Top 20 Normal Looking Pictures with Disturbing Backstories 

#14 is incorrectly labelled. It says baseball card when it should be Basketball card. Thanks to those who noticed and let us know.

That girl from the dating game has amazing intuition, she's proof positive that you should always trust your gut instinct

Damn that first photo is sad.. Imagine how they felt losing their child in that moment by looking at the pic. Very sad.

Imagine dying and being an honourable mention on watch mojo lol

In the Mt. St. Helen's eruption, Robert Landsburg provided the best photos we've ever gotten of a volcanic eruption. He put his camera in his bag and laid on top of it, knowing he wouldnt survive but hoping his work would. And it did.

I don’t know why but Christopher’s photos make me uncomfortable even without knowing any backstories...

I still think that the lady on The Dating Game is lucky that she trusted her gut and chose not to go on that date with Rodney Alcala.

#18 is the most disturbing to me because Chris knew he wouldn’t survive because he was either almost starved or poisoned (depends on what you believe) so he just decided to write a meaningful message and take a picture before laying down in the bus and dying

The Columbine school pictures where Dylan and eric pointing finger guns at the camera should have been mentioned

No disrespect, but Chris McCandless pics are not normal. Every time I see his photos, I see a man slowly dying of malnutrition/starvation. Nothing “normal” about that. I hope he’s resting in peace💯🌷

My number 1 rule when surviving in the woods: Never turn vegan unless you're a botanist and know your stuff.

I’m surprised you didn’t mention the two young girls who took a Snapchat photo with their murderer in the background. The girls names were Libby German and Abby Williams and their murder is still unsolved to this day. Edit: also Travis Alexander was terrified in that photo because Jodie tortured him and made him pose for photos before murdering him. She also took photos of him after he died.

16:30 I actually am terrified of that guy just from this picture. I don't even need a backstory.

"Take a closer look at the lower left-hand corner though" *proceeds to pan further to the top*

The most disturbing thing about this video, is how cheerful she sounds while giving us the details. "these parents on the beach have just realised that their son is dead.. tee hee!"

My great grandmother actually lived in the area where the BTK Killer was, she always talks about how scared she was because she thought she was next. She only recalls going out around 10-15 times during that period of time. She also thought that they would never get him.

My uncle Steve took that picture of the challenger crew. He also took one of the most widespread pics of the actual explosion Needless to say I was extremely shocked when I found this out

Well Christopher McCandless picture isn’t disturbing but tragic.

That Christopher Mccandless photo is haunting. You can see death in his eyes as well as his acceptance of it

The things I find most disturbing about each image- 1- The absolute fear in the mother’s eyes, you can tell she’s feeling destroyed. 2- They don’t realize that millions of people are about to watch them die in the worst way possible. 3- His eyes look entirely dead, he truly looks like he’s accepted his fate and that he can’t change it. And his fingers. His fingers, frostbitten and cold. 4- It’s always crazy to see people smiling even though their lives are about to change forever. 5- The child on top of the man’s shoulders just gives me the shivers, and the fact that the child was nearly killed during the crossfire of something that no one could help. 6- His last radio in. He knew what was going on. 7- They look guilty even just sitting there. They seem to be uncomfortable everywhere they go. 8- The fact that he was on a competition show but the woman backed out because of her gut instinct? Insane. Not to mention how he was his own defense. He’s crazy. 9- How you can so obviously see that she’s about to fall. If someone in the photo had just grabbed her arm, she would most likely be here today. 10- The fact that most everyone died. Especially since it was a chemical fire. An awful way to go out. 11- Ironic how the one thing they could’ve used was water, isn’t it? 12- The fact that the bear stalked him before it killed him. And it stayed after he died. And the worst part is, the bear didn’t know any better. It just thought that’s what it was supposed to do. 13- I don’t understand how they murder someone and just smile out of their court room. 14- The look in his eyes show that he was definitely a creep. 15- There could be so many clues in this picture but there is so much going on that you can hardly see anything. 16- The absolute fear and pain in this man’s eyes. He looked like he knew what she was about to do to him. 17- The shadow seems to be an old man. The bombers had no regrets for anything they’d done. They killed children and old people, everyone. Everyone. 18- He looks so creepy. I think he is just genuinely a creepy dude. 19- The fact that fans can quickly turn into enemies. Tragic. 20- drugs can absolutely destroy someone’s life. And when he invited people? That’s tragic.

POV: your not watching this in full screen.

Christopher McCandless story was a crazy story. The bus he died at is a land mark that people would try to travel. Sadly many had to be rescued and some have died trying to get to it. Since June of 2020 the alaska national guard, along with other agencies have removed the bus and it is at UAF in Fairbanks getting restored to be on display at a local museum.

"The man and child thankfully survived the bombing the person behind the camera, did not." My heart dropped.

"Happiness is only real when shared." Christopher McCandles.

"Alexander appears off guard in this photo, he clearly had no idea what was coming." Maybe it's just me but ever since first seeing this picture years ago, during the trial, I still think he looks scared and fully aware that she was going to kill him. His eyes look haunted.

The David A. Johnston photo is haunting yet so intriguing. He is a hero of mine as I pursue my goals of becoming a volcanologist. They say his final message "Vancouver! Vancouver! This is it!" sounded more excited rather than terrified of his impeding fate. If there's a way to go, that is it. Pursuing your passion and helping thousands.

Its tragic how many of these deaths were preventable.

16:13 "The wide-eyed kid in this picture would not strike you as very threatening." - ok, hold on a second...

Fun Fact: my parents lived in Parkcity at the same time as BTK. He even came to check their fencing and wiring. He installed the security systems that the terrified residents wanted to keep him out...

It's amazing how some people actually do look like serial killers though.

If your hair is literally standing on end, get the hell out of there and find some shelter

Can't imagine loosing my kid and there is someone taking my picture,that's the only disturbing thing for me.

'Yes lets stand literally at the edge of this cliff. Nothing can go wrong here.'

The most disturbing of all is this video's bizarrely cheerful narration going on and on about tragic events behind these haunting photographs.

The photo of Christopher McCandless is not normal at all, looks like a frozen corpse. a lot of people have tried to make him into some adventurer but he wasn't, his death came about from not being prepared and not having the least bit of survival skills.

The Dutch girls who went missing in Panama is especially creepy.

Fun Fact: My grandpa has been struck by lightning SIX times and still lives to tell the tales. I'm 30 years old and 4 of the strikes have been in my lifetime. I have personally witnessed three of them. It's funny though, people still think lightning doesn't strike the same spot twice. :3

Fun fact: When my mom vacationed in Hawaii, Lennon's killer worked in the elevator of her condo. She remembers him as being polite and kind. Ew.

“The people weren’t targeted in the bombing” well I’m assuming due to the numbers... they did it during the day... they blew up a car, on a street, with no warning, IN THE DAY

The Christopher McCandless photo is so devastatingly sad. My heart hurts so much for how hopless and alone he must have felt sitting there waiting to die . The Travis Alexander pic gets me every time I've seen it. It looks to me as though this shot was taken in the moments he was being killed. I see light markings around his neck where it looks as if it's been sliced, but not deeply at that point. Even worse than that I see fear, sadness, and worst of all the realization that she is really about to end his life on his face. The cold, calculated, and obsessive way in which she committed these heinous act is one kind of evil, but the fact that she took pictures while she was doing it so she could potentially relive the experience in every detail is on a whole different level of evil. Then after taking his dignity in his last moments alive by photographing it, she tries to take his reputation at the trial. In the end she consumed him completely. A real life praying mantis. I could say more, but I'll just leave it here. I don't want to devolve into hateful verbiage...........

In Travis's eyes you can see pure terror and shock. In Jeffery's eyes you see no sorrow, no regret just joy. He loved what he'd done.

Number 9 sounds a lot like what just happened in Beirut..

I already know all these stories but you're damn right I'll hear them all again

The story about the Dutch girls lost in the jungle is so terrifying and still baffles me. Dozens of pictures were taken of the rainy dark forest in the middle of the night on their phones well after they had called for help. So many different things that could’ve happened to them but we still don’t know to this day. Very creepy.

I don’t know why they killed the bear. Bears are gonna bear

“The wide eyed kid in the photo probably wouldn’t strike you as very threatening” yeah totally i don’t feel threatened at all 😳

I feel awful for BTK's (Raider's) daughter. I know it was really hard on her. I can't imagine. I hope she's doing alright now, as is the rest of the family and the victims' families.

The fact that the #1 pic is Tyler Hadley is terrifying. I've grown up in Martin/St Lucie County most of my life where this happened.... I was a Junior in high school when I heard about this. One of my exes and a mutual friend of ours attended this party when it happened, but of course they didn't witness the killing or the bodies.... it's all soooo horrifying to be so close to something like this.

“Hey, that bear is following us” “Oh I know what will deter it, *let’s split up* “

Btw nuclear bomb shadows are not imprints. Concrete around them was bleached, their bodies shielded it and it thus remained in the original color :(

Ever since I heard the story of the dutch girls of panama, every one of their photos creaped me out, even the seemingly normal ones.

Am I the only one who sees that picture of Travis Alexander and sees him looking really terrified?

Not y’all bullying the narrator 😂

16:22 That innocent smile? He looks crazier than a Karen when she asks to speak to the manager.

“It’s unclear where the astronauts in this photo are going...” “They were headed for pad 39b...” Huh?

My mom has a photo of me on her hip, staring out the window at the “pretty lights” not realizing it was the Challenger exploding while living near Melbourne FL

Am I the only one who thinks the thumbnail is creepy as heck. Not just because of the photo’s context, but with the eyes.

I personally enjoy her cheerful voice. I'm not always in the mood for videos where narrators use a creepy worried voice so this is nice since it doesn't fully put me in that mood.

The real tragedy behind the Challenger takeoff is that schools across the country were playing it live because a teacher was onboard. Thousands of kids saw it happen. I was one of them.

Re: The bear story. The bear was actually encountered by two hikers who spotted it and turned around immediately. They warned the dudes that there was a Baer ahead and to turn around as well but the guys proceeded ahead to snap the picture.

Jodi Arias said she defended herself against him attacking her, yet she took a picture of him in the shower before murdering him on the spot. How does she think that’s believe-able?

Christopher McCandless actually was leaving Alaska before he died. His story is that he left everyone and went to go live out in nature for months to a year, he burned all his money and fended for himself. He was doing very well and was very smart about it, when he went to leave, it was Alaska summer so the river he had to cross was raging waters, so when he decided he had to stay longer because he couldn’t cross the river, he went back to the bus and unpacked. He actually died because he accidentally ate poisonous seeds that are very commonly confused with potato seeds. The seeds made him cramp up and weak, and he died in the bus 😔 it’s a really sad story but I think everyone should read about him

y'all should've included that one photo where the two guys noticed the injured hiker woman in the background and saved her life, that's a spooky one

Man that first one was absolutely heart crushing for me.

The observatory at Mt St. Helens is named the Johnston Observatory in that scientists honor

That picture of Chris McCandless sitting by his bus, smiling, always moves so much because he looks so happy ♥ Rest in peace Chris

Grissom, Chaffee, & White were not struggling to get the door open, when their bodies were recovered, they were still wearing their safety restraints. Gus Grissom was known for questioning the project and the leaders' competency. You can make your own determination about what happened that fateful day.

There's a lot more in Dutch girls in Panama story! They also found girls' phones and it turned out that they've been trying to call for help for 11 days. Also, the remains were discovered in completely different direction that they were supposed to be. Just imagine what they must felt for such long time.

They didn't expect Mt. Saint Helens to erupt how it did. It blew right out the side and straight towards where David was set up monitoring the activity. He would never have been able to get out of there in time. It was an impressive eruption.

The guys who saw the bear should have stay together. Everybody who has ever seen a horror movie knows you never split up.

My moms best friend was struck by lightning when she was 10 yrs old at the bus stop. The little girl standing next to her was also struck at the same time. She died.

while the Chris McCandless photo is equally heartwarming and heartbreaking, if you're looking at this picture for the first time, without context, it's almost certainly unsettling. even if you can't explain it, there's just something about this photo...

The voiceover sounds like these are the most hilarious things that ever happened!

That japanese exchange student was so beautiful and adorable. RIP

I can’t imagine graduating from College and then soon find out your own dad is a murder. I feel bad for the daughter, she thought that her dad was a great man.

Oh god the fact that I recognized Travis from his crime scene photos… that just broke my heart. I’m a true crime junkie but that broke me

Christopher McCandless didn't look normal there , he looks like he came from Dark Souls

16:31 tf do you mean, that guy doesn't have an innocent smile that's a smile of a crazy person just look at his eyes

I've lived in the Wichita area all my life, my father was in Law Enforcement for 26 years and just recently retired..he's told me about the interview he had with Dennis Radar while he was a lead detective for his department..he's told me he was the only person that he interviewed that actually scared him..my dad said to me "he has no remorse for anything he did, the scariest part is while talking to him he seemed like a normal person, but his eyes said it all..there was no life at all in them"

Chris Mccandless story reminds an episode of Spongebob that he wanted to live with jellyfishes.

“A bear that exactly looked like this” man, I haven’t seen a bear that looked like a tiger.

Mccandless died from eating a poisonous plant in Alaska, not from starvation as stated in the video. Just thought i would let you guys know.

About the bear I feel so bad about Patel, but that’s in bears nature to attack what they feel encroaches their territory. It was most likely food in their backpack or just thinking they were nervous.

Gosh, I still remember sitting in class watching the space shuttle Challenger take off. Our teacher turned it off after the explosion,, and told us she had to leave the classroom for a moment and we could have free time until going home school bell rang which was about an hour away. We were so happy with so much free time. I do not think anyone in class knew they all died until they got home. and the news was reporting on it.

Actually the guy that died due to a eruption was found covering his last pictures alive and actually the pictures he took were saved because of him hugging the camera and he died in a fetal position, yall should see them it's pretty interesting

My mum's from omagh and she was there that day the bomb went off. She was down the street and it was the worst thing she had ever witnessed

Such a happy and pleasant voice. Makes all of these stories seem very sad...and HAPPY about the tragedies.

My nephew found me in this collection of stories. I wrote David Johnston's biography (No 15). Published by University of Illinois Press (2019), and informed by those who knew David best. His family never liked the photo used here, but then, I'm sure Lennon's family detested the pix with his killer in the background, and on & on. Peace all.

I can't "get the chills" as you say due to all the ads interrupting the video

#18 breaks my heart. Christopher only wanted to find his place in the world, and got stranded on a broken down bus in Alaska, and ended up poisoning himself due to starving, and eating poisonous roots. Poor guy. Into the wild is inspiring, but so, so sad.

I watched the Challenger disaster in elementary school. My class was watching the broadcast. It was devastating. NASA officials should have listened to the engineers when they said the O rings were frozen and would explode if the shuttle launched but as usual they are ignored.

I remember a picture in 1993 from just "missed" two year old last seen with two young boys in Liverpool. It looked so innocent, but incase you know of the story of James Bulger you will know what made it as disturbing as it is.

Those astronaut photos get me every time. The fatalities during space travel is very high and it’s just so sad to see these photos. They have faces like “Yay!! I’m going to space soon. Just wait till I come back and tell my family all about it”, unaware that they were never going to come back.

IRA: "we didnt mean to kill civilians!!!" Me: "you placed bombs in a car parked in the streets where civilians are EVERYWHERE!!!!!"

The person reading sounds like she is reading the happiest story ever written while saying these horrible things

My son got struck by lightning on the rock marking festival 2016. Thankfully he completely recovered.

Not sure if splitting up was a wise decision in the "being followed by a bear" scenario.

What about The Watts family? That was the most disturbing especially a normal looking and extremely happy family that ended up murdered by the husband/father

I remember the Omagh bombing very well as I live in a city quite close and grew up through the troubles as a Catholic, the bombing was absolutely horrendous as although there were many bombs before this was the worst. I pray for all those affected 🙏🥰

If you're my age you know the space shuttle Challenger pictures. I remember watching it blow up live on TV in school.