How to Photograph the Northern Lights

Set the DSLR camera on a tripod. A remote shutter will prevent camera shake, but is not necessary. Set the camera to an ISO of around 400. Anything lower will not be enough to capture the light of the dark sky, and anything higher will create noise and graininess within the picture.

Turn on the noise reduction setting on the camera. Some DSLRs will have this type of setting, but other cameras will not have a setting because they reduce noise automatically. Check the camera's manual to see which type your camera is.

Widen the aperture on the camera. Generally, lower f/stops will capture the best photographs. Settings such as 2.8 or 4 will work well. Set the camera's shutter speed to either 15 or 30 seconds. A 30-second shutter speed will let more light into the camera than a 15-second shutter speed will.

Press the shutter release button and wait for the photograph to be taken. You will have to wait a few more seconds after the shutter closes in order for the photograph to develop. If the photograph is too dark, increase the shutter speed. If the photograph is too bright, decrease the shutter speed.

Adjust the in-camera white balance if desired. This will alter the colors of the auras in the sky. Options for white balance range from "Flourescent," "Tungsten" and "Flash," to "Daylight," "Cloudy," "Shade" and "Auto."