Originally Posted by
SirReadsAlot
Most importantly, for a truly compelling aurora shot, don't forget about your composition. It seems that most aurora shots that I see posted are typically a shot with the camera pointed up into the sky with the tips of some trees sticking into the frame with the aurora filling the rest of the frame. The lights might look beautiful but that doesn't necessarily make it a compelling photo.
Quoted for emphasis. I had the same conversation with another photographer recently about shooting the Milky Way. Its easy to get a generic photo of the sky but one with a good foreground really makes the photo a winner.
Unfortunately, I rarely see either the Northern Lights or the Milky Way around here due to light pollution. I've seen the Lights exactly twice - one here in Illinois just by luck and once in North Dakota twenty years ago. I tried to get photos but what I thought might be enough exposure, turned out to be not. This was on Kodachrome 64.
I do a lot of night shooting under the full moon; typically two to four minutes long. I highly recommend a good sturdy tripod as nighttime is often windy. Bring along a rubber band or tape or something to secure the camera strap so it doesn't flap around in the wind and shake the camera. Yes, be aware where infinity focus is; your autofocus lenses usually will focus past infinity and if you shoot with it that way everything in the picture will be out of focus.
One more tip: Bring along reading glasses. First thing that happened to me as I got older, I couldn't see clearly in dim light. Its frustrating trying to zoom into a picture on the camera's monitor and not be able to tell if its sharp or not due to bad eyesight. Your mileage may vary. Have fun!