“I love finding orbs in my photos - they’re caused by retro-reflection of light on dust particles or mist, but they give the pictures a ghostly-like feel to them,” she tells Bustle. San Diego-based photographer Claire Johnson doesn’t believe orbs to be visitors from other realms, but does think orbs are more than just dust. Are glowing balls of light in photographs merely pieces of dust or dirt enjoying a brief moment in the spotlight, thanks to a flash? Or is it something more, well, ghostly? But you'll also find the word " backscatter," which is a photography term describing the way that light can capture particles in the air or water that are nearly invisible to the naked eye.Īs with many things, like seeing the same number everywhere, or mysteriously hearing footsteps in the night, there's an explanation for orbs that lies in the scientific world, and an explanation that lies in another realm. If you turn to the internet to find out what’s up with those pinpricks, you'll likely be directed down a trippy rabbit hole that will have you believing that the spirit world is responsible for the presence of light matter in dark places. It's fairly common to find orbs, or glowing circular specks of light in a dark area of a photograph - but differing opinions might have you wondering what is an orb, exactly. Is it a loved one from the other side, making a cameo in your latest feed pic? Or a simple technological mishap? The whole thing is giving you major paranormal feels. You snap a selfie of the squad at brunch, but it’s covered with shapes and light that definitely weren’t present IRL.