With strong solar storms forecast over the next few months, the upcoming aurora season is sure to be a particularly beautiful one. To inspire more people to get out there and point their cameras skywards, travel blog Capture the Atlas has released a new batch of stunning shots for its annual Northern Lights Photographer of the Year compilation.
The aurora borealis (or aurora australis in the Southern Hemisphere) is a favored subject for photographers around the world, for obvious reasons. It’s impossible not to be mesmerized by the shimmering streams of color dancing in the sky, and the best shots contrast the lights against an intriguing foreground.
Much of the mystique comes from the journey as well. Most people can’t just step out their back door and snap a stunner. Auroras appear best around the extreme ends of the planet, away from the city lights, in remote terrain that’s often unforgiving. Even then, it’s a game of patience and skill in composition and technique.
The annual Northern Lights Photographer of the Year aims to honor these qualities. The images are curated by Dan Zafra, editor of the photography and travel blog Capture the Atlas, and chosen not only by the quality of the image, but the story behind it as well as just how much it might inspire others to take the journey themselves.
The 2021 collection includes 25 images by photographers of 13 different nationalities and were snapped in the United States, Canada, Russia, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Australia and New Zealand. While the aurora is always the star of the show, a variety of landscapes, like frozen forests, placid lakes, beautiful beaches, mystical mountaintops and volatile volcanoes, threaten to upstage it.
Explore a selection of the best images in our gallery, and if that doesn’t satisfy your aurora appetite, take a peek at last year’s collection.
Source: Capture the Atlas