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I Saw And Photographed The Loch Ness Monster In 2006

Anyone thought about what the point would be in saying you took the photo from a particular location when in fact you were somewhere else? Isn't that setting yourself up to be found out?

If I were a hoaxer and I had taken the photo, I might be inclined to tell the truth about being in a holiday let as opposed to in a car in a lay-by. The best lies being those that contain some truth.

That may be why you are not a hoaxer. :)

The best liars believe what they are saying at the time that they are saying it, even if they are capable of believing the exact opposite tomorrow.

The best carefully constructed lies (hoaxes, frauds, political arguments) contain checkable truths. The half hearted sceptic identifies that those few facts check out, and is inclined to believe the whole story. The very best carefully constructed lies (especially political ones) are tailored to exploit the audience's preconceptions. If you are already anxious about immigration, you may be more inclined to believe a fake news story about immigrants committing crimes, for example.

However, a recreational hoaxer has mixed motives, one of which is to attract attention. For some people, any attention is better than none. If your story is challenged, you act upset; if you act upset, someone will console you. Result!

If your story is accepted, rather than let the attention die down, you might add to it. If the additions are challenged, you act upset, and again, someone somewhere will console you. Result!

It is a rare hoaxer who can restrain themselves from revisiting and reviving the hoax and adding to it. For example, in the well known case of the Cottingley fairy photographs, one sister confessed to it being a hoax; the other maintained that she had seen fairies; a further photograph was put forward as "evidence" that, despite some of the photos being faked, they really had seen fairies. It's hard to let go of attention, or to admit when you've been caught out.

I have just gone back and read the OP's statement on this thread. It reads like a scene from a bad B movie. Both slightly tipsy in the car, girlfriend sees the monster first, boyfriend initially sceptical but finally sees the monster which is massive... and so on.

"I looked out of the cottage window and saw a tiny unidentified blob in the distance," is not an exciting scene to describe.

A common "mistake" for hoaxers and fraudsters to make is to have a very detailed and dramatic account of the central part of the story, but without thinking through all that happened before and after. They do the exciting bit — tell an engaging anecdote — but not the difficult bit: working out all the details.
 
OP did state that his ex-girlfriend took the photo, and he created a lot of hoo-hah about her finding out he had put the photo on the interweb.

My theory is that SHE was in the holiday cottage, she took the photo, and he's telling this falsely as his story.

That's why the hoo-hah about posting the pic and that's why he didn't mention the cottage (he was never in it).
 
I cropped into the boat, and zoomed in because the first one was also zoomed. I'll go back to both original images (working from the full size monster one) and try again when I have time.
any luck
 
Hi Henry, I forgot. I've had a go now.

I took the 'monster' image from the loch ness mystery blog and the 'boat' image from the holiday house blog. I scaled the monster image 200% and the boat image 400% to get them at approximately the same scale visually. However, the pixels are still not on the same scale so I don't know if it's very useful. Any difference we see might be due to this and due to the lesser image quality of the monster image.

EDIT: For what it's worth, the filter i used was differential edge detect using GIMP, with the 'amount' on full.

Untitled.png
 
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Here is the image scaled so the pixels are the same size. I can see a kind of 'box' round the wake of the monster in the second image, but I think it might be something to do with how the compression works (i.e. working over the picture in square-shaped blocks, smoothing out the detail in less detailed areas).

Untitled.png


EDIT: In conclusion, I don't think this approach helps us much with anything, but it was worth a try.
 
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its interesting seeing side-by-side, what would cause the (extremely regular) wake to appear black vs. white in the control i wonder
 
its interesting seeing side-by-side, what would cause the (extremely regular) wake to appear black vs. white in the control i wonder
Lighting and (possibly) speed. The boat with the white wake is probably travelling faster and creating foam.
 
right ... or, is what i am reading as the wake actually the submerged body ?
 
Maybe I'm missing something here ...

You originally stated it was your companion who took the photo. Isn't the photo technically "hers" rather than "yours"?

Edit for Clarification:

I'm responding to a post which Justin deleted and then re-posted below.
 
It appears it is common knowledge that I obtained permission from my ex to share the photo under the condition of alias and let “silverity” aka Roland Watson post the picture and account on his blog. What I was never told was that Watson was planning to publish the photo in a very amateurish book without asking me. In other words he is making money off my picture. Does that make him a sympathetic researcher who took me seriously or a disgusting opportunist who took advantage? I’ll go with the second option.
 
Maybe I'm missing something here ...

You originally stated it was your companion who took the photo. Isn't the photo technically "hers" rather than "yours"?
I was giving permission to share it on a blog. I did not authorize use in a book that the author would make money from. He never even bothered to tell me. I only found out because I went to look at his website and see if there were reader comments about the picture. He couldn’t even be honest that he was going to screw me. All of this just proves my point about why discussing or sharing was a bad idea from the beginning.
 
I was giving permission to share it on a blog. I did not authorize use in a book that the author would make money from. He never even bothered to tell me. I only found out because I went to look at his website and see if there were reader comments about the picture. He couldn’t even be honest that he was going to screw me. All of this just proves my point about why discussing or sharing was a bad idea from the beginning.
Nah .. sharing the picture was a good idea but he owes you a pint or ten for putting it in his book without asking you first ..
 
maybe a few drinks in return for agreed casual use ... publishing regardless sounds like a dick move

Agreed. A dick move on a significant scale. But, as noted, above if the photo wasn't property of the original poster in the first place? This could get complicated...
 
So much for the honesty of “serious researchers.” All he had to do was send a message and ask, but he didn’t because he knew what the answer would be, and just did it anyway.
 
So much for the honesty of “serious researchers.” All he had to do was send a message and ask, but he didn’t because he knew what the answer would be, and just did it anyway.

Definitely a dick move on his part. I don't think that many would really disagree with that part.
 
Yeah, and one that could get me in a lot of trouble which was the entire point of being nervous about sharing. If I knew the best way to call Rolan Watson aka Silverity out as a fraud to the most people, I would do it.
 
I never said it was, but it’s pretty funny how everyone here including the mod Yithian dog piled me and mocked me for being scared to show the picture, and what happens when I do? One of your own members puts it in a book and makes money from it. Where are all of you making fun of me for not wanting to get screwed over? I assume you’re getting notifications that this thread is active. Where the laughter and clever insults?
 
I never said it was, but it’s pretty funny how everyone here including the mod Yithian dog piled me and mocked me for being scared to show the picture, and what happens when I do? One of your own members puts it in a book and makes money from it. Where are all of you making fun of me for not wanting to get screwed over? I assume you’re getting notifications that this thread is active. Where the laughter and clever insults?
I'm very sorry that happened, Justin. But none of us can have known that there would be an unscrupulous individual who would do such a thing.
If the book hasn't yet been published, you could attempt a takedown by threatening the publisher with legal action. Presumably he may be using the same publisher that published his previous book.
 
I never said it was, but it’s pretty funny how everyone here including the mod Yithian dog piled me and mocked me for being scared to show the picture, and what happens when I do? One of your own members puts it in a book and makes money from it. Where are all of you making fun of me for not wanting to get screwed over? I assume you’re getting notifications that this thread is active. Where the laughter and clever insults?
Roland has been a member of this board in its various forms since 2011 and in that time he has posted 48 times. So to claim that his actions are typical of the board or indicative is disingenuous. You did not share the photo via this board, you chose to share it with Roland so please don’t tar us with his actions. If you have a beef with Roland I suggest you take it up with him. Personally I think if something is given to you in confidence and then you break that confidence you have just lost a serious amount of credibility and done the whole field harm.
 
I'm very sorry that happened, Justin. But none of us can have known that there would be an unscrupulous individual who would do such a thing.
If the book hasn't yet been published, you could attempt a takedown by threatening the publisher with legal action. Presumably he may be using the same publisher that published his previous book.
Roland’s book came out a good few months ago.
 
still possible to cease and desist him if there are grounds
 
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I never said it was, but it’s pretty funny how everyone here including the mod Yithian dog piled me and mocked me for being scared to show the picture, and what happens when I do? One of your own members puts it in a book and makes money from it. Where are all of you making fun of me for not wanting to get screwed over? I assume you’re getting notifications that this thread is active. Where the laughter and clever insults?
Out him in the Nessie research community as the photo thief he obviously is. If Silverity has any guts left, he can come to this thread and explain himself.
 
Out him in the Nessie research community as the photo thief he obviously is. If Silverity has any guts left, he can come to this thread and explain himself.

i doubt he ll put his head above the water

Don't hold your breath ...

Bear in mind that the exchanges between Justin Case and Silverity (on this thread) occurred circa 2.75 years ago. Silverity hasn't logged onto the forum in over 1.5 years.
 
interesting to read the blog article and the bloggers description of the treatment justin got at this forum, concluding : "witnesses with a story to tell may be deterred from coming forward when they see exchanges such as this. That is very sad, but in the end the picture can finally be published for discussion"
 
interesting to read the blog article and the bloggers description of the treatment justin got at this forum, concluding : "witnesses with a story to tell may be deterred from coming forward when they see exchanges such as this. That is very sad, but in the end the picture can finally be published for discussion"

Which blog? Link please?
 
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