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How to photograph the northern lights with a phone or camera

Practical, source-checked settings for photographing the aurora: phone night modes, manual ISO, shutter and focus, tripods, why cameras see more colour than your eyes, and cold-weather battery tips.

Before you start: get the aurora first

The camera only helps when the aurora is there to record. Check the forecast, find clear skies and get away from city lights. Our Aurora tonight page reads NOAA's forecast for the next 24 hours, and the Kp index guide explains how strong activity needs to be for your latitude. NOAA notes that the best displays usually come within an hour or two of local midnight. [1]

Pick your spot in daylight if you can. A low, open view to the north matters most in the contiguous US, because aurora there usually sits near the northern horizon. A foreground such as trees, a lake or a building edge makes photos easier to frame and focus. [1] [2]

Why your camera sees more colour than your eyes

In dim light the human eye relies mostly on rod cells, which are sensitive but do not distinguish colour well. That is why faint aurora often looks grey or whitish to the eye. A camera sensor collects light for seconds at a time and records colour throughout. NASA notes that digital sensors can record auroras you cannot see with the naked eye. [2] [3]

The colours themselves are real. NASA explains that oxygen emits green or red light and nitrogen emits blue and pink. Red aurora, from oxygen high in the atmosphere, is the colour most often seen from lower latitudes, because it sits highest and can be seen from farther away. [2] [4] So if a photo shows a red or pink glow that you could barely see, that is normal, not a processing trick. Heavy editing can still exaggerate it, so keep edits modest if you want an honest record.

Phones: use the built-in night mode first

On iPhone 11 and later, Night mode switches on automatically in low light. Apple's guidance is to hold the phone steady until the capture finishes, or better, place it on a solid surface or tripod. From the Night mode control you can push the slider to Max for a longer capture. [5]

On Google Pixel phones, Night Sight handles low light. Apple and Google both say a steady phone matters. Pixel's Astrophotography mode switches on when the phone is held still on a stand or tripod, and Google's help page also describes setting focus to Far for night-sky shots. On Pixel 4a (5G) and later it needs a zoom of 1x or more. [6]

Other Android phones often have a Night mode and a Pro or Manual mode, but names and limits vary by manufacturer. Check your phone maker's help pages. In a Pro mode, the camera settings below apply to phones too, within the range your phone allows.

Phone tips that apply to almost any model: turn the flash off; wipe the lens; use the 3-second or 10-second self-timer so tapping the screen doesn't shake the phone; and lower your screen brightness to protect your night vision. Google's guide suggests the last two as well. [6] Take several frames, because aurora brightness and shape change from minute to minute.

Cameras: a manual starting point

With a dedicated camera, use manual exposure (M), a wide-angle lens, the widest aperture your lens offers (the smallest f-number), and a tripod. Nikon's aurora guide shows example exposures of about 6 seconds at f/1.8 and ISO 1600, and 6 seconds at f/2.8 and ISO 3200. [7] Treat these as a starting point, not a rule.

Then adjust from the result on your screen. If the aurora is bright and moving fast, shorten the exposure (for example to 2–5 seconds) and raise ISO so the curtains and rays stay sharp. If it is faint and still, lengthen the exposure (for example 10–15 seconds) or open the aperture. Very long exposures smear moving aurora into a flat glow and turn stars into short trails.

Focus is the most common failure. Autofocus usually cannot lock in the dark, so switch to manual focus. Nikon notes that turning the lens to its infinity mark is an okay start, but you should check a magnified view of a bright star on the screen and adjust, because many lenses focus slightly past infinity. [7] Once focused, a small piece of tape on the focus ring stops it drifting.

Shoot in RAW if your camera allows it, so you can correct white balance and noise later. Turn off image stabilisation when the camera is on a tripod, and use a remote release or the self-timer. Keep the screen dim, and check the histogram rather than how bright the screen looks: a dark-adapted eye makes every preview look brighter than it is.

Cold, batteries and condensation

Cold drains batteries quickly. NASA's packing list for aurora photography includes extra camera batteries or a phone battery pack, and suggests keeping them in a pocket because cold batteries lose power quickly. It also lists warm layers, a tripod and a red headlight to protect your night vision. [2]

Apple says iPhones are designed for ambient temperatures between 0° and 35° C (32° to 95° F). In very cold conditions, battery life can temporarily shorten, the device might not charge, and it could turn off. Battery life returns to normal once the device warms up. [8] Other phones behave similarly. Keep the phone in an inside pocket between shots, and carry a short cable and power bank.

When you come back indoors, cold gear attracts condensation. A common precaution is to seal the camera in a bag before going inside and let it warm slowly, then dry it. Remove memory cards first if you want to copy photos straight away.

Dress for standing still, not hiking. UAF warns visitors to interior Alaska that extreme cold can turn small problems into serious ones. [9] Tell someone where you are going, park safely off the road, and don't walk onto ice or across roads in the dark to get a shot.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. NOAA SWPC: Tips on Viewing the Aurora https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/tips-viewing-aurora
2. NASA Science: NASA's Guide to Finding and Photographing Auroras https://science.nasa.gov/feature/nasas-guide-to-finding-and-photographing-auroras/
3. U.S. National Park Service, Denali: Aurora Borealis & the Night Sky https://www.nps.gov/dena/learn/nature/aurora.htm
4. NASA Science: Auroras https://science.nasa.gov/sun/auroras/
5. Apple Support: Use Night mode on your iPhone https://support.apple.com/en-us/102519
6. Google Pixel Camera Help: Take photos in low light or at night on your Pixel phone or tablet https://support.google.com/pixelcamera/answer/9708795?hl=en
7. Nikon USA: Awesome Skies, tips and techniques for photographing the northern lights https://www.nikonusa.com/learn-and-explore/c/tips-and-techniques/awesome-skies-tips-and-techniques-for-photographing-the-northern-lights
8. Apple Support: If your iPhone or iPad gets too hot or too cold https://support.apple.com/en-us/118431
9. University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute: Aurora Forecast and FAQ https://www.gi.alaska.edu/monitors/aurora-forecast

Sources were checked on 2026-10-21. Text on this page is original. Quoted figures are attributed and linked to the source. General education only, not for safety or operational decisions. Disclaimer.