November - 2024
Tromsø - Northern Lights
Witnessing the Northern Lights was one of my dreams, and making it come true, along with photographing everything, was an incredible experience. Over five nights, I embarked on aurora-hunting expeditions through the icy Nordic landscapes, departing from Tromsø in search of this unique natural spectacle. I highly recommend the company Chasing Lights, which was professional at every moment.
I joined the hunts in minivans that accommodated an average of 12 people, which helped with agility and group bonding. Each van included a driver and a tour guide, who was also a photographer. Every night, the route and destination were pre-defined based on weather forecasts, cloud maps and solar activity, but plans could change at a moment's notice. On some nights, when clouds covered the city and it snowed heavily, we drove for up to three hours chasing clear skies, reaching as far as the tripoint border between Norway, Sweden and Finland.
The Northern Lights are the result of solar particles interacting with Earth's magnetic field. This phenomenon creates lights in different colors, such as green (the most common), purple, red and even yellow. The colors vary depending on the altitude and type of gas in the atmosphere.
Among the colors I captured, seeing the rare red aurora was particularly breathtaking. This color, which appears at higher altitudes, added a surreal layer to the experience. Its rarity made it even more special, and being able to photograph this ethereal glow felt like an extraordinary privilege.
It is impressive that no two auroras are the same: one night, they can be static, lingering as a luminous carpet for hours, another night, they can burst with energy, moving quickly and unpredictably. Witnessing the dancing aurora was, without a doubt, a unique and incredible moment. I also created two timelapse videos from multiple photos I took. The first captures 225 seconds from 15 photos, the second captures 160 seconds from 12 photos.
Another unforgettable aspect was seeing the clearest sky I had ever seen, filled with countless stars.
The hunts themselves were an adventure. Starting with the cold, which ranged from -10°C to -15°C. However, the vans provided full-body suits to keep everyone warm. It was also necessary to stay in complete darkness to allow our eyes to adjust, and we often walked on snow withou being able to see the terrain, which always brought surprises. Finally, at the end of each night, we gathered around a campfire to warm ourselves, enjoying dinner and hot tea.
Following we have photos taken by the professionals from Chasing Lights!
First night by Bailey, picturing the Bridge between Sweden and Finland.
Second night by Jefta, picturing strong steady northern lights.
Third night by Karolina, with bursting dancing northern lights.
Fourth night by Renaud, with outstanding northern lights crossing all sky.
Fifth night by Felix, with bright piercing northern lights.
