The Milky Way and Aurora Borealis
Mar, 2016Views
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Fall Award 2020
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Magnificent Capture
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Behind The Lens
Location
The photo was taken way up North in Muonio, Lapland, Finland.Time
This was the last night on my one week holiday in Lapland and all the other nights had been cloudy so I had been unable to shoot any northern lights. The aurora forecast didn't promise anything special, but after 9 PM there started to be visible aurora arch. I started driving away from the village and any artificial lights and ended up on this empty forest road around 10 PM.Lighting
There was no moon or anything, so it was completely dark. Luckily the auroras weren't moving too fast, so they look quite good even with a very long exposure.Equipment
I shot this with my Canon 6D and Sigma 20 mm f/1.4 Art lens - and of course a tripod.Inspiration
I had just shot a timelapse sequence with shorter shutter speed, but for this I wanted to capture also the Milky Way and make the snowy winter wonderland landscape visible, so I used a 30 s exposure with f/1.4 at ISO 1600.Editing
I gave the shot my usual night shot treatment - enhanced clarity and did some dehazing to bring out the stars, and optimized the white balance to make the colors as realistic as possible.In my camera bag
For night photography with my Canon 6D I carry my two wide angle primes: Samyang 14 mm and Sigma 20 mm. I often shoot timelapses, so I also carry an intervalometer / remote shooter, and Syrp Genie Mini for occasional panning timelapse sequences.Feedback
When shooting auroras, the first thing is to check the space weather forecast and do some scouting for a suitable location with as little light pollution as possible. And when shooting in the winter and up North - it's important to dress very warmly as you might have to stand there for a while... when shooting this, I believe it was about -25 degrees Celcius!
