Orbs

[instinct]

Well, I just posted this in "Do you see what I see?", and then decided that i could probably make a thread about it. here's my post:

i've always wondered about orbs. the dust argument is pretty strong, although a bit pessimistic maybe.

I took a lot of photos when i was in Rome recently, and these orb things were concentrated around the altars and tombs and statues and other very "holy" things. the holy steps were crowded in them going up the stairs, but not really other places.

so its very oddly behaved dust

[instinct]

ok. after a bit of hunting i found the holy steps pic.

it was very dark at the back, so it's had the brightness and contrast upped a wee bit, but other than that it's had nothing done to it.

now, there're orbs going up the steps, and there's obvious perspective to this. you can tell where they are on the steps. at that distance.. well.. that's some big dust

[Tanemon]

Did you see them when you were standing there in person?... or only in your photos when you looked at them later?

I'm unfamiliar with the subject of "orbs"... is there some widespread discussion of these? Or have you started a discussion about them elsewhere?

:sunny: Tanemon

[ValD]

What perspective? They look like plain old dust motes to me.
Anyway, here's an article (http://www.apra.org.uk/riddle_orbs.htm) that explains how most "orb" photos come about:
Hopefully most camera users, and indeed all photographers, reading this article will have at least heard of 'depth of field', and hopefully will understand the implications? In simple terms, the aperture (or f-number) determines the range in which objects in front of the lens will be in sharp focus. If the lens aperture is wide then the resulting image will have a wider range of sharp focus - a wider depth of field. If the lens aperture is small then vice versa occurs. From this is it easy to see how a camera capturing images in automatic mode might artificially depict objects close to the camera that are defocused or fuzzy when compared to the midground and background - we'll assume here that the camera is at least trying to auto-focus on objects that are centre-frame. If anyone wants to look at the dramatic effects of depth of field go to a library and look at any book on serious photography; or if you have a camera with manual settings - photograph a scene several times over, but changing the aperture through its full range, the shutter speed through its full range, and lens through it full focal range - look at the difference in the resultant images!
Let's not forget here the possible effects of the camera's infra-red (IR) focussing system - this too may create false images close to the lens, especially if the camera is in any form of 'night-mode'. If anyone doubts the possible effects of IR reflections, I suggest they point a TV or VCR remote control at the camera - for the most obvious results, try this with a modern camcorder and watch the pseudo-laser display!
Another factor of these orb photos that is frequently claimed, is that none of these are visible to the naked eye – I say this is incorrect. I would recommend that anyone attempting to capture these sort of photos should refrain from looking through the camera's viewfinder, or looking at its screen. Instead, look across the top of the camera when you trip the shutter and fire the flash – I can guarantee you will now see small points of light, almost like sparks. Why does the eye only see these small spark-like returns when the film or CCD records larger 'orbs' – quite simple, the human eye cannot process the full scope of the image within the short burst of the camera flash. The human eye only 'processes' images at around the rate – an effective 'frame rate' - of 1/20th second, whereas the typical camera flash will illuminate between 1/125th and 1/60th second – so thinking in 'digital' terms, the human eye will only get about 1/3rd of the available data! The old adage states that "The camera never lies", however, I think it would be truer to say "The camera never lies, but it deceives the eye".
That, btw, is from an anomalous investigation society - not exactly close-minded skeptics. Most paranormal investigators will warn you that its terribly easy to create false orb photos.

[Phoenix Element]

My college roommate captured an orb that looked like it had a woman's face inside it. I've seen enough orbs to last me a lifetime, and I understand that a great many of them are simply dust motes or other "perfectly normal" airborn poofies that just manage to reflect the flash.

That being said, I was excited when I got my first "orb" capture. However, I could never share my glee with more than a very few people...because the photo it decided to appear in was a rather risque one of myself. *laughing* My house IS haunted and I already know the spirit has a sense of humor, so I'll bet he did this on purpose :D