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The Dance of the Lady Aurora: Capturing the Aurora Borealis.

Capturing images of the Northern Lights in Alaska



There are a few places that the Aurora Borealis can be viewed in the Northern Hemisphere. For this trip we chose to see the phenomenon at the small town of Fairbanks in Alaska. For the purpose of any night photography you need to be away from any light pollution in order to capture the night sky. Just a small amount of light has the ability to ruin a shot entirely. Even the light from a vehicle interior light is enough to affect your exposure. 


About 20 – 30 kms out of Fairbanks is Chandalar Ranch. Keith and Velma Koontz are the owner operators of Chandalar Ranch. Velma is Yupik Eskimo born on Saint Lawrence Island. The place is more like a hostel and you need to take in all your own food. The facilities are pretty basic and all of the beds are bunks. If you stay more than a night you’ll notice late at night the place gets over run with Aurora tours, and can get pretty packed. Its basic, but if you’re there only for photography then it does the job as a place to stay. 

In the winter time in Alaska the days are quite long, the sun setting at around 10- 11pm at night. When shooting astral imagery its always best to shoot a few hours after the sunset so the idea time is usually around 1-2 am. Having no moon is ideal so if you can research moon phases the aim for when there is no moon. Too much light from a full moon will cause light problems as well if it casts too much light. 


When it appears the Aurora will usually appear directly above, so you will need to set your tripod low to the ground and point towards the night sky. Choose a landmark such as the mountains or a tree so that your image has a focal point. This will make focusing easier and give the final image a stronger composition. It is possible that depending on your camera you may need to switch to manual focus as some cameras struggle to focus in the low light. 

It is a bit of trial and error when it comes to camera settings, however shutter speed is king here. Aperture isn’t a concern so shooting on a small aperture such as F4.5 or lower

( depending on lens speed) is adequate. 


For my final exposure my shutter speed was 1/13 with an aperture of F5. My camera was on a tripod and I ended up having to lay flat on the ground to get the right angle, using a large pine tree as my focal point. The Aurora wasn’t that vibrant with the naked eye, however was much more visible in camera. Shooting the Aurora Borealis is a challenge and a reward at the same time. Whilst it will be late nights and possibly a little chilly the end result will make the effort worth it. The Aurora really is one of the most special things you will ever get to see and capture. 


Recommended Gear:

Samyang 14 mm

Benro A2573F (S6PRO Head) Aluminium Video Tripod Kit


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