Northern lights over the boreal forest, Fairbanks, Alaska. Canon 5D Mark II, 24mm f/1.4L II, 20 sec @ f/1.4, ISO 1000.
Yesterday morning when I stepped outside about 5:45am, I looked up in the sky-which is always the first thing I do during Alaska’s dark winter mornings–and saw the aurora borealis overhead. So I ran back in my house and quickly grabbed a camera for a token shot. It is really difficult to measure the value of being surrounded by a boreal forest, and having a home tucked away in the beauty of those embracing branches. To show that view from within in a forest, I chose to shoot nearly straight up from the deck of my guest cabin. The purple sky is largely due to light pollution from town reflecting off some hazy cloud layer in the atmosphere. No moon light was present. I shot only two pictures as other things were on the agenda for the day. But this morning view is one of the many reasons I enjoy living in Fairbanks.
glad you did not do a “grab shot” on your mobile phone’s camera….love your perspective on this
stunning capture!! Just beautiful!
Wow, you have some amazing photos here I love them!
Sweet capture, Patrick! What was the temp in Fairbanks this a.m.?
Sue, I wish…
Ron & Ross, thanks guys
Rich, the temp at my house was around 15 degrees, but a little colder in actual downtown Fairbanks. Very nice temps.
It looks like that was a great display (even if this was a longish exposure and high ISO)! I was watching last night, but not this morning. 🙂 I don’t expect it to clear up tonight, even though the forecast is promising. I’m glad you were able to see it.
Eli, you are quite astute in your observations. You are correct, the exposure was pretty long for a 1.4 at 1000 ISO, which means the display was not real strong. It had a lot of shape though, and was not moving much.