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04 · How to Photograph Them
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Chapter 04 · Introduction

How to photograph them?

Introduction

Photographing the northern lights is as rewarding as it is demanding. In truth, I'd say the real difficulty comes not so much from the challenges the environment throws at you as from a lack of technical knowledge. With the right equipment and a little technique, you can photograph the aurora with ease. In the pages that follow you'll find what I've learned, gathered under a few essential headings.

Sections in this chapter
The right gear
01
The right gear
body · lens · aperture
Using a tripod properly02
Using a tripod properly
sharp through 15–30 s
Keep your camera alive in the cold03
Keep your camera alive in the cold
fog · battery · −35°C
Shooting video? Forget it04
Shooting video? Forget it
usually a letdown
Capturing the northern lights05
Capturing the northern lights
white balance · ISO · shutter
Infinity focus matters06
Infinity focus matters
manual focus · the ∞ mark
Time-lapse shooting07
Time-lapse shooting
16 frames → 4 minutes
● Shooting settings · cheat sheet
Yiğit's typical settings
ModeManual (M)
Aperturef/2.8
Shutter8 — 30 s
ISO800 — 1600
FormatRAW
WB3500 K
FocusInfinity (manual)
Format14mm — 24mm
If Kp is 5+, drop the shutter to 4 s — so the curtain's motion doesn't blur. If it's cloudy, don't push the ISO; spiking grain kills the frame.