is what your correspondent is seeing: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tuirgin/4958699569/

The leaves and branches in the larger area of white sky above the deer create a face in 3/4 looking toward the right of the picture and smiling Puckishly. There's even a right ear (above the deer's butt toward the top of the picture) created by those slim trees. It's not ghostlike, it is a man-in-the-moon illusion.

Well, I looked for a long time. And, finally, when I squinted I could see what vaguely looked like an angry Pikachu face composed of the green leaves. But even that seemed mostly imagined...

It's a stretch, but I think I found what your correspondent was seeing. (Please pardon my crappy drawing skills.)

http://twitpic.com/2lerv8

I see it, it looks VERY Concentric, making me think of the center of a lens polishing machine, with a part that needs replacement...or it was made on someones last day....@work.

While I don't actually agree that it looks like a ghost, or a face, or even "ghost-like" or "face-like"...I think I see what your friend is referring to.

Click.

The area I've circled in red just looks...different...than everything else around it. It's subtle, but it looks more "wispy" than the blinding light you'd expect to see there when you compare it to other, similar openings in the picture. But ghost-like? Hardly.

Now, the area I circled in purple...THAT looks like the head of a kitten.

I don't see a ghost but I do see a face. Rather, I see the optical illusion of a face made of leaves and negative space.

Look above the deer, where the tree branches form an X shape. To the right of that X, the leaves suggest a Matt Groening-style Simpsons caricature of a person. That's not a ghost, though, it's -- Nelson Muntz, perhaps.

In the photo, when it is NOT enlarged, there appears to be a vague head (green, of course) covered partially by the antlers of the deer. The leaves in the background just left and below that look a little like the definition of a shoulder. But when I enlarge, NONE of that is there. Seems to me more like a case of 'Martian canals' to me.

Maybe we're looking at the light coming through the leaves? Or the weird branch to the right of the deer's head? Don't know.

Looks like a skeleton head looking slightly to the right

i see it.
It's actually just the leaves and how they look together.
But i see it.
http://i51.tinypic.com/2ez48rn.png

I see it - the leaves and branches starting about one deer-height over the deer to the top edge of the photograph do make a pattern that looks face-like. Pointed chin, high cheekbones, and the four thin trees arcing up to the top edge could be hair coming down to cover her (I see it as female) right eye.

Pareidolia can be fun sometimes!

I don't see anything anthropomorphisable in there. But my lack of belief in anything supernatural must be blinding me.

Actually, disregard my previous comment (except for the kitten part)...I see something else now, and I think I know why we're missing it at first glance. What I'm seeing is actually easier to see if you don't enlarge the photo, and it's more of a stereotypical ghost like you see in cartoons- if you're like me, you were expecting something more subtle, like you usually see when people claim a ghost was captured in a photo. Something resembling an apparition, perhaps.

Click.

I still don't think it's an actual ghost, obviously (even if ghosts did exist, I highly doubt they'd appear in such a form), but I can definitely see the resemblance now.

It's the light area in the top quarter of the image above the deer, formed by the thinner forest canopy. Looks vaguely like a human head or skull with eyes, nose (hole), and mouth facing down and to the right, a three-quarters view. One might imagine it as a light, perhaps sparkling/glowing figure hovering over the deer, standing out against the darker background of the canopy. It's much easier to see at this small image size than in the full-size photo.

It's a stretch. The face's right eye (anatomically speaking) isn't well-defined; the chin is weak. But we humans are hardwired to see faces, so I'm not surprised someone saw this. I might not have noticed if I hadn't been looking for it. It did take me a few moments.

Is this one of those Jesus on a grilled cheese sandwich things?

I like Christopher D. Walborn's ghost the best.

I see the "face", it's large... Great optical illusion. But I WANTED it to be a ghost.

OK a couple of caveats. First I have bad eyesight. My eyes don't focus particularly well. It took until the new 3-D for me to be able to see 3-D movies. You know those pictures with a repeated image that you're supposed to be able to see a single image in? Like the character in "Mallrats" I can't see the single image in them. That said I can read backwards,upside down and also backwards AND upside down. I do have a tendency to see patterns and faces moreso than my friends. So I don't see a ghost in the light.I see the Evil Ernie right above the deer's back.The huge grin looking down to the right.

More interesting to me is the face or creature in the tree.

See the 2 tree branches forming an "X" directly to the right of the deer's nose? Above the intersection of the "X" is the mouth agape. The 2 eyes are above it. Follow down and a bit to the left, still on the tree though, you can see it's long arms as it slowly makes its way zombie-like thru the forest...

I think this is the ghost they're talking about, Roger:
http://twitpic.com/2lgdrk

It's to the right of the deer, diagonally above the intersecting points of the "X" formed by the branches.

Def just the lighting and angle. Same with 'orbs' in pics, it's really just dust.

Must be Casper

Maybe the deer is the ghost? And maybe its the ghost of John Candy -- Uncle Buck? (groan)

All I see is a damn fine deer. But as I was looking at the photo closely, some ominous music in my headphones started playing, and I fully expected to either see the Forest God from 'Princess Mononoke' appear, or the green alien from 'Signs' stroll out from behind a tree.

I do see what appears to be a giant, dead grasshopper falling from the tree behind the deers head.

I see about 3 or 4 faces if I look for them. Also a dove and some other things. But I think I could see these things in any picture of this much detail.

I don't see any ghosts, but if you roughly follow where the deer's ear is pointing, there's some dead leaves that look kind of like an evil kangaroo.

Looks like one of those god awful clowns from Steven King's It novel/ bad movie.

I don't see anything, but what a great photograph! How lovely to have this outside your window!

Now I see it! Right above the deer's left antler, there's a combination of leaves and branches that looks like a little face. I think, though, that this image is more akin to seeing a cloud formation that looks like a turtle, than to actually seeing anything that's actually there.

I mean, I could look at the small version of this photo, and say that the darker leaves to the left of the deer look like a "shadow deer."

Humans are generally predisposed to scan for visual information that could be read as faces... we're social beings who have become very sensitive to reading the subtleties of differences in faces, be it for determining the mood of others by their expressions, or by looking for familial and/or ethnic commonalities. Because our visual cortex is so wired to do facial pattern recognition, it also has a tendency to find faces anywhere/anytime it's given half a chance by ambiguous stimulus... in clouds, rock formations, toasted bread, potatoes, or sun-dappled forest canopy as recorded through a photographic lens. See also, pareidolia.

I'm guessing the image is amoung the patterns of leaves and specks of sky coming through.

Commercial carpeting contains the most images of faces and figures. Pick any approx 2 x 2 feet square and stare with a loose focus on that area, the mind will begin to assemble familiar forms. (helps if you are artistically inclined)

HERE IT IS zoom in to see the circled area http://tinyurl.com/29tgkfr

Yeah, not a ghost, just incidental creation of a "skull" created by the negative space between the leaves. It's ridiculous what people assume is a ghost. I say that though with a mother who is a well-known ghost (and other phenomenon) researcher. This is along the same lines as Jesus in a grilled cheese/Doritto/spaghetti/whatever. It's not really phenomenon, it's just a coincidence and we're assigning something to it so we don't think we're crazy.

Okay, so I initially opened this on my iPhone and then zoomed in randomly on some black wood Halloween-esque face, then I went out a bit and saw some fully-fledged gray person. I'm surprised nobodies picked up on it (or they have and I've failed to notice). I've uploaded an edited image with the face and torso highlighted. Anyone else see this?

Also, its obviously just a load of shadows and leaves, but I like my find nonetheless.

http://i462.photobucket.com/albums/qq347/Jamie__/ebertfacething.jpg

It's the "crowd effect." If a large enough group of people say they see something, more and more people will "see" it, even if nothing is there.

Reminds me of those "Magic Eye" paintings that were popular in the late 80's/early 90's. They featured a bunch of dots that formed a picture of something if you stared at it long enough, and at the proper angle. Out of a crowd of 100, maybe 10 people could actually see the sailboat, or whatever, but eventually you'd have 80 or 90 people swearing they could see it too.

I see what they are talking about, but it's reaching...there is a collection of leaves formed in such a way as to suggest a face, but not really...you need to have the soul of a sculptor/artist to envision the sunlight pouring through the leaves in that manner...

HERE IT IS zoom in to see the circled area http://tinyurl.com/29tgkfr

Yes! And there's a ghost monkey lounging in the tree above the deers head! Spooky!

I don't see anything but it's a great deer photo. Thanks.

Okay, so I initially opened this on my iPhone and then zoomed in randomly on some black wood Halloween-esque face, then I went out a bit and saw some fully-fledged gray person. I'm surprised nobodies picked up on it (or they have and I've failed to notice). I've uploaded an edited image with the face and torso highlighted. Anyone else see this?

Also, its obviously just a load of shadows and leaves, but I like my find nonetheless.

http://i462.photobucket.com/albums/qq347/Jamie__/ebertfacething.jpg

When the image is greatly enlarged, there's a patch right above the place where three sapling trunks meet that looks like a clumsy fake where someone deliberately inserted an image of a koala. (*I* could do a more plausible fake, & I'm not a pro.) But no, I see no ghostly face, sinister or otherwise.

On high magnification, teeny doppelgangers of Meyer Lansky and Sam Giancana clearly appear sitting on a tree limb. Lansky is the one whose legs are crossed.

http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/1329/ebertwhiteisolated.jpg

I blacked out everything but the white areas, for those who still can't see it. Stand back or unfocus your eyes if necessary. If you can't see the huge white face on a black background, you'll probably never see it.

I'm with you - I can't see it at all.

The tree just behind and to the right of the deer's nose. Follow it up to the bright spot,if the deers nose were center of a clock, this would be two inches in the direction of 2 o'clock. Looks like ghost of Christmas present. A clear face image is there, but I believe it to be only light and shadow. (SO I am not suggesting that the deer is being visited by three ghost in one night.)

I haven't seen this much discussion over an image since the Zapruder film!

...And for the record, I see nothing but a deer.

I can't see anything that looks like a face although I could probably outline several shapes not unlike faces in the same way one plays the game with children of looking at cloud shapes. There are definitely shapes.

My particular conviction in looking at this photograph is that I am seeing a fine crop of poison ivy but I always search such scenes as if I am quite sure it is there.

I don't see shit, Captain!

I see a tree sticking its tongue out at the photographer from between the antlers XD

Well, I often see ghosts and things in pictures, but ... nothing here.

Unless it's the deer, or one of the trees :)

Nope. Nada. Sorry.

I circled the strange lighting and found three faces, but the one at the bottom is the scariest and clearest.

http://flic.kr/p/8ypdcr

Randy Masters described it best. Yes, it's a cartoonish semblance of a head. Seems you have to have an eye attuned to finding Waldo combined with a good imagination. I'd never have visualized this without guidance. Nothing otherworldly about it though.

I don't see a ghost face or head but I am glad to hear that you are writing your memoirs. And you were right to forward that photo to friends... I spent the day staring at the blue skies and Lake Michigan today...

That's not it!!

The ghost is to the right of the deer along the branch to the right of his two antlers (two smaller branches cross in front of the ghost). His face is brown.

There's also a face on the left tree trunk next to the deer--in the greenery. Cool effect!

I SEE IT! Right above the dear's head you can clearly see a ghost:
http://a.imageshack.us/img809/7926/deerm.jpg

All true Christians can see the face of Jesus in simple, everyday things. Why can't YOU, Roger?

The only thing I see is pareidolia. (Seeing a lot of it, though!)

I see what appears to be a fairly content-looking treant at the 2 o'clock position from the deer's eye.

Here's the face I saw first, and there are others

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v494/tdejarnette/share/faceabovedeer.jpg

http://i782.photobucket.com/albums/yy109/GalValJean/MyDocuments.jpg is what I came up with, although it's funny that we readers are finding faces in different spots in the photo. :)

Off-subject, my boyfriend saved me the Times article about your cookbook the other day. Your kitchen looks so pretty with the many-paneled window and the green view outside it. Here in a studio apartment in Pittsburgh, our kitchen is just a nook carved out of the wall for the appliances with about three feet of floor space. We get it done, but cooking here is hardly a picture-worthy endeavor. Cheers to your wife for designing a smart and pretty workspace.

I think it says something that of all the people who have linked pictures where they circle or outline an image, only two have been of the same thing. Everyone else circled something completely different.

Clearly, this means the picture has at least a dozen ghosts in it, and the photographer has found a spot not unlike the Hellmouth in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Dude, it's Jay Leno! No, I don't see a face or ghost-like image above the deer's head. But when I blow the image up and look for something I can make out the exaggerated chin and pompadour outlined by the green leaves. Jay Leno wants to write your memoirs!

The ghost is the shadow of another deer to the left of the deer. You can see it if you put the picture a little bit away. It's exactely the same size too.

I don't think the person was talking about the leaves and sky combination, but perhaps a bit to the right, yeah. A bit eerie, but definitely not a ghost- more like a combination of shadows on trees (of course I'm only assuming..)

It's always a ghost, isn't it? What I see is a gypsy named Sirahpelinne, dancing with a plate of hot pancakes in one hand and a bowl of freshly-picked green olives in the other. Through her tears, she is singing "Avec le temps. Avec le temps va, tout s'en va..." Hope this helps.

I see it in the space above the deer. I would not have noticed it if you hadn't pointed it out.

Your friend must be stunned by how much attention his observation is getting. :)

OK, next time just post a picture where nobody previously spotted a face or ghost, but pretend that someone else DOES see something different, and see how many people also see something different.

I don't see a ghost, but do see Jesus burnt into a piece of toast on the ground....
Nice shot.

People will see 'faces' in random patterns, from time to time. Why? Because it is part of our DNA inprinting process (think 'instinct' in animals). There have been MANY experiments on this with babies - a baby's best chance of survival is to seek out a human face for protection/food/etc and that is precisely what the brain does - analyses any images that could be another human face. This stuff is very well known (baby crawls 100% of the time to drawing of face as opposed to drawing of tree, etc) and accounts for the 'face in the clouds', face of Christ on a biscuit' that some see in adult life.

The human brain is much more complex than most people think. For example, our eyes only have a single lens in each eye, which means everything we see is actually upside down. If you don't believe me, hold a toy above a new born baby and it will reach downwards for it. This is because the brain has not yet inverted all images from the eyes, that happens within a week or two. Once hardwired in, that is permanent and the world appears the 'right way up' for ever more. :)

Here's the face....it looks like you, Roger! http://yfrog.com/10ccltj

I see what looks like Daffy Duck to the right of the tree. I think people see things in trees and various other things like clouds and mud, because our brains sees the smaller details and some sort of image for it. I think it's some psychological thing. Some people might see a pen but others might see a stick, or a pencil. It probably varies.

Funny b/c I saw the tweet and thought, "So I'm not the only one who saw that." Then I came to find that I'm seeing a different "ghost." Mine is between the left antler & the tree and looks like it would be a portrait from the mid 19th c. I usually don't see these things but I saw this "face" right away.

I saw a face when you posted originally, but it didn't look especially like the versions you've linked to, so I 'annotated' my own just then. What I found funny was that after I'd drawn in the 'mouth', I started recognising the other facial features in other places; when looking at the original I saw a very craggy, looming evil face with sharp features, but the mouth I drew in made the image look softer, and I found the eyes moved further down, the face seemed less down-turned and towering.

@Anita Cage

Its not poison ivy in the photo but rather Virginia Creeper.

Compare:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenocissus_quinquefolia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poison_ivy

Sorry for the diversion of topic but its a huge pet peeve of mine when striking benign plants are incorrectly identified as poison ivy or poison sumac