Just a few years ago, it was impossible to take usable imagery of the Northern Lights with a smartphone. However, thanks to advances in low-light performance, that’s all changed, with the latest models (and even those a few years old) able to take spectacular photos and impressive videos of colorful aurora. You just have to know what you’re doing.
“Smartphones are now amazing aurora cameras,” said Tom Kerss, author of “The Northern Lights: The Definitive Guide to Auroras and chief aurora hunter for Hurtigruten Astronomy Cruises, in an interview. “I used to believe our phones would never take a good aurora photo,” he said, “but I can’t believe how much detail they’re able to pick up now.”
They’re now so good, in fact, that professional aurora-hunters use a smartphone photo to check that what they are seeing in the sky is, in fact, aurora. That’s because aurora tends to look rather mono to the naked eye. On the other hand, a camera takes in more light — simply because its shutter can be left open for a few seconds or more — and therefore detects more color.
Here’s everything you need to know to take photos and video of the Northern Lights with a smartphone:
Northern Lights: How To Take Videos With A Smartphone
It used to be something only very expensive high ISO cameras could do, but since iPhone 13 it’s been possible to take impressive video of the Northern Lights. However, you need to do this: shoot in HD at 30 frames per second. Most of us shoot at 4k and 60 frames per second, which is fine for daylight but a lot dimmer at night. “Just don’t move the phone too quickly, or it will get very smudgy,” said Kerss, explaining the side effect of the drop in frame rate at HD 30. “Slower movements will look better.”
Northern Lights: How To Take Photos With A Smartphone
The key to the improvements in smartphone cameras is their sensitivity to light at night. “For photos on an iPhone, turn the flash off, use the highest resolution or quality you can get, and use Night mode,” said Kerss. On the iPhone, Night Mode is the yellow bubble in the top-left corner, which appears at night. “It will typically read three seconds. If you set the phone to capture in RAW or in the highest resolution or quality possible, then just hold still for three seconds, an iPhone will reliably take very nice pictures of the Northern Lights,” said Kerss. This applies from the iPhone 13 onwards, which, according to Kerss, is as good as any manual camera.
Android users have two useful tools: night mode for automatic low-light shots, and Pro mode for full manual control. In Pro mode, you can adjust shutter speed, aperture, and ISO. A wide aperture (such as f/2.8 or lower) lets in more light while boosting ISO to 6400 or higher, which helps reveal faint aurora.
Northern Lights: Using A Tripod And Manual Cameras
If you put an iPhone in a universal holder and mount that on a tripod, it senses its new-found stability. “If you have a tripod, you can get longer than three-second exposures — you can go up to 30 seconds,” said Kerrs, adding that tripods are useful for very slight, slow-moving, so-called “forest fire” aurora in the distance. If you can see aurora moving quickly in front of you or above you, as quick an exposure as possible is recommended.
If you use manual camera apps — or a manual mirrorless or DSLR camera — use a high ISO (such as ISO 3200 or ISO 6400, or even higher on newer cameras) to allow more light in. Higher ISO lets in more light but at the expense of noise, but the latter can be fixed later using software like DXO PureRAW.
While it’s tempting to focus on getting the perfect shot, don’t forget to enjoy the experience — seeing the Northern Lights dance in the night sky is a rare and wonderful experience. Luckily, getting a souvenir photo or video has never been easier.
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
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