Jonny Fay
Aurora Borealis: The Northern Lights of Iceland
Our first Aurora!
This shot was taken as the Aurora was getting a little quieter before surging again.
We had based the entire trip around increasing our chances to see the Aurora: Winter in March in Iceland is relatively mild and not extremely cold, and the New Moon would help us see a brighter Aurora and not blow out the foregrounds of our pictures if there was snow on the ground.
Well, our first 4 nights were very cloudy and the Aurora forecasts were very low. On the 5th night, we had been keeping track of what was supposed to be a Level 2 Aurora (on a scale from 0-9, daily forecasts viewable here), with optimistically clear skies. As night time approached, the forecast reduced to a Level 1, and by dinner time, it had been reduced to a Level 0, meaning there would be no visible Aurora. We decided to rest for a while and then go out and see the stars anyway, since they would no doubt be way brighter than at home.
At about 9:15pm local time, I decided to check the forecast again and much to our surprise, it had been changed to a Level 2! We scrambled to grab all of our photography equipment and warm weather gear and bolted out the door to one of several pre-scouted locations.
When we were driving, we saw what appeared to be clouds at first, but noting that it was supposed to be a cloudless night, we took a quick test shot and realized that what we were in fact seeing was our very first Aurora.
We got ourselves situated and for no less than 3 and a half hours in the cold across two locations, we observed at first a Level 2 Aurora which later alternated back and forth from a Level 2 to a Level 3 Aurora. When it became a Level 3, the colors were more intense, and the Aurora actually moved, sometimes fairly quickly. Frequent Aurora viewers call this phenomenon "dancing," and it is, without a doubt, the single most amazing thing that my wife and I have ever seen with our own eyes.
In addition to the incredible Aurora show we saw, the stars were out-of-this-world bright that night. With almost zero light pollution in Iceland, it is an amazing location to view the stars and the night sky. They were extremely bright and there appeared to be so many more of them than anywhere else I have ever been.
It was an absolutely breathtaking night, and although it was the only Aurora display we were really able to see while we were there, we can't wait until we have the opportunity to see another one.
Nikon D800
14-24mm f/2.8 Lens
Aurora Borealis: The Northern Lights of Iceland
Our first Aurora!
This shot was taken as the Aurora was getting a little quieter before surging again.
We had based the entire trip around increasing our chances to see the Aurora: Winter in March in Iceland is relatively mild and not extremely cold, and the New Moon would help us see a brighter Aurora and not blow out the foregrounds of our pictures if there was snow on the ground.
Well, our first 4 nights were very cloudy and the Aurora forecasts were very low. On the 5th night, we had been keeping track of what was supposed to be a Level 2 Aurora (on a scale from 0-9, daily forecasts viewable here), with optimistically clear skies. As night time approached, the forecast reduced to a Level 1, and by dinner time, it had been reduced to a Level 0, meaning there would be no visible Aurora. We decided to rest for a while and then go out and see the stars anyway, since they would no doubt be way brighter than at home.
At about 9:15pm local time, I decided to check the forecast again and much to our surprise, it had been changed to a Level 2! We scrambled to grab all of our photography equipment and warm weather gear and bolted out the door to one of several pre-scouted locations.
When we were driving, we saw what appeared to be clouds at first, but noting that it was supposed to be a cloudless night, we took a quick test shot and realized that what we were in fact seeing was our very first Aurora.
We got ourselves situated and for no less than 3 and a half hours in the cold across two locations, we observed at first a Level 2 Aurora which later alternated back and forth from a Level 2 to a Level 3 Aurora. When it became a Level 3, the colors were more intense, and the Aurora actually moved, sometimes fairly quickly. Frequent Aurora viewers call this phenomenon "dancing," and it is, without a doubt, the single most amazing thing that my wife and I have ever seen with our own eyes.
In addition to the incredible Aurora show we saw, the stars were out-of-this-world bright that night. With almost zero light pollution in Iceland, it is an amazing location to view the stars and the night sky. They were extremely bright and there appeared to be so many more of them than anywhere else I have ever been.
It was an absolutely breathtaking night, and although it was the only Aurora display we were really able to see while we were there, we can't wait until we have the opportunity to see another one.
Nikon D800
14-24mm f/2.8 Lens