First love
a young boy sees the northern lights for the very first time.
a young boy sees the northern lights for the very first time.
Read less
Read less
Jul, 2015Views
3339
Likes
Awards
Contest Finalist in Celebrating Freedom Photo Contest
Featured
Contest Finalist in Social Exposure Photo Contest Vol 4
Contest Finalist in Adventure Land Photo Contest Outside Views
Contest Finalist in Get Out Photo Contest
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Top Choice
Outstanding Creativity
Magnificent Capture
Superior Skill
All Star
Genius
Top Ranks
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 2Top 10 rank week 1
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 1
Categories
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Discover more photos See all
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken in the valley of Reisadalen in Nordreisa, Norway.Time
It was taken during the late hours of a cold night in March 2014.Lighting
This was a spectacular night for for chasing the aurora borealis as it was close to a new moon, making the stars very visible. (as well the the faint aurora)Equipment
This was captured on a Sirui tripod with a Nikon D810 with a Zeiss Distagon 15mm f2.8.Inspiration
This was the first time our youngest boy had been outside to watch the aurora borealis. He was mesmerized by the vastness of the nightsky. However he wasn't very fond of the darkness itself. I too can sympathize with this, it is somewhat weird to be afraid of the dark, but at the same time love capturing the night.Editing
This hasn't really been processed much. It is a photo with it's flaws, so I didn't really want to make them more obvious than necessary. It's a fine balance keeping a 7 year old still for a long enough period of time allowing me to capture the scene with the aurora veil above us.In my camera bag
Normally I bring my Sirui carbon tripod, Nikon D810 w/batterygrip with my Zeiss 15mm f2.8 attached. If I'm in for a long night out, I usually bring my D800E with either my Zeiss 21mm or Samyang 12mm attached to timelapse the night sky.Feedback
WHAT PHOTOGRAPHY GEAR SHOULD I BRING? - Obviously you need your camera. It is preferable to have a camera that can do manual mode. - A tripod, this is long exposure photography and keeping your camera still is crucial. - A remote trigger is highly recommended, also to make sure your camera remains undisturbed on your tripod. Pressing the shutter yourself will move your camera. If you don't have a remote trigger, you can make due with the self-timer solution. - This is landscape photography at night, so you would be best served with a fast wideangle lens. There are many alternatives to lenses. Here are few examples of these lenses: Nikon 14-24mm f2.8, Samyang 14mm f2.8 and Sigma 35mm f1.4. WHAT SETTINGS SHOULD I USE? - Aperture: You are best served to capture the aurora using an aperture between f1,4 and f4,0. I personally shoot mostly at an aperture of f2.8. - Shutterspeed: I like to have a shutterspeed within the range of 3-10 seconds (hence the tripod and remote shutter). This is because I like to "freeze" the aurora as much as I can. - ISO: This depends very much on your cameras sensor. Generally a cropped sensor camera will usually become too noisy above ISO1000. For a full frame sensor you will be able to shoot at ISO-values between 1600-3200 without much noise problems. There are obviously plenty of exeptions here like the Sony A7S, a mirrorless camera designed for lowlight. If you aren't comfortable with noise-reduction in post-processing, I do recommend using your cameras built-in function for it. - Whitebalance: Anything below 5000k really. I like my auroras to be on the colder side, seems more Arctic to me, so I tend to stay at around 4000k or below. I shoot in the RAW-format, but I still set my whitebalance in camera to get a better idea of what my photo will look like when I bring it to Lightroom and Photoshop. If you photograph in the JPG-format, I recommend setting your whitebalance to 5000k and work you way down. - Focus: This should be done manually. Unless you plan to focus stack like a champ, focusing on the stars (infinity) will give you the best result. - Exposure: As a general approach I overexpose the shot by 2 full stops. Pay attention to your histogram, if the aurora is powerful you are likely to blow out highlights!
