Wrbeng65 Loc: Tennessee

Photographing the Northern Lights is on my bucket list. I would appreciate any and all assistance leading to a successful photo shoot. Like: what are some known good locations, lens recommendations, exposure recommendations, where a "city boy" should stay, etc.

busted_shutter

If you're in TN....you''ll have to go North several hundred miles. Seen them in NH, MN, and MT. Saw once in Ohio, but that was an extremely rare sighting. Also...get yourself into the country...far away from the city lights.

Bruce with a Canon Loc: Islip

Fairbanks Alaska
bring extra batteries and memory

charles brown Loc: Tennesse

I think northern lights have something to do with sun flares. Might check with NOAA or NASA to see if they are able to help with determining best time. Go to northern Wisconsin, just south of the Michigan state line. Beautiful country, fantastic fishing, and great palce to see the lights.

BHC Loc: Strawberry Valley, JF, USA

Your target location is the Northern Magnetic Pole, which was near 86°N 147°W as of 2012. Actually you do not want to go to that point because the lights would be overhead. If you can find a prediction of a geomagnetic storm, you will be able to seem them at lower latitudes. The best dates are theoretically in early March to Early April. However, NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center has predicted that Solar Cycle 24 will peak in May 2013, bringing the likelihood of maximum activity during that time.

Al FR-153 Loc: Chicago Suburbs

If you look at many of the suggested areas you will notice that they are in areas of low population. Main reason; light pollution will detract from your northern lights experience. You need to be in the northern tier of states (minimum), TN won't work (usually). ME, NH, UP of Michigan, Northern WI, MN, ND, MT, Washington, or up into Canada and Alaska. Get out of town....Way out of town. And by all means, don't expect them every night. NOAA is your best bet on knowing exactly when to expect them. Knowing a HAM radio operator in the area of choice is another way. Good luck. They are well worth seeing, and different every time.

EstherP

Totally unpredictable. A number of years ago, we stayed near Fort St James, at about 54 degrees North, and several people (including at the tourist office, the campground manager and several other people in the town), told us "tonight is a good night for the N.L. - but wait til it is completely dark. Well, it doesn't really get completely dark that far north in early July, but even so, I sat on the beach from about midnight to 3 am. Far enough from the town that no artificial lights interfered. No joy.

The following websites (and there are many more) give an idea how difficult it is to predict the Northern Lights.
http://www.softservenews.com/Aurora.htm
http://www.aurorawatch.ca/
http://www.geo.mtu.edu/weather/aurora/
EstherP

Coolcameragirl Loc: Bradenton, FL

I went to Iceland a couple of weeks ago. Pretty good showings there - easy to get to from NY or Boston.

boshon1

Almost guarantee you'll get some fantastic shots from
"Yellow Knife".
And, its quite an adventure getting there.
Happy shooting.

canonjohn922 Loc: Vineland,NJ

Just WOW Coolcameragirl,super shots :thumbup: :thumbup:

coco1964 Loc: Winsted Mn

Many times seen in Mn especially if you get north of the Twin Cities. As you can see by the pics shown Iceland is suppose to be one of the best places to photograph them. I have a friend who was in Iceland on business and she brought back some fantastic shots using a bridge camera........

Phrank Loc: Crystal Lake, Il.

WoW!!!

wierdphotoguy Loc: the snow belt in Michigan

I live in Northern Michigan myself, and have yet to photograph the Aurora Borealis. I will this year! Predictions are for a bumper crop this year. We can see them clearly here, and the only problem you will have finding a good spot is when your are south of a city that has a large amount of lights. You don't have too much problems on a clear night if you are five miles or more outside of town. The southern edge of a field just about anywhere is a good location but you shoud never go alone because of coyotes. Take a friend and be prepared for a cold, cold night. The northern lights are occur when the sunlight "bends" around the electromagnetic pole and appears in the upper atmosphere. The lights fluctuate slowly and change colors you you might want to bring a video camera and tripod along as well. Anywhere north of the 45th parallel is choice for viewing, but low population densities have less ambient light, making for deeper color saturation, and I hope to get a nice spot on the northern coast of the U.P. of Michigan.
I wish I could give you advice on HOW to shoot them, but I was looking for the same advice when I found this post.

Larrie Loc: NE Ohio

Great shots Cool! :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: I saw a photo of the Icelandic volcano that shut down air traffic in Europe several years ago. It had billowing pumice, lava geysers, lightning and aurora all in one shot. Northern latitudes such as Alaska, Iceland and Norway are prime locations. Best viewing is during a new moon. It usually takes several days after an eruption on the sun before a CME arrives at earth. Even when conditions like a rising Kp level are perfect Auroras can be hard to predict. The best place to get information on Auroras is :
http://spaceweather.com/

wierdphotoguy Loc: the snow belt in Michigan

Aurora Borealis happens regardless of sun flares. When the earth tilts enough, the light reflects on the upper atmosphere. This is of course and oversimplification, but it happens every year.