The Orb Phenomena
Orbs in Pictures: Are They or Aren’t They Paranormal?

Orbs. One of the most frequently asked and disputed arguments in the field of paranormal research.

They show up in photographs, they’re videotaped on film; amateur videographers and investigators alike capture more evidence of “orbs” than any other type of paranormal-related anomaly in existence.  I can’t begin to tell you the number of them we’ve captured at the many locations we’ve investigated, but for the most part, 99.9% of the ones we have captured have been dismissed and not even shown for the public.

“Why is that?” you may ask. Well, because at this time there just isn’t enough evidence to support that every orb captured on film is even remotely paranormal related. In fact, just the opposite is true. There are so many factors and conditions that come into play when doing paranormal photography or considering that old family photo that has “grandpa” in it floating over your left shoulder coming in to say, “hello.”

Firstly, there are a number of conditions (and particles) that can create an orb. They may be dust, dirt, sand, water droplets, pollen, bugs, and much more. The majority of them are captured on digital cameras, usually those under 8 megapixels (that don’t correct these anomalies when they are snapped on film). We see them all: red ones, blue ones, green ones, white ones… you name it. And as much as we would all love to know that these are spirits of the past floating and zooming around us, I believe common sense tells us they just aren’t.

In the evidence galleries of TN Paranormal, you will see a fraction of the orbs we have captured on some of our investigations as well as many submitted photos by members who think they captured hundreds of them on their nightly stroll through their local cemetery. We put these there for the members, whether we agree or disagree with the true validity of them, primarily as an example of what is being captured out there.

Don’t get me wrong on the subject of orbs though. I personally believe some of them to be very true indeed. Let’s take a look at infrared videos, for instance. Have you ever watched an infrared video, in any location? Many, many times, you will see one orb after another shooting across the camera or floating and bouncing around softly just feet in front of where the cameras are positioned. Is this immediately deemed paranormal? Of course not. A great deal more data collecting should always go in to help back your claims of having an orb. This can be measured by means of EMF detection while it is being photographed, loss of power in any equipment when the orbs appear, EVP to see if the “orb” has any intellectual qualities and is trying to communicate with you, or if the orb is doing something that just wouldn’t be able to be justified by means of normal movement.

We conducted an investigation at a case in Kingsport TN about 18 months ago. On one of the infrareds set up in the rooms, we watched a couple of the orbs shoot with incredible speed from the ceilings into the floor and in and out of walls. Would you call this typical activity of dust or some other airborne particle? Absolutely not. We have placed these videos in our site galleries and on YouTube, and as I expected, received some negative feedback from them. I am completely open to the opinions of everyone out there though. If we weren’t open for discussion and controversy, why would we exhibit these for everyone to see? And why would we be in the field of paranormal research? We have other photos that we have posted that were captured in times when EVP was recorded at the same time as the photo/video was captured or EMF spikes were noted upon the time of the movement. Some such photos I truly do feel should be questioned for possible inclusion would be those that are obviously moving at a tremendous rate of speed and sometimes have a tail “trailing” behind them. Sometimes, not many, there are occurrences where orbs really do need to be questioned.

Energy’s natural form of movement is in the shape of a sphere. If our consciousness survives death and we are able to visit (or stay in some cases), I personally believe that “true” orbs are just as real as me sitting here and writing this article now. What are we? Energy. And energy transforms and travels in the spherical shape, just as it can manifest into ectos (mist-like appearances) and the rarely seen apparitions. But I can’t stress enough to you that every orb displayed on investigator’s sites or in your family photos are at all real.

If orb photography is something you have interest in, I would recommend doing several things. Firstly, read up on the subject as much as you can and look at the MANY different things that can cause “false-positive” orbs. There are many examples of them on the internet, and unfortunately, many of them are labeled as real ghost photos or true orbs.

·         Check to see if there are any environmental conditions that may cause false-positives. Is there a great deal of humidity or moisture in the air?

·         Is the location you are photographing/videotaping dusty?

·         Are pollen counts high or are there insects potentially near?

·         Are the orbs only appearing after someone moves around?

·         Is the orb emitting its own energy, or is it a mere reflection of the flash of your camera?

·         Does it act in any way that appears to have some intellectual properties? I strongly recommend the use of EVP, temperature and EMF recordings when trying to help validate.

·         Does the orb appear to be moving at a tremendous rate of speed, or does it always appear still and suspended, waiting for you take a great photo of it?

·         Is there any type of wind source or ventilation system nearby that may be causing each of your orbs to move in the same direction?

·         Can you see the orb with your naked eye? If so, that’s great!

A good friend of mine that has a paranormal team of her own in another state has also initiated the use of other tactics to help try and define the positive versus negative orb. Her team uses a wind speed indicator and other mathematical means to try and get speed characteristics of the orbs being photographed or videotaped. I believe this to be a great idea and will eventually try this myself once I can get her system down.

But all in and all, orbs will always raise a question when it comes to the validity of paranormal research. There are so many unknowns in the field of paranormal research and most of us operate on experience, technical data, and our own hypotheses.

A few years back I was a guest with Todd Bates on Haunted Voices Radio and he questioned me about this very subject. I told him then, and I will say it again now: We have no definite proof that any orb captured on film may or may not be paranormal in nature. Even those that appear as a light, transparent sphere in the photograph “could” just be ‘ol grandpa coming by for a visit. Maybe he doesn’t have enough energy to emit a full, self-glowing sphere of light. Maybe he’s one of the ones who is needing to drain our batteries from our technical equipment to make himself known.

I hope that one day a better systematic way of validating orbs will come into play. Technology is getting better at identifying certain anomalies, but I believe there will need to be some solid, ground-breaking evidence to help crack open this topic once and for all.

Stephen Wren
Director, TN Paranormal