A Few Words About Orbs by NEPRS

A few words

about Orbs by NEPRS

There is no doubt that some orbs are

connected to hauntings. Just as there is no doubt that some orbs are not. To

understand orbs and thus be able to judge which orbs are which, we must take a

look at the history of orbs in photography.

It is believed by many

that orbs are a product of the digital age. This is easy to understand since

orbs first started to be noticed in photographs about the same time digital

cameras hit the market. Because digital photography is so inexpensive, people

were taking hundreds of snapshots at family events rather than the 12 or 24 they

would with a conventional camera, and they started to notice that on a few

frames they would see these strange round balls of light. Sometimes people would

become upset when a strange orb appeared in the shot and messed up an otherwise

beautiful photo.

When people started to ask questions as to what

these orbs were, science was quick to explain them away as dust balls, pollen,

or other such impurities in the air. At the same time, many psychics came

forward and said that these orbs looked much like the manifestations of spirit

energy they see; a manifestation that is well documented in history by psychics

throughout the ages.

Of course, even to this day the debate

continues. There are those who insist that all orbs are a fabrication of the

digital camera age. But can this truely explain them all?

Just about

the same time that digital photography was making its debut in the average

family home, something amazing started to happen. People began to get orbs in

photos taken with standard film cameras. Granted they were more rare than those

in digital photographs. Nevertheless, they were occuring in photos taken with

regular film cameras. Before this time, it is very hard to find even one photo

taken with a film camera that has orbs in it, regardless of the amount of dust

or pollen in the air. Think about it, look back at your old photo albums. I bet

you don't see even one orb in any photo taken before about 1995. But after

that, you just might have a few here and there.

Some have argued that

the occasional orb caught by a film camera is due to new technology being used

in cameras. But this is not a valid argument, since older film cameras and even

antique film cameras will get an orb now and again in recent years. Pollen and

dust have always existed. Why is it only now they show up on film? It is clear

that orbs are a phenomena that is not limited to the digital camera and is

becoming more and more frequent an occurrence.

This begs the

question, why are there so many more orbs now? Where were they before? It is

clear that not all orbs are fabrications of digital technology, otherwise film

cameras would not record them. It is clear film orbs are not the product of

enhanced camera technology because older cameras have recorded them. But are

they all proof of ghost activity?

Many things can cause false orbs,

and often false orbs can be hard to sort from the real thing. This is why it is

important to follow some simple rules when ghost hunting with a camera of any

kind.

1. When working outside always go on dry days. If it is

raining or has rained recently the moisture in the air can easily look like an

orb.

2. Don't take a photo in an area where someone has just

sneezed. If you or someone around you is sneezing a lot, don't bother with the

camera until at least 20 minutes after the last sneeze and be sure the lens is

clean.

3. When working outside, avoid windy days. Wind can stir up

dust that can cause false orbs.

4. When working inside a closed

dusty place such as in a basement or attic, set yourself and your cameras down

and do not move for at least 20 minutes before taking photos. The dust you

stirred up walking into the area could show as false orbs.

5. If you

are working outside, you will find that bugs can reflect in your flash and look

like strange creatures or odd balls of light. With experience you will be able

to tell the difference.

Is your orb real?

If you followed the

basic rules above and you have orb activity, you probably have something real.

Here are some guidelines to help you figure it out.

The best orbs seem to have a 3D feeling to

them. Even if they are not totally round, they often have color around their

edges that make them look like a ball rather than a flat circle.

This type is what is known as a flat

orb.

Some people, even those who believe that 3D orbs are spirit activity,

have expressed doubts about flat orbs. But based on

thousands of photos, that some flat orbs are simply 3D orbs that have not

completely manifested yet.

The flat blue orb is very

interesting for several reasons. First it is not totally round, even though the

other orb is. This would rule out a camera issue such as shutter glare. The

second is that it is partly out of the frame. When orbs are caused by air

impurity they will generally stay in frame.

What does a dust orb or pollen orb look like versus a real orb?

Many people believe they can discern an orb that is caused by dust or pollen versus a

real orb. Understand that anything is possible and that many times

there is a prosaic explanation for phenomena. We were suprised during our AFP

Farm investigation when 2 different digital cameras photographed several orbs

around a person as the video camera captured an orb fly past them at the same

time, in the same location of the room. The following video and 2 photographs

are from that invesigation. The orbs in the photographs appear indiscernable

from orbs in other photographs that have been labeled as dust and

pollen.

Cluster Orbs

Another type of orb phenomena is called "clustering".

Clusters of orbs are common in very haunted places. Clustered orbs, such as the

ones below, can resemble the orbs that happen during rain showers and in dusty

rooms. This is why you must take the above noted precautions about dust and

rain before you do anything else. Then take several photos from the same

position as quickly as possible one after the other, especially if you believe

you may have photographed a cluster of orbs.

If there is rain or

impurities in the air, you will be able to reproduce it again and again in a

quick succession of photos.. If it is not, you should get one photo with orbs

and the next without many, if any at all.

Understanding cluster orbs.

If the general belief that each orb is a soul is true, then clusters of orbs

would represent many, many people, or perhaps even some kind of doorway to the

other side. Though this might seem logical, it might be too simple an

explanation for a complex phenomena. We don't really know for sure that each

and every orb in each and every case is an individual person. Thus, we don't

know if each individual orb in a cluster photo is an individual soul. It has

been reported (note: the NEPRS team has not gotten first hand examples of this

as of yet) that orbs have been known to cluster together and form into a

greater, brighter orb before tangible manifestations occur. There have been

reports, some going very far back in history, of people seeing balls of light

merge together into a ghostly figure or body. Could cluster orbs be, at least

on occasion, a single spirit trying to gather up their resources to create a

manifestation?

The nature of cluster orbs will remain a question for

now. It is clear the phenomena bears much more research.

Sometimes an orb can appear behind an object in a photograph. When this

happens you can sometimes even see the shadow the object is casting on the orb.

Clearly, in the photograph below the orb in question is something other than

pollen or dust as it appears to be at least 6" to 8" in diameter. What then is

it?

Flair orbs are always false orbs.

A

strong single source light is another way false orbs can form. Be careful of

this. If you are in total darkness with only one strong source of light, for

example the moon, a flashlight or streetlight, and take a photo at the proper

angle towards that light you may get an effect commonly known as solar flair or

lens flair. You can tell solar flare from normal orbs because they tend to run

in straight lines from the light source. If you have a single bright light

source and your orbs are very uniform, you should consider that it is solar

flair.

BUGS and ORBS.

When photographing

outside in the summer, it's hard not to have bugs in some of your photos.

Though bugs could be responsible for some orbs

in photos, in general, bugs are easy to spot. They have legs and

wings.

So, as

rule of thumb, when attempting to photograph ghosts, be sure conditions are

right. This will help you be able to discern good orbs from ones that are

probably camera or atmospheric issues.

Ghost or not, the question of

orbs remains. Why were there virtually no orbs in film photos only 10 years

ago? Why are there so many now? Could it be that there are simply more orbs to

photograph these days? Could it be that digital cameras are really more

sensitive to light beyond the human spectrum?