March 26: Aurora Chasing Tour

I had the privilege of going on one of Ronn and Marketa Murray’s aurora chasing tours last night. The lights decided to make us earn that tour name, plus there were some clouds, so we drove to Nenana first then double-backed and ended up at the pipeline viewing spot in Fox. I got some nice shots and learned about Aperture Priority and a bit more about my camera.

We spent quite a bit of time driving, but it was nice to not be the one driving, to be able to look out the window and enjoy the scenery, and to get to know Ronn, Marketa and Pattie a bit more.  There was a rather funny retired man named Art, and a mother/daughter (I think) who were pretty quiet most of the time, but they seemed nice and like they were having a good time learning.  Everyone else but me had been out previously with R&M so the group seemed comfortable talking, at least to R&M.

We first went to Nenana which is about an hour away from Fairbanks.  We drove down by the bridge and the first place we scoped out was not what Ronn wanted so we started to move closer to the bridge when the tour bus got stuck in the snow.  R&M hopped to action, first thinking they might be able to just rock their way out, but eventually getting out the chains.  Once the chains were attached, Ronn backed the tour bus up ALL THE WAY BACK to where we have first stopped, which was quite a remarkable task considering the area was not lit very well.  Then we moved forward to an area that was safe enough to take the chains off and continued on our way to finding a good spot by the bridge.

Once I got my tripod set up, Ronn came over to teach me a bit about my camera, since he has the same model in his collections of cameras.  He used a lot of words that I think I should know: metering, white balance, etc. and showed me how to affect those settings on my camera.  He went through the menus and explained things quickly, but he was also very clear.  And just like that I learned about how to shoot aurora in Aperture Priority last night. Pretty neat stuff! I just need to remember about changing the white balance and the <something about a number from 3200 – 45000 here> setting for when the conditions change. I’ve figure I’ve got some reading and _learning_ to do this summer!

After a bit of time taking pictures of the bridge and the lights, the aurora slowed down and all but disappeared.  Clouds were also becoming more problematic and the ever vigilante Marketa got on her phone to find us some clear skies.  The decision to return to the Fairbanks area was made and we settled in for the ride home.

As we got closer to town, we had to decide on where to go.  Ronn asked Marketa if we should do Murphy Dome or Cleary Summit, aka Skiland.  After a bit of discussion with her furiously checking webcams, data and weather reports, she said Cleary Summit so off we went!   As we got closer to the pipeline viewing spot, noticing that it was after 2am already, the lights started to just barely pickup and sensing that the end of the show for the night, as well as the tour, Ronn asked if we wanted to stop at the pipeline or keep going.  After hearing a few stories of my adventures in aurora chasing during the trip, I chimed in with a previously used and somewhat humor inducing phrase of “PULL OVER NOW!”

So we pulled into the pipeline viewing spot, gathered our gear and set up.  The lights were faint at first but they picked up a small amount to give us some decent pictures.

Of note, it was a balmy 30-40F between the two locations and though I had brought gear for colder weather, I never even put on my jacket.  A fleece jacket with snow pants and a pair of light-weight/liner gloves was plenty to keep me warm.

The Murrays are super nice and I’d highly recommend their tour for anyone looking to get out, see the lights, learn about shooting them and be well cared for, whether you are a local or a tourist: http://www.ronnmurrayphoto.com/NorthernLightsTours/TourOptions/Winter-Aurora-Alaska

I’m still tired. I don’t know how people do this night after night after night after night and then get anything done during the day!

Nenana Bridge.  Sony A6000. Aperture Priority, ISO 1600

Pipeline viewing spot in Fox. Sony A6000. Aperture Priority, ISO 1600

 

Post processing playing with contrast.

Post processing playing with contrast and the Big Dipper.