Lights, camera, action: imaging the northern lights

Get those vivid greens, purples and reds in your shots

It’s easy to be unprepared when it comes to imaging the northern lights, and though it’s true that the advent of the digital camera has reduced the trial and error that comes with slide films, capturing the northern lights still takes practice, planning and patience.

It’s a given that to get the best displays of the northern lights possible you should find a location within the auroral belt as well as avoiding any light pollution from the Moon or artificial sources, such as street lights. A great proportion of your shooting will be between northwest and southeast directions in the sky, so with this in mind, ensure that you have positioned your camera and tripod with glaring light sources to your south.

If you have checked aurora forecast reports and have headed out to be confronted with a very weak aurora, don’t be too put off: there’s still an opportunity for you to image the northern lights. Weak activity is still acceptable for photography, particularly if you’re in a relatively northern position.

When it comes to kit, you should ensure that it is of very good build and comfortable to use. A tripod that’s tall enough as well as a good ballhead – we recommend these over pan/ tilt heads – will make it easier for you to image the northern lights. Anything less will only make an already difficult venture even more frustrating.

Nowadays many imagers like to use DSLR cameras and ensure that the settings of their camera allow for long exposures and high ISO noise reduction. Being prepared means that you should also have your gear ready to go at a moment’s notice. If you’re unsure of how your camera’s settings work it’s a good idea to test it beforehand. You should ensure that you have removed your camera’s lens filter and pre-focused your device on a distant point like a mountain just before it gets dark.

As a general rule of thumb, setting a camera with an aperture of f/2 to f/2.8 or wider to an exposure time of three to 30 seconds with a sensitivity of

ISO 800 to 1600 should get very good shots of the northern lights.