Northern Lights. Biddeford Maine.

tjbel05
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Northern Lights. Biddeford Maine.

Be gentle...This is my forst time seeing them and shooting them. My images are far from perfect, but what a magical sight. I would have never thought the Aurora would be visible in Southern coastal Maine.
All shot with a Nikon Z9, ISO 20k, SS5, F2.8..
Rumor has it if the clouds go away they will be visible again tonight. Any tips/tricks to be better at this?

May 11, 2024 at 08:42 AM

PixiPhotography
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Northern Lights. Biddeford Maine.

We should be getting a bigger show tonight. Sun just had a X5.1

May 11, 2024 at 11:46 AM

tschopp
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Northern Lights. Biddeford Maine.

It is similar to shooting Astro. Set the lens to MF, increase the iso until you can see stars or a light in distance, adjust focus until the light is as small as possible. Then dial iso down and lengthen your shutter. Depending of focal length could be exposure of a few seconds and I use iso 320 on my Sony because it is iso invariant and that is the start of the high gain stage. Of course you need a tripod as well.

May 11, 2024 at 03:17 PM

Hathaway
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Northern Lights. Biddeford Maine.

tschopp wrote:
It is similar to shooting Astro. Set the lens to MF, increase the iso until you can see stars or a light in distance, adjust focus until the light is as small as possible. Then dial iso down and lengthen your shutter. Depending of focal length could be exposure of a few seconds and I use iso 320 on my Sony because it is iso invariant and that is the start of the high gain stage. Of course you need a tripod as well.

Everything mentioned here and if you are experienced in astrophotography then you will need less time with the shutter open and can shoot at a lower ISO typically. Depending on how bright the Aurora turns out to be in your area you might only need 5 seconds or sometimes even less time to capture it. It all depends on if the aurora is just glowing or if there is movement in the light. If there is movement it can get pretty muddy with too long of an exposure.

One additional suggestion I would offer is have your histogram visible in your review. What looks bright on the back of a camera in total darkness might look much darker on your PC during daylight. Try to capture at least the first two if not three zones of the histogram with light information in it. Even if it looks too bright on your camera you can take it down in post. Bringing up exposure in post creates all sorts of problems. If all of the light information on the histogram is in the first section on the left your image is likely too dark.

With today’s noise reduction software don’t be afraid to lift your ISO as needed as well.

Finally, See if you can find some interesting foregrounds to include in the image. You might need to light paint them to get them to pop but it can add some interest to the shot.

Good luck and hope for clear skies again tonight!

May 11, 2024 at 03:26 PM

tjbel05
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Northern Lights. Biddeford Maine.

May 11, 2024 at 04:04 PM

Danpbphoto
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Northern Lights. Biddeford Maine.

Beautiful Tammy! Did the "pups" get a look with you?
Dan

May 14, 2024 at 08:58 AM


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