Second evening in a row where the French sky is adorned with magnificent northern lights. Do you want to capture them with your smartphone? Here we go for some super simple tips!
Seeing the Northern Lights in France, it’s not every day that you can enjoy them! With a few tips and the right equipment (your smartphone, in this case), taking great photos of this incredible phenomenon is well within your reach. You’ll see, it’s a bit like fireworks.
The basics so as not to miss your shot
First thing, stabilize your smartphone. A tripod is great, but a rock or a bench will also do the trick to avoid blurry photos.
Here are our tips for taking beautiful photos without professional equipment:
- Stick your elbows against your body
- Find a wall or other support to place your phone
- Avoid being too close to your photographer neighbors
- Buy a small tripod
Yes, even if they will not be as effective as large, real tripods, you can find affordable and very practical mini-tripods that will do the trick. Let us cite for example the famous GorillaPod from Joby or the Fotopro tripod for just under 30 euros which have the particularity of being very flexible and modular and directly integrating the adapter to attach the smartphone. It is also possible to buy a much taller tripod, to get above the crowd, like the Amazon Basics 127, 152, 157 or 170 cm tripods.
Afterwards, switch to manual (or pro) mode to better control the exposure and keep the ISO low to avoid noise in your photo. And don’t forget to set the focus to infinity so that everything is sharp.
Game-changing apps
For iPhone users: NightCap Camera
Specially designed for low light conditions, NightCap Camera is great for night photos. It even has a special Northern Lights mode that adjusts everything so that the colors stand out perfectly.
For Android users: Camera FV-5
With Camera FV-5 you have complete control, like with a pro camera. You can adjust everything: exposure, ISO, and even exposure time to capture maximum light.
These apps are great, but let’s be honest, they don’t work miracles. Smartphone sensors aren’t as good as real cameras, especially in the dark. And sometimes photos may lose quality due to image compression.
But with a little practice and patience, you just might capture something extraordinary. So get ready, tonight might just be the night you take your best photo. Good luck and good catches!
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