Learn How to Take Pictures of Northern Lights with Smartphone using expert tips and techniques. Capture the beauty of the aurora borealis like a pro! Capture the magic of the Northern Lights with your mobile phone by following our complete guide. Did you ever think you could keep that dazzling nighttime spectacle in your pocket? With the right settings, applications and techniques, it is possible.
Get ready to explore optimal smartphone settings, night photography techniques, and more so you can share your stunning images with the world. Let’s make every shot count!
You can capture the Northern Lights on your smartphone using landscape mode, turning off the flash and changing the focus to manual. Switch your camera to night mode and use the highest resolution possible. For best results, use a tripod and a bluetooth remote control.
How to Take Pictures of Northern Lights with Smartphone
In this article, you will learn how to capture the Northern Lights using your Android and iPhone . We will cover the following topics. You can click on the links for quick navigation.
For example, there is a good free app called Aurora Alerts . It will send you notifications when your chances of seeing the Northern Lights are high. You can also look into the application yourself and monitor the control numbers and the map.
The second point that must be checked before going out to shoot with equipment is the weather forecast. If it’s drizzling and the whole sky is overcast, you can relax and not move anywhere – even the strongest light will not break through the dense clouds. If it’s at least variable, you can take a risk.
It is better to choose a point for photographing the northern lights in advance. Ideally, you need a minimally illuminated place, where there are no streetlights, houses or busy roads. Any artificial light will interfere, the less of it, the better. If possible, it is better to drive 15-20 kilometers from the city; if not, just go where it is darker: go down to a park where there are no streetlights, go to the shore of a river or lake. A good sign if the stars are clearly visible. Be sure to take a flashlight with you to reach the shooting location safely and not break your legs or equipment.
If you live south of the 65th parallel north, it’s a good idea to have a clear view to the north at your shooting location. The northern lights can often be observed from different directions; in more southern regions, it often happens that only a piece of the northern horizon is visible.
How to shoot the Northern Lights with a smartphone/How to Take Pictures of Northern Lights with Smartphone
It is easier to shoot the Northern Lights with a camera (ideally a full-frame one ), since high operating ISO values are important for night photography, and this is a feature of professional equipment. But you can also take good pictures with a smartphone. Especially if the flash is bright enough and the phone has a manual settings mode.
In principle, if the light is simply bright, you can get spectacular shots handheld (without a tripod), and without any fuss with the settings. But I have only seen the northern lights of sufficient brightness twice in the last seven years.
If you don’t have the patience to wait and fish for another four years, you’ll have to figure out the settings. With the right approach, you can get beautiful pictures even without super-powerful shine. Of course, a lot depends on the phone model. For example, the latest iPhone and Google Pixel models do a good job with such scenes.
So, we tracked the aurora, came to a point with minimal illumination, and looked north. If you notice even a faint glow with your eyes, there is a chance that you will be able to remove something. Sometimes it is possible to take a photo even in cases where the glow is not noticeable to the eye. But from experience, good pictures come out when at least something is visible.
The main sponsor of beautiful photos with the northern lights is the correct exposure. Therefore, first, it is important to check whether your smartphone allows you to manually configure this setting.
Point the mobile phone at the light and turn the shutter speed, making it longer and longer: 1/30, 1 second, 2 seconds, 5 seconds. At some point the glow will become more noticeable. Ideally, do not use shutter speeds longer than a second, as the glow will lose structure, blur and turn into fog. But if at second the glow is hard to see, but at 5 seconds it clearly appears, it is better to sacrifice the structure and choose a longer shutter speed.
An alternative option is to use night mode. As a rule, in this mode the smartphone will automatically set a slow shutter speed. Often there will be additional effects applied there, such as HDR and stacking. Sometimes smartphone cameras perform even better in automatic night mode than in manual mode. It makes sense to try to take pictures this way and that way.
The second main contributor to beautiful Northern Lights photography is a tripod. If it turns out that you need a shutter speed of 4 seconds to shoot, then without a tripod you will most likely blur the frame. For a smartphone, a light and compact tripod that is easy to carry will be sufficient.
If you don’t have a tripod, you need to look for any support – lean the phone against a rock or tree, or put it on a backpack.
If your phone camera allows you to shoot in RAW, use it. If, of course, you know how to develop RAW files or are ready to deal with it. This format allows you to store more information and gives more freedom to your hands when processing photos. You will find more information about RAW and JPEG in this material .
Use only the main camera of your smartphone. Even if you have an ultra-wide or zoom lens, as a rule, the main module will give the best quality. Most often it has the largest matrix.
If you go hunting for the northern lights in the cold season, it is worth taking a power bank with you so that your phone does not run out of charge in the cold at the most inopportune moment.
How to photograph the northern lights with a camera
The two main points will be the same: the tripod and the shutter speed. With the small difference that the camera will require a more substantial tripod , and more parameters will allow you to configure the camera. If we see a glow, we gasp in delight and start filming.
Optimal settings for capturing moderate to strong northern lights:
- shutter speed – up to 1 second;
- ISO 3200;
- the aperture is as wide open as possible (depending on the lens you are using).
It is best to use the fastest lens possible
If there is no glow, do not rush to turn up and leave. Using a camera you can take pictures of the northern lights, which are invisible to the eye. To do this, we will use long shutter speeds – from 5 to 10 seconds. The following problem may arise here: at a shutter speed at which the radiance is clearly visible, the landscape becomes heavily overexposed.
It’s convenient to shoot such scenes on Olympus mirrorless cameras , which have a clever live composite mode. In it, the camera shoots at a long shutter speed, but not quite. First she fixes the overall exposure of the frame, then adds only the lighter things. That is, the northern lights will become brighter and more varied, and the landscape will not be overexposed by a long shutter speed.
Control your focus. In the dark, he can go anywhere, and the frame will turn out blurry. If you’re shooting a landscape, the best option is to focus your camera while using a flashlight to illuminate the scene, lock the focus, and turn off the flashlight. If you are photographing a scene without a foreground, it is best to focus at infinity.
How to capture a beautiful landscape with the Northern Lights
Take a variety of shots. There is a classic shot into the sky, however, you can only take it if the northern lights are very bright or you are in the far north.
Any self-respecting aurora hunter should take a shot like this. But the main problem with this plot is that such photographs are quite monotonous and look like an abstraction. The pictures will be more interesting if you shoot not just the northern lights, but the landscape with them. A tree, driftwood, beautiful stones, or a human figure are suitable as a foreground.
If you have the opportunity to film near a body of water, don’t miss it. Landscapes in which the northern lights are reflected in the water look very impressive.
Steps to take the best photos of the auroras
The northern and southern lights are seen at night and do not provide excessive clarity , two of the main problems for a device that needs to capture light to produce an image. And if it is already difficult to photograph an aurora well with a professional camera, doing it on your smartphone can be an odyssey.
Lifting the phone and holding it can cause blurry shots, it is also important to adjust the shutter speed as much as possible. Given the small size of the photographic components of a smartphone, it is advisable to follow the following steps to obtain the best photos of the auroras:
- Put a tripod in your equipment . This is essential, since the more static you keep the phone, the more options you have to capture as much light as possible. It can be a camera tripod or a selfie stick that has a tripod option. If it doesn’t take up much space it will be easier to carry.
- If your phone has an astrophotography option, take advantage of it . Camera apps sometimes integrate modes to capture the night sky, like the Google Pixel or the Samsung Galaxy. Having it active will allow you to guarantee minimum capture conditions.
- Take advantage of the image stabilizer . If you don’t have a tripod, or a surface to support the phone on (a simple stone can work), the OIS of the camera integrated into the phone will be very helpful. Choose night mode and keep the phone as still as possible during the shot.
- Night mode active . This mode makes use of stabilization, shutter speed and ISO to maximize the amount of light that reaches the sensor. It can be very good for capturing auroras.
- Use the camera’s manual settings . If your phone has Pro settings in the app, play with the shutter speed while keeping the phone on the tripod. Focus on the horizon, increase the seconds to the maximum, shoot and check the result. That the image burns? Try reducing the ISO sensitivity as much as possible. What is still coming out too clear? Reduce shutter speed. And if the opposite happens, it acts in reverse.
The key to taking a good photo of an aurora is to ensure that the camera captures as much of the light it emits as possible . Maximum shutter speed, stability and playing with ISO sensitivity until you achieve the perfect lighting balance. Since you probably won’t have much time if the auroras appear, it’s best to practice taking photos of the night sky. When you achieve bright and detailed shots you are ready.
Reflections are a powerful technique that can make a landscape much more interesting. In conclusion, taking pictures of the northern lights with your smartphone is a rewarding and enjoyable experience. By following the tips and techniques outlined in this article, you can create breathtaking images that will leave a lasting impression on anyone who sees them. So grab your phone, head outside, and get ready to capture the magic of the aurora borealis in all its glory!