The handkerchief is secretly marked at the folded crease near the hand-

GHOST CAMERA T-266 kerchief’s center. The mark secretly indicates which card design is facing
upward in that quadrant of the handkerchief.

A spectator selects a playing card from the deck,

remembers it, and returns it. The magician covers
the entire deck of cards with a handkerchief. Using
a smartphone camera, the magician takes a photo
of the covered deck. Mysteriously, the selected card
appears in the photo!
French magician Mathieu Bich has created a constant output of original
magic ideas, with this mysterious item being the latest. In these instructions,
you will learn three routines, including the divination of a selected card,
and a selected coin.

IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT THE HANDKERCHIEF

The enclosed handkerchief has been specially manufactured for this magic
trick. Do not attempt to use it for any other purpose. The handkerchief
has been specially processed, so handle it with care and do not rub or
scrape it aggressively. Refrain from washing the handkerchief, as this
will negatively impact the magic effect. If the handkerchief accidentally
becomes soiled, wipe it clean with a slightly dampened cloth. If neces-
sary, you may iron the handkerchief at mid- to low-temperature, covering
with a press cloth. The dye used to color the handkerchief may bleed,
so please do not store the handkerchief in your pockets, or in contact
with other fabrics.

ROUTINE 1: A CARD APPEARS!

THE HANDKERCHIEF’S SECRET
PREPARATION
The enclosed handkerchief contains a hidden secret. At first glance, the
pattern printed on the surface appears to be nothing more than an attrac- You will need the enclosed handkerchief, as well as your own smartphone
tive pattern. However, there three illustrations hidden within the pattern: and deck of cards. Set the cards so that the three of clubs is at the top
two playing cards (the five of diamonds, and the three of clubs) and a hand of the deck.
pointing its finger. Turn the handkerchief over and hold it up to the light.
You will be able to see all three of these illustrations. Fold the handkerchief into quarters, making certain that the three of clubs
quadrant is facing upwards.
When you take a photo of these images with a smartphone camera, the
flash causes the images to appear on the screen.

3 of Clubs

PERFORMANCE

1 Spread the cards face up, and show your audience that it is an ordinary
These images appear when photographed using the flash deck of cards. Turn them face down, and place the squared deck in
front of your spectator.
Try this now with your own smartphone camera. Turn on the camera’s flash
and take a photo of the handkerchief. You will be able to see exactly how 2 Say, “Please cut the cards approximately in half, and place them onto the table.”
mysterious this effect is, with your own eyes. Pick up the remaining cards from the table, and place them on top of the
spectator’s pile, but turned 90 degrees. The two piles are now arranged
• As of October 2015, major smartphones such as iPhone, Xperia, and in a “cross” formation.
Galaxy can be used for this effect. While many other smartphones and
compact digital cameras can also be used, there are some devices
that do not correctly display the image required for this magic trick.
• Please refer to the user manual or manufacturer website to learn how
to activate the flash on your particular smartphone or digital camera.
• If you plan to use a digital camera, please be aware that some models
do not allow users to force the flash usage. In this case, please refer to
the Sample Script on page 3, and incorporate the ghost story in your
presentation. Control the lights in the room until it is dark enough for
the camera’s flash to automatically engage.

Fold the handkerchief in quarters and lay it onto the table. Depending on
3 of Clubs
which surface is upward, you can reveal the five of diamonds, the three of
clubs, or the pointing finger.

–1–
3 Say, “I want to try using a smartphone to learn your card. First, please look at
this card and remember it.” Slide out the top card of the lower half deck,
and hand it to your spectator.
While this card is the three of clubs that you previously set on the top of
the deck, your spectator will believe that it is a random selection located
at the spot where he cut the cards.
4 Once your spectator has memorized his selected card, ask him to return
the card to the deck, and to shuffle the deck thoroughly.
5 Place the squared deck onto the table, and cover it with the handkerchief.
The three of clubs image must be located on the upper surface of the
folded handkerchief. Ask your spectator to pin down the corners of the
handkerchief with both hands.
6 Pick up the smartphone and say, “Please stare at the center of the
handkerchief, and concentrate on your card.” Take a flash photo of the
handkerchief.
The most amazing thing about the gimmicked handkerchief is that your
spectator will not be able to see the hidden image, even when the flash
fires from the camera.
 IMPORTANT POINT:
If your spectators can see the smartphone’s camera screen as you are taking the
picture, they will prematurely see the image of the selected card in the photo.
This will negatively impact the magical effect for your audience. Be sure to in-
struct your spectators to focus their attention on the handkerchief, and keep the
camera screen out of their line of sight.
7 Pick up the handkerchief and place it away into your pocket. Now show
your audience the photo that you just took. The three of clubs has magi-
cally appeared in the photo.
The handkerchief contains two card images, the three of clubs and the
five of diamonds. Therefore, if you wish to perform this effect again for the
same audience, you can make a second card appear on the handkerchief.
Simply fold the handkerchief in the correct orientation to make the five of
diamonds appear.
HOW TO USE A BORROWED SMARTPHONE
It is possible to borrow your spectator’s smartphone and perform this
routine. In this case, however, you must first ask your spectator to set the
flash on his camera.
Before starting your performance, say, “I’d like to show you some magic using
your smartphone. Would you please open up the camera on your phone? Thank you.
Since we will be taking a photo of something on the tabletop, it needs to be bright.
Later on, please allow me to take a flash photo with your camera.”
Perform the routine as described above, until the point when you cover
the tabled deck with the handkerchief. Ask your spectator to take out
–2–
his smartphone, and set up the camera so that it is ready to take a flash
photograph. Take the camera from your spectator, and ask him to pin the
handkerchief to the table with his hands. Take a photograph as described.
When using a borrowed smartphone, you may wish to have the phone’s
owner take the photo instead of you. In this case, your spectator will see
the card image on the screen when snapping the photo. However, since it
is his own phone, he will know that you are not using a special app to make
the card appear, and therefore he will still be amazed at the magic effect.
After he has taken the photo, ask, “Did you see something just now?” Then
ask him to view the photo and show the screen to others.
Be sure to handle borrowed smartphones with care. Do not drop the phone
or otherwise manipulate it without permission.
 ADDITIONAL VIDEO EFFECT:
If you perform this effect with an iPhone, there is an additional effect you can
perform in which the image slowly and mysteriously appears on the screen. In
this effect, you will record a video instead of taking a photograph. First, adjust
the camera so that it is set to video mode, and turn on the camera light. Cover
the camera light with your fingertip, and point the iPhone camera at the handker-
chief, allowing your audience to see the screen. With a finger of your free hand,
press the ‘Record’ button on the screen. Once the video has begun recording,
tell your spectators to concentrate their attention on the screen. Slowly move
the fingertip covering the camera light away from the light, allowing the light
to gradually disperse onto the handkerchief. As you allow more light to hit the
handkerchief, the card image will gradually materialize on the screen.
Avoid performing this effect in a dimly lit location, as your audience will be able
to see that the handkerchief is becoming brighter and brighter. A critical tip
when performing this effect is to remove your fingertip as slowly as possible
for maximum visual impact. You may be able to perform this video effect with
smartphones other than the iPhone. Please experiment with your own device.
ROUTINE 2: YOUR FAVORITE FRUIT!
In this routine, you will divine a spectator’s favorite food, a destination
he wants to visit, or other such selection made freely by your spectator.
In the example below, we will explain a routine in which you divine your
spectator’s favorite fruit. This routine will utilize the “pointing finger” image
on the handkerchief.
PREPARATION
Cut a piece of white construction paper into four 2 inch square cards.
On one of the cards, carefully clip off two diagonal corners. The clipped
corners should be extremely subtle, and only visible to you. They serve as
secret marks that you will use to distinguish this card from the other three
unprepared cards.
Stack up all four white cards, with the prepared marked card on top. You
will also need a pencil during the performance.
Fold the handkerchief into quarters, making certain that the “pointing finger”
quadrant is facing upwards.
PERFORMANCE
1 Say, “I would like to show you some magic that has to do with fruit!” Hand
the stack of four white cards to your spectator, together with the pencil.
2 Say, “There is a wide variety of fruit grown all over the world. I would like you to
think of the fruit you would most like to eat right now.” Instruct your spectator
to write his mentally-chosen fruit on the top card. Since your audience
doesn’t know what is going to happen next, nobody will find it suspi-
 cious that you are asking for the selection to be written on the top card.
3 Instruct your spectator to move the written card to the back of the stack,
and to write three more different fruits, one on each of the remaining
three cards.
4 Instruct your spectator to make sure that you cannot see any of the
written fruits, and ask him to mix them thoroughly, face down.
5 Take the stack of cards from your spectator, and deal them face down
onto the four corners of the handkerchief. When you see the secretly
marked card, deal that one at the folded corner located at the center
of the handkerchief.
Deal marked
card here
6 Say, “Please imagine that, right now, you were actually eating the fruit you
chose. Make it real in your head – imagine your teeth sinking into the fruit, and
taste the sweet juice in your mouth. I’ll try to make your thoughts appear in
this photo.” Take a flash photo of the handkerchief, as explained earlier.
7 When your audience looks at the photo, they will see a finger pointing
to one of the four cards.
Say, “I believe that this is exactly the fruit that you want to eat!” Turn over the
white card located at the indicated position, and show your spectator
that it is indeed his chosen fruit.
FURTHER APPLICATIONS
Although you divine only one item out of four, it appears as if the range of
possible selections is unlimited, since all of the written items were randomly
chosen. Of course you can change the presentation by asking your specta-
tor to write down his favorite food, a country he’d like to visit, a name of
someone he is attracted to, and so on. There is plenty of room for fun and
entertainment with this presentation.
ROUTINE 3: THIS IS YOUR COIN!
In this routine, you divine a spectator’s chosen coin, even though it is hidden
under the handkerchief. This presentation was created by Tenyo’s Toru Suzuki.
PREPARATION
You will need the following items: the handkerchief, a penny, a nickel, a
dime, and a quarter. Fold the handkerchief into quarters, making certain
that the “pointing finger” quadrant is facing upwards.
PERFORMANCE
1 Cover all four coins with the handkerchief, so that they are completely
out of view.
2 Say, “I want you to reach under the handkerchief and remove one coin in your
fist. Do not let anyone else see it.”
3 Once he has a coin in his fist, say, “Peek into your fist so that only you can
see which coin you have taken.”
–3–
4 Once he has seen the coin, say, “Close your hand into a fist around the coin
again. Now replace your coin under the handkerchief and mix the coins around
so that nobody knows which coin selected.”
5 At this stage, it appears that you would have no idea which coin has
been chosen. However the selected coin is actually slightly warmer than
the others, due to the fact that your spectator held it inside his closed
fist. In your presentation, you can stall for time by saying something
like, “Nobody else knows what coin you have chosen. Wouldn’t you agree?”
This extra time allows the coin to absorb your spectator’s body heat.
Reach under the handkerchief and remove the coins one by one, pinch-
ing them at your fingertips. You will place each coin onto one corner of
the folded handkerchief. However, as you remove each coin pay close
attention to the difference in heat – one coin will be slightly warmer than
the others. When you locate this coin, place it onto the folded corner
located at the center of the handkerchief.
Place chosen coin here
6 Say, “Please focus your attention on the coin you chose. Stare at it. Focus on
it!” Take a flash photo of the handkerchief, as explained earlier. When
your audience looks at the photo, they will see a finger pointing to the
selected coin.
SAMPLE SCRIPT
The following sample script can help create a creepy and mysterious tone,
revolving around the theme of ghosts. Begin your performance by saying:
“Have you ever heard of a ghost photograph? Even though we are unable to see
ghosts with our eyes, people have tried capturing the image of ghosts using a camera.
Some people say that it’s even possible to capture the image of someone’s thoughts.
Using this deck of cards, I would like to try an experiment, to see if we can actually
capture your thoughts in a photograph.”
As you have seen, the handling of GHOST CAMERA is simple. It is up to you
to add your own patter and presentation to increase the magical impact.
Think of a presentation that is unique to who you are, and enjoy using this
trick to amaze your audiences.
©2015 Tokyo, Japan
Created by Mathieu Bich
Illustrated by Nariyuki Yoshihara
English instructions by Steve Cohen