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Peter Hollinger | all galleries >> Galleries >> Greenland 2003 > Aurora Borealis
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16-SEP-2003 Peter Hollinger

Aurora Borealis

Scoresby Sund, Greenland

Tough to shoot hand-held on a boat. The color is much more intense than the human eye can see.

Canon PowerShot G3
2s f/2.5 at 7.2mm hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time16-Sep-2003 18:31:45
MakeCanon
ModelPowerShot G3
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length7.2 mm
Exposure Time2.00 sec
Aperturef/2.5
ISO Equivalent
Exposure Bias-1.00
White Balance (-1)
Metering Modematrix (5)
JPEG Quality (6)
Exposure Program
Focus Distance

other sizes: small medium large original auto
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rsub818-Apr-2005 19:41
Peter, that comment helped to clarify something that I've wondered about for some time. I remember seeing the aurorae "above" Lake Michigan one winter evening, looking north from Evanston (Chicago), around 1986. It was intense and weird, but looked white or yellowish-beige-white. Nothing like the green or reddish hues often depicted. So the reason is quantum efficiency...
Peter Hollinger04-Feb-2005 02:34
Thanks, Eric! The human eye loses color vision in dim light (the monochrome 'rods' are more sensitive than the color 'cones'). To the naked eye, these aurorae looked more white (or gray) than green. But the time exposure in the camera brought out the real color. I know there can be much brighter shows after solar storms -- I've seen some fantastic galleries here on PBase.
Eric03-Feb-2005 17:44
I have GOT to see this in person. Don't you mean the colors are more intense than can be captured by a camera? Pretty steady shot for 2s handheld on a boat.