Tromso County offers everything you could wish for landscape photography: fjords, mountains, valleys, frozen lakes and snow-covered trees. The possibilities are only limited by your own imagination. Winter season in Northern Norway can give you the perfect chance to photograph the majestic Northern Lights!

“There is no more uplifting natural phenomenon than the aurora borealis, or Northern Lights. Visible throughout the long night of the Arctic winter from October to March, they dance across the sky in green or white curtains of light, shifting in intensity and taking on forms that seem to spring from a child’s vivid imagination. While there’s no guarantee that the Northern Lights will appear at any given time, if you are lucky enough to see them, it’s an experience that will live with you forever.” (Lonely Planet, Norway in detail)

Places North of the Arctic Circle are defined by polar day and polar night throughout the year. In summertime, the sun will not set for about three months (June – July – August) so there is no darkness at night: Polar Day. 
 In wintertime, the sun will not rise above the horizon for about three months (November – December – January) so there is no direct daylight at daytime: Polar Night. 
 In this period, from autumn (September) to springtime (March), you can photograph the Northern Lights.

Before going out into the dark, cold winter night, it is important to prepare both yourself and your camera on a few important matters. As it is important to both chase and witness the Aurora throughout the whole night, as you will never know for sure when it will appear, it is a challenge to endure the cold winter nights up in the Arctic North (often temperatures below -25℃). How to dress appropriate for outdoor Arctic Northern Norwegian weather, you can find out more on our page Steps to take before experiencing the wild.

Northern Lights are best photographed with a digital camera put on a tripod, in manual mode (both lens and body) in order to change several settings such as shutter speed, diaphragm, ISO, lens focus and the shutter-release.

If you use the automatic mode (marked as A or ) your camera will try to measure the incoming light continuously in order to automatically give you the right settings. In case of night time photography (darkness) this option becomes irrelevant and will be of no use since certain specific settings (shutter speed, diaphragm and ISO) are required.

Also your lens is better used in manual mode (if possible) as it will try and focus on a certain spot in the distance, difficult to find/impossible to focus on.  Because of this, it is better to have the lens manually focused on infinitum.

The diaphragm decides how much light is being registered. The lower the f-number (f/1.4 – f/2.8 or f/5.6) the wider the opening of the diaphragm, the more light will be registered.

When suggested settings are used (long shutter speeds and open diaphragm), your camera will get sensible for any possible (little) movement such as simply pressing the release button. Because of this, it is recommended to use a delayed shutter release by using the timer (2 seconds delayed) or the function itself of ‘delayed shutter release’ if available in the menu. This will prevent any shaking / unsharpness or movement in the image when taking a shot.

– You can play around with the white balance setting to find the perfect white point in order to project the correct colours (as seen) to your image.

– The battery of your camera is not standing cold temperatures very well. Be safe and bring a couple of spare ones as your might get surprised with a sudden empty battery during the night. Don’t let this bad luck get in your way.

– Same idea for your memory card. The amount of photos you will take, if a successful night filled with Aurora, can add up very fast as you probably will get fascinated with the results on your screen, wanting to create as many memories as possible.

– The use of on-camera-flashlight is not recommended. It will badly burn out anything that is in your close proximity. If you do want to light up some details (water, stones, trees) or people in front of your lens, you can use an off-camera flashlight or a head lamp.

– Think of composing your photograph:

«A well composed landscape in which the Northern Lights are one of the elements is nicer than a Northern Lights photo in which the landscape is clearly secondary.”  (Ole Salomonsen, Tromso Travel Magazine) If traveling in group or being out on your own, respect the others around you: Unwritten rules and customs:

Unwritten rules include showing consideration with headlamp and vehicle lights and not leaving any rubbish. When you visit places like Tromsø for photography, it’s important to be considerate to others. If you are driving a car, so remember to switch off the motor and lights. There may be other photographers nearby who you don’t see, and you run the risk of inadvertently damaging their photos by un- necessary use of headlamps and car lights. Be considerate to others and nature. Remember to leave nothing but footprints and to take all rubbish with you when you leave. (Ole Salomonsen, Tromso Travel Magazine)