Exploring Orbs

Is that dust on your lens? Or a photo of spirits? Welcome to the wonderful world of orbs.

Orbs are those semi-transparent shapes or "energy forms" that frequently and mysteriously appear in digital photographs. If you have taken digital photos, you have probably captured an orb at some point and wondered, "What's that?"

That very question prompted the separate but simultaneous research of Miceal Ledwith, D.D., LL.D., a theologian, and Klaus Heinemann, Ph.D., a physicist, who had each taken many photos in which orbs appeared. Musicians Hope and Randy Mead and their friends had similarly begun to document the orb phenomenon. This gallery explores their amazing discoveries.

"But aren't orbs just dust?" Find out what these experts say...

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Adapted from "The Orb Project" (Beyond Words, 2007) by Miceal Ledwith & Klaus Heinemann

Photo © Hope & Randy Mead

Where Orbs Tend to Appear

You've all likely seen them at some point and didn't know what they were unless you knew what to look for. Experts say that orbs have always been present, yet choose when they want to be seen. Miceal Ledwith believes that reality is frequency-based and that orbs are powerful proof of that. By changing our frequency, Ledwith says, we can be open to seeing things that weren't possible before.

It's not uncommon for dozens of orbs to appear in a photograph where there is a happy or healing event taking place. Ledwith says that orbs will be drawn to people and places for a reason--and that the more we clear our brain from distractions and adjust our frequency to the possibilities, the better chance they will choose to be seen.

Photo ©: Miceal Ledwith

Why Cameras See Them and We Don't

Digital cameras are now able to capture these images because of their ability to record lower frequencies of light. Digital cameras are more sensitive to the infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum, where many orbs seem to occur, than ordinary film cameras. People think they can't see orbs with the naked eye, but that is not the case.

They are actually "seeing" them, but their brain filters them out. The brain only lets in what we need every day to function--paying our mortgage, going to work, and eating our meals. But once you start watching for orbs and open up to their presence, you are likely to both see and recognize them with greater frequency.

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