Orbs are probably the most commonly captured piece of paranormal evidence. Or are they? What are orbs and how do they relate (if at all) to paranormal activity?

First of all, opinions on orbs vary widely. There is no way to cover all of the theories and hypotheses regarding orbs. Sci-Tech Paranormal's official position is that orbs are not evidence of paranormal. We do acknowledge the possibility of orbs being associated with paranormal activity but we do not consider them to be paranormal. The reason for this is that there are so many things that can cause a false positive.

The picture above would be considered by some to be an orb. The blue dot, however, is merely dust.

The picture to the left is another example of an incorrectly identified orb picture. These are dust particles kicked up by walking on leaves in the fall. There is nothing paranormal about this picture whatsoever. There are many factors that can cause "orbs" to appear in photos. The process that causes these dust orbs to appear in a photograph is quite simple. A camera lens has a limited focal depth. There is no way for a lens to be able to focus on things that are extremely close and far off at the same time. Pinhole cameras or very special lenses are the only way to get clear focus on objects that are both close and distant. Your average point and shoot, disposable, or even high end cameras do not offer f-stops of 50 or higher. F-stops above 50 are what you would see in pinhole cameras. So what does that mean exactly?

Orbs appear when the camera lens is focused on the intended content of the photograph and a particle passes within close proximity to the lens. The flash fires which lights up the particle. Since the particle is too close to the lens, it appears to be out of focus and can look semi-transparent.

An experiment you can do to prove this is to take a string and hold it up in front of your eye. Focus on something in the distance. Notice how it seems as though you can see through the string? You eye is similar to the camera lens. It can not focus on close and distant objects at the same time.

Orbs can be caused by pollen, dust, spores, water droplets from rain or fog, bugs, or even distant lights or stars. However, this does not mean that all orbs are simply a natural phenomenon.

The theories of spirit orbs usually suggest that spirits can form into a spherical shape which gives off it's own light and moves as if possessing some intelligence. Whether these types of "orbs" are paranormal is a matter of conjecture. However, some believe that you can distinguish between dust orbs and paranormal "orbs".

The term "orb" is probably not appropriate to describe the paranormal phenomena that many hope they have captured and inappropriately assign to dust.

If you can get an orb to do something, it might be paranormal. Orbs that show up in still photos have to be dismissed as dust. A photo of a spot is not credible evidence of paranormal.

One example of testing whether an orb is paranormal is what two of our members did with a spot that showed up on some still photos. A digital camera was used to snap a picture of an orb. A few more pictures were taken from various positions 360 degrees around the location of the orb. This orb happened to be hovering over a specific family plot which was outlined by a marble rail. No matter which angle the plot was photographed from, the orb stayed within the confines of the plot. A member of the team attempted to do an evp session around the plot. The orb always stayed behind the member with the digital voice recorder. Whether this orb was paranormal or not is a question that cannot be answered but the experiment would seem to imply that this dot was not simply dust.

Below are a series of photographs with false positive "orbs" and explanations of what caused them.

The green dot isn't an orb. It is a bluish-green street light off in the distance.

Ok, so the round things are dust but what about the bright odd shaped thing in the top center?
Take a closer look below...

It's only a bug. Probably a moth.

Ok, so what would you consider to be paranormal in regards to orbs?

Sci-Tech Paranormal only considers orbs as evidence of paranormal activity IF the orb can be manipulated. That means you ask the orb to come to a certain spot and it does. Ask the orb to change colors or move in certain pattern. Ask it to come to your hands. If you can get it to do something, it might be paranormal. Does that mean the orb is a ghost? That remains to be seen.

But please, if you take a picture and it is filled with orbs, do not post it on the Internet as evidence. Look down at your feet, see that you are walking on a dust path, kicking up "orbs". Look up on the door frame and see that there is a layer of dust on it. Look up and see that the ceiling fan is on, stirring up dust in the room. Dust is not evidence. Orbs are not evidence. In fact, the only "orb" on this page that could even be suspect is the one at the top of the page.