Photography Basics for Northern Lights
Would you feel prepared if the Northern Lights were to shine brightly tonight? Or have you been searching the internet for photo tips, asking friends for ideas, and attempting to make sense of suggested lens and camera settings?
If you said yes, I will help you feel more confident as I provide photography basics for the Northern Lights. I'll give you insights on equipment, camera settings, and from my recent photo shoot.
Beginning With Your Photography Equipment
I have not had the opportunity to photograph the Northern Lights for quite some time and figured a refresher would be in order. Compared to the infrequent chance to practice photographing the Northern Lights, having a subject such as birds being available all summer, I began browsing the internet.
I discovered a common theme when it came to suggestions for camera and lens settings, such as:
Use a wide-open aperture of f/2.8 or even f/1.4.
Commonly suggested shutter speed of from 20 – 30 seconds
ISO settings ranged from 5000 – 8000
However, the question is, “What if you don’t have a lens adjustable to that kind of aperture?” In that case, use what you have, or if you have decided you want a lens with that aperture capability, now could be a fun time to get one.
A key point for photography basics for Northern Lights is being prepared for opportunities, including your equipment handy and ready to go.
This is unlike my recent experience when I headed out with no expectations due to dense fog. It equated to being totally unprepared when, later that night, the sky unexpectedly cleared, and a light show of shows lit up the night sky as I headed for home.
To say I was unprepared was an understatement, and I'll share my experience to help you avoid similar frustrations. There's value in including what didn't work and what did and I'll show you examples.
In the beginning, what could go wrong did. After pulling over to a safe parking place, I scrambled for my equipment only to discover I had no headlamp (they’re invaluable), the “wrong” lens on my camera for capturing the landscape, and a tripod head incompatible with the lens I wanted to use.
Due to using a slower shutter speed when photographing the Northern Lights, combined with not wanting to miss anything, I placed my camera on my rear spare tire, and here's my first result; a perfect example of a blurry photo caused by camera shake and the inability to hold the camera steady enough.
Camera Setting: aperture f/4, shutter speed 8" (seconds), ISO 1250, focal length 24mm. Hand holding the camera.
The inability to steady the camera for eight seconds caused trails of light from vehicles and distant farmyard lights, along with excessively blurry Northern Lights. After several "failed" photos, sometimes the best action is to slow down and regroup.
The situation improved after I took my advice, fixed my tripod setup, and attached the camera. If you don't have a tripod, is there something you can use to steady the camera? For example, the roof of my vehicle would have worked, but I didn't think about that at the time. You can even use a rock, if there's a suitable one nearby, or scout around your location and see what you can find.
Remember to turn off the image stabilization on your camera body, the lens, or both when using a tripod. Interestingly, when in the ON position, your photos can have reduced sharpness when the camera is stabilized.
Using the in-camera self-timer or an external shutter release trigger reduces the chance of camera shake and reduced sharpness.
Camera Setting: aperture f/4, shutter speed 30" (seconds), ISO 1250, focal length 24mm. Using a tripod.
Note the apparent improvement before and after using a tripod, even with the shutter speed increasing from 8 seconds to 30 seconds. Would you agree it's worth the investment and the minimal time to get set up?
Camera Setting: aperture f/4, shutter speed 10" (seconds), ISO 2500, focal length 24mm.
Choosing Your Camera Settings
If you note the camera manual mode setting (not auto mode) in the examples I've chosen:
f/4 aperture - the most light my lens can let in
30 " seconds for the average shutter speed
Manually setting the ISO to 1250 (not auto mode)
24mm for the widest angle of view (24-120mm lens)
Why I used these particular settings, although I would change them next time, and I'll explain why:
A wide open aperture is advantageous for allowing as much light as possible in through the lens
Beginning with a low ISO avoids digital noise and grainy photos.
A 30 second shutter speed as a starting point.
When considering photography basics for the Northern Lights, and you have time to experiment with your camera settings, you can make adjustments even if you're happy with the results. Why, then, would you want to?
Increasing the ISO enables you to use a faster shutter speed
Increasing the shutter speed captures the movement faster, which results in more clarity as you freeze the action
You see your results faster because you're not waiting 20 to 30 seconds when 1 to 10 seconds works
Although I'm happy with the results, I was too captivated to change my settings, my mistake. What I would do next time:
Although a lower ISO is optimum, I would increase it to at least 3200 to enable a faster shutter speed
If moonlight or additional light was available, my consistent 1250 ISO, or even lower, could be perfect
Remember that when viewing images in playback on the LCD, you can be fooled into thinking the exposure is correct when it's not. Looking at a bright LCD screen at nighttime can be misleading and you could end up with underexposed photos. As you build your skills with photography basics for Northern Lights learning how to read your camera's histogram on your LCD screen will be of great benefit. I suggest checking your camera manual for an example and explanation if you're not sure how to.
Camera Setting: aperture f/4, shutter speed 25" (seconds), ISO 1600, focal length 24mm.
Camera Setting: aperture f/4, shutter speed 30" (seconds), ISO 1250, focal length 24mm.
Camera Setting: aperture f/4, shutter speed 10" (seconds), ISO 1250, focal length 35mm.
I changed my shutter speed and aimed the camera up toward the sky immediately overhead for a different effect.
Camera Setting: aperture f/4, shutter speed 15" (seconds), ISO 1250, focal length 35mm.
Camera Setting: aperture f/6.3, shutter speed 30" (seconds), ISO 1600, focal length 150mm.
In the example above, note the change in the camera settings. If you recall, in the beginning, I mentioned having the "wrong" lens on my camera; this is one photo with that lens, 150-600mm. This is the reason for a change in the aperture from f/4 to the widest aperture of f/6.3 for this lens at 150mm focal length.
Notice, too, the increase to ISO 1600 from 1250 to compensate for the reduction in light caused by the change in aperture. Additionally, the composition is in a portrait, or horizontal, orientation compared to the other examples. Finally, note the hint of star trails and loss of their clarity due to the 30 seconds shutter speed.