Voices and an Orb - Printable Version

Voices and an Orb - Printable Version

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Voices and an Orb - Sage - 09-04-2011 03:19 PM

Thought I'd share an experience that happened fairly recently. Please bear with the length of the story. I'm thinking a little background will help the reader gain a clearer picture of what I was doing.

I had the good fortune to be able to hike the Appalachian Trail this year from Georgia to Massachussetts (might have made it all the way to Maine but my knee blew out). While I was hiking through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee, I had become separated from my hiking buddies, which is normal as very few people hike at the same speed.

I was hiking along and pondering things out loud (it's amazing what the mind comes up with when spending a lot of time outdoors). So I'm voicing ideas and from behind me I heard a response to one of my ideas. Initially I thought one of my buddies had caught up to me and was walking behind me, joining the conversation. This went on for about three or four minutes when I realized I didn't recognize the voice.

I carried an Olympus Stylus 850SW digital camera and used it for more than just taking photos of the beautiful scenery. If anyone has ever spent time outside in the woods, they probably know that gnats and little black flies love to hover around the eyes and will eventually dive into one. I often used my camera to take a photo of myself and then would view the photo to see if a bug was actually in my eye and if so, where it was located so I could remove it. So, pulling out my camera became a natural instinct.

Anyway, I took my camera out and held it over my head, pointing backward so I could photograph the person behind me and see who it was. It would certainly be easier to just turn around but when you are planning to take 5,000,000 steps over 2100 miles, turning around results in additional steps being taken (that don't move you further North). When I brought the camera down and switched it to "Play" mode to see who it was, I stopped in my tracks. In the picture was the trail behind me and a fantastic orb directly behind me. But...no person. Not a soul in sight who could be conversing with me.

I immediately turned around and took another photo. This time, nothing. Wild!

During the course of my journey, I took about 2000 photos and some had what appeared to be orbs but were either raindrops, dust particles, or small insects buzzing around. With the exception of two. The one I described and another.

I'd love to post photos of the two shots (one with the orb and the other without) but am not sure if that is allowed (very new to the forum). If so, I'd be happy to post them.

The entire time I hiked through the GSMNP, I felt as if I were trodding on sacred ground. Not as an intruder but more as a fellow spiritual being, in tune with my natural surroundings. I think if I had just shot a random photo and an orb showed up, I wouldn't have given much credence to it. But the orb combined with the voice that was audibly responding to what I was saying, is, well, awesome. Smile

RE: Voices and an Orb - scarygirl67 - 09-04-2011 07:44 PM

I'm honestly not sure if you would have trouble posting as a new member or not when it comes to pictures. Now I will say that the forum doesn't have an option for uploading photos directly from your computer. You will have to use a photo sharing site such as Photobucket or Tinypic. I am not familiar with Tinypic, but from what I understand, it is self explanatory and you don't have to create an account like you do with photobucket. If you do already have an account with photobucket and would like to upload from there, let me know and I will talk you through it.

I will say that I, among some others here, are pretty hard on the orbs. So many things can cause those to show up in pics that have nothing to do with the paranormal. However, since you seem to be aware of the fact that most are explainable, I would be interested in seeing what would make this one different.

RE: Voices and an Orb - Sage - 09-05-2011 06:38 AM

Scarygirl,

Thanks for the response and info! I have an old Flickr account and have uploaded them there. Looks like I can insert an image from a URL so I'm going to give it a shot.

This is the first image with the orb: [Image: 6116078908]

This is the second, without the orb: [Image: 6115534737]

Hopefully this'll work. If not, I'll try photobucket.

No worries about being hard on orb photos. That's one of the reasons I like this site. I would much rather hear opinions on what it actually is than blindly believing my version is the only correct one. Especially from folks who do this sort of thing all the time.

If it turns out not to be actual orb, that's cool. It would only change my mind about the photo. The experience I had would remain the same. If that makes sense.

RE: Voices and an Orb - scarygirl67 - 09-05-2011 08:34 PM

I was able to drag the links to my browser and look at the photos that way. To be very honest, in my opinion, it appears to be some kind of airborne particle..possibly from the trees?

If you would like the pics to be displayed here on the forum, go to photobucket.com and create an account. Once the pics are uploaded there, click on the picture you want to display here and copy the second option (the direct link).

To paste the link to where the picture will show up on the forum, you will need to use the "new reply" (green button just above quick reply box) option. Once you're on that screen, mouse over the icons just above the text box until you find the "insert image" one. Click on it, paste the link from photobucket into the space available, and the picture should show up on the forum.

And yes, I do understand what you mean about an experience. Mine is just one opinion, and it is based on other examples I have seen that are similar of pollen or airborne particles. I really enjoyed reading your experience and your hike sounds amazing! =)

RE: Voices and an Orb - Moonlitshimmer - 09-06-2011 06:12 AM

(09-05-2011 06:38 AM)Sage Wrote: If it turns out not to be actual orb, that's cool. It would only change my mind about the photo. The experience I had would remain the same. If that makes sense.

I like your way of looking at it! I don't know much about orbs or photography at all, so my opinion is pretty useless in this case. I notice the pic with the orb is slightly darker compaired to the one without. Don't know if that has anything to do with anything just something I noticed.

It sounds like a wonderful experiance and the trees in your pictures are absolutly gorgeous! Thanks for sharing.

RE: Voices and an Orb - Sage - 09-06-2011 01:20 PM

Scarygirl,
Thank you for your effort in viewing the photos. I really appreciate it! It very well could be a dust particle. There is so much stuff in the air our eyes gloss over that you just can't tell.

Moonlitshimmer,
I noticed the light changes as well. I have my camera set on "Auto" so I can just pull it out and push the button. I'm betting the flash went off on the first one. I didn't notice and can't tell for sure because I had it above my head pointing backward. I'm pretty sure it didn't go off in the second photo (lighter background).

I think I figured out how to post the photos so I'm going to give it a shot.

[img]

RE: Voices and an Orb - WitchMom78 - 09-06-2011 02:22 PM

I too would have to go with the guess it is something natural in occurance but I have to say, those are awsome shots! What a cool area that is!

RE: Voices and an Orb - Ali - 09-07-2011 11:18 AM

Thank you for posting the pictures Sage. Interesting how that appeared in the one photo. It would peak my interest too. Personally, after learning all the different things that cause the "orb" effect, I do not think of them as paranormal any longer. But, interesting all the same.

Where is UNR when you need him? I would like to hear what he has to say about the exif info.

RE: Voices and an Orb - Gizmo - 09-08-2011 08:56 PM

Sage, what exactly, did you hear the voice say? How long did it talk with you?