You have travelled to the northern hemisphere to experience the northern lights. Naturally you want to capture the magical natural phenomenon on camera to bring the memories with you back home. If you are joining a northern lights tour or going on aurora borealis hunt on you own, this guide will teach you how to photograph the Northern Lights.
Camera settings: Aperture f/2.8, shutter speed 8 sec, ISO 1000, focal length 14 mm
This northern lights photography guide for beginners covers all you need to know, from how to find the northern lights, equipment you need and what camera settings to use.
How to find the northern lights
Having searched up this article, you are likely already located somewhere north of the arctic circle, eager to get outdoor to capture the northern lights. To have the best chances of first finding the northern lights I have a few tips for you.
Check the aurora activity forecast
With todays technology scientist are able to provide short-term forecast on geomagnetic activity and where the lights will be visible. They can also provide a long-term prediction for when northern light activity is likely.
Thankfully there are several apps available nowadays that provides this information. I use the free app Aurora Forecast. Another option is My Aurora which is also free. The 3 easiest indicators to track that these apps will give you are:
Kp index: Scale to measure the geomagnetic activity both short term and long term
Ovation auroral: Model that displays the short term forecast for where the northern lights will show
Solar rotation: Long term forecast for when high geomagnetic activity (= northern lights) is likely visible
Get away from light pollution
When planning your northern lights hunt you should find a location with as little light pollution as possible. The lower the light pollution the better you will be able to see the lights, so your chances are increased. A free online resource you can use is the Blue Marble Light Pollution Map. Lower light pollution will also create better photos. If the aurora is strong, you would be able to see it despite city light pollution.
Find clear skies
Check the cloud forecast, you will not be able to see the northern lights if it is overcast. The best place to check the weather forecast is yr.no.
Remember this is a prediction and things can change rapidly. But it gives you a good indication of your chances of seeing northern lights.
Camera settings: Aperture f/2.8, shutter speed 2.5 sec, ISO 1600, focal length 14 mm
Camera equipment you need to photograph the northern light
The list of equipment you could invest in to get the perfect capture of the northern lights is long, however this guide it aimed at a beginner level so below much be considered a minimum kit requirement.
Camera
A camera with manual mode is needed to photograph the northern lights. You need to be able to adjust aperture, ISO and shutter speed. I will describe what this means, how to use manual mode and make the necessary adjustments further down.
Use a tripod
Shooting at night you will need to use longer shutter speed, this means a tripod is needed to get clear photos. Make sure the tripod is sturdy, also in windy conditions.
Use a wide-angle lens
This is not a must, but will significantly improve your northern light photos. A wide-angle lens is a lens with a shorter focal length. The focal length dictates how much of the scene your camera will be able to capture. Smaller numbers have a wider angle of view and show more of the scene.
A wide angle lens basically allows you to capture more of the scenery. It will allow you to get both foreground and northern lights into the photo. Also, very often an aurora borealis will fill the entire sky and with a regular lens you will not be able to capture the full shape of the lights.
For northern lights a focal lenght between 14mm-25mm is the best range if you wish to capture a large portion of the night sky.
Camera settings: Aperture f/2.8, shutter speed 1 sec, ISO 1000, focal length 14 mm
This is likely the most expensive investment, and if you don’t want to invest in a wide angle lens you could consider renting one. In Norway anyone can rent out their personal belongings using Hygglo.no, photo equipment was available last I checked.
Camera settings for photographing the northern lights
The most fundamental settings to control when using camera in manual mode is aperture, ISO and shutter speed. This is also commonly know as the exposure triangle, meaning that these three setting are dependent of each other. The exposure triangle is a principle that determines the amount of light that reaches your camera sensor.
Aperture
Aperture is the first thing you adjust. Aperture, simply explained, is a measure of how much light you are letting through your lens. It is measured in f-stops. The lower the f-number, the larger the opening. For northern lights we need to capture as much light as possible.
For northern lights photography the general consensus among photographers is that aperture f/2.8 is the best setting. Not all cameras will be able to go to such a high opening, so use the highest f-stop you camera allows, f/4 would still be acceptable. For reference, f2.8 allows twice as much light into the camera as f4.
Shutter speed
Secondly you move to shutter speed. Shutter speed is the exposure time, it determines how long the aperture remains open. Short exposure times will freeze a moving subject, while long exposure times will create a blur of said object
The perfect shutter speed for northern lights photos depends on how fast the lights are moving. Somewhere between 3-20 seconds is typically the range used. If the northern lights are moving fast you use closer to 3 seconds, if they are moving slow you move closer to 20 seconds.
Your goal is to capture the color and the shape of the aurora. If your entire sky is a green blur, likely your shutter speed is too long.
ISO
Lastly the ISO needs to be adjusted. I will not go into all the technicalities of what ISO is, but in short ISO determines the amplification of the lights signals (from aperture and shutter speed) from the real world into the digital world. So basically if aperture and shutter speed together is not able to give us enough light we can use ISO as a third parameter to help us. However, with the amplificaiton comes image noise, so there is a down side to increasing the ISO that you need to be aware of. This is why the ISO is adjusted last, you should always optimize aperture and shutter speed first.
To select an ISO value you need to consider how bright the light is, together with how bright the night is in general. Maybe there is moon light this evening causing the night to be brighter than usual? Maybe the lights are extra bright this night? Then you will get away with lower ISO values.
The ISO setting should fall somewhere between 500 – 6000. This is a huge range and it takes some experience to get it right. Start with ISO between 500 – 1000. If the photo is not bright enough, increase the ISO. Continue until you are happy with the brightness of the photo.
Camera settings: Aperture f/2.8, shutter speed 4 sec, ISO 1000, focal length 14 mm
The Challenge – Keeping up with the northern lights
The challenge is that the northern lights is continuous changing, and you will have to adjust shutter speed and ISO according to the change in the northern lights speed and brightness. To avoid frustration in the field and missing out on the perfect photo, practice changing shutter speed and ISO on your camera before you go out.
Some Final Tips
- Bring a spare battery, as some camera batteries run dry quickly in cold weather conditions.
- Bring warm clothing, it gets cold fast standing still waiting for the northern lights.
- Bring gloves you don’t have to take off to use your camera.
- Always a good idea to brings some hand warmers.
- Bring a head light for setting up your camera and making adjustments.
Best of luck on your Northern Lights hunt!
