A Victorian tour company knew a "sexy ghost" photo that generated publicity around the globe actually showed a young Geelong woman, according to the man who took the photo.
Adam Harris, 21, told the Seven Network's Today Tonight program earlier this month that the "mysterious photo" was taken at a barn during a ghost tour at Barwon Park mansion, in Winchelsea.
A representative from Australian Ghost Adventures said that to his knowledge the woman in the photograph, who was pictured in a low-cut top looking at the camera, was not on the tour that night in August last year.
But Mr Harris told ninemsn the photo was of his friend Megan Ann Walker, who was on the tour that night.
He said Ms Walker made it clear to three of the ghost tour leaders that she was the woman in the photo.
Harris said that at first he believed the photo might have actually been a ghost.
"My camera died and then came back on, and when I looked through the pictures you could see a face there, but it was dark and you couldn’t see it properly."
Harris gave his digital camera card to the ghost tour managers, who put it on a laptop and brightened the image until the woman was visible.
"We realised it was Megan straight away," Harris said.
"She stepped forward and told all of them [the three ghost tour leaders] that it was her.
"We worked out that the photo was actually taken in our car before the tour.
"The photo had somehow appeared in my camera in among the other photos."
He said he had spoken to Australian Ghost Adventures publicity manager Ron Dorre several times about Megan being in the photo before it appeared on Today Tonight earlier this month.
When contacted by ninemsn today Dorre denied the claims, initially saying "we definitely didn’t know that it was her before it was enhanced".
When asked if he then recognised her after the enhancement, he said he did not.
"I didn’t know it was her until Today Tonight contacted me (after their story went to air) … they said we think we know who it is, we found her on Facebook," Mr Dorre said.
"The first picture I saw of her was on your (ninemsn) story."
When asked if Megan was on the tour when the photo was taken, Mr Dorre said "not to my knowledge".
He said he was not sure how to feel about Mr Harris’s claims.
"[Me and the other staff] were upset in one way," he said.
"We don’t know yet … we’re weighing up whether or not we care."
Ms Walker, who was with Mr Harris when contacted today, confirmed Mr Harris's version of events.
Yesterday she wrote ninemsn a Facebook message saying she had told the ghost tour group she was in the photo, but added that "no one was listening".
"I had nothing to do with anything and I ain't getting anyone into any trouble for anything," she wrote.
Despite allegedly knowing that the image was of a person on the tour, Mr Harris said the Australian Ghost Adventures staff decided to use the photo for publicity purposes.
Mr Harris said he used his connection with the company several times to get free ghost tours for himself and his friends.
He said he was treated as a special guest on the ghost tours, due to his photograph.
"They printed out my photo lots of times and then asked me to tell my story to the groups," he said.
"I said I didn’t want to, so Ron told the story instead."
As well as appearing in local media, the image has caused a stir in Europe, appearing in top-selling German tabloid newspaper Bild yesterday.
Harris said he hoped the media coverage would die down now that he had come clean.
"I’m in a real mess now," he said.
"I hope that by telling the truth I can make it all go away."
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