Best place for aurora borealis

[feppe]

Finland, of course.

[rgs]

Used to live in Fairbanks. There were some spectacular displays there. The local folks never get bored with the lights.

[Bjørn J]

It's a nice film, but like most other timelapses of the Northern Lights, the auroras are moving way too fast!
It is totally unnatural and frenetic, and nothing like watching it for real.

In my opinion the northern parts of Norway are better for photographing the auroras.
The coastal areas with the fjords and mountains makes for far more dramatic photos than the flat woodlands in Finland.
However, the chances for a cloud-free clear sky are better in northern Finland. The weather in the coastal areas of Northern Norway are more unstable, but with the right conditions the auroras can give you an awesome experience.

(BTW, this is my first post here, hello to you all. I am a photographer living in Tromsø, North Norway.)

Bjørn J

The first 3 photos are from the Lofoten islands in September, the last one from a fjord close to Tromsø.

[Eric Myrvaagnes]

Welcome to the forum, Bjørn. Those are excellent shots!

And thanks for posting the video, Harri.

I've never made it farther north than Trondhjem in Norway, and never to Finland at all, but I did have the pleasure of experiencing Northern Lights way down here in Massachusetts, about 30 years ago. It was an awesome experience.

Eric

P.S. My father came from Ålesund.

[EricWHiss]

Beautiful photos, beautiful country!

[PhotoEcosse]

Best display of the Aurora Borealis that I have seen was in northern Saskatchewan, in September, while duck hunting with some Cree Indians at a place called Mistic Lodge on the marshes near Cumberland House.

The problem with still photography is that you can never really portray the flicker of the Aurora which, to the eye, is the essential component of it.

With the increase in solar activity, we have being seeing the Aurora quite often here in Scotland this winter - but not with the intensity you will find in northern Scandinavia or sub-Arctic Canada.