The Northern Lights

 

The stars and planets must have aligned in spectacular fashion on Monday as the Aurora Watch App was banging out Red Alerts throughout the day - and it coincided with being on vacation for a change!. It warned "Significant activity likely -viewing the Aurora Borealis from anywhere in the UK was very likely". There was a problem with the Red Alerts though, they occurred during the day when viewing the Aurora from good old Terra Firma was going to be impossible. The waves of solar activity hitting the earths magnetic fields needed to happen during the night time hours so it would be visible.

Throughout the day I kept a close eye on the Aurora activity alerts and hoped that they would turn red after dark and I could go out and enjoy the light show.

I waited. By 10.30 pm the alerts were only showing in the amber region of disturbance after being well in the red for most part of the evening. It was looking touch and go whether the Northern Lights were going to make an appearance.

At 11.30 pm I had to make a decision as the alerts were only amber. I had the option of throwing the towel in and going to bed or I could choose to roll the dice and try my luck.

I chose the second option , grabbed my camera kit, jumped in the car and headed North to the Blorenge.

At midnight I arrived at the Keepers car park that is on the border between Monmouthshire and Torfaen. 

It was alike a scene from Mad Max! The location has become very popular indeed to those wishing to a catch a glimpse of the Aurora Borealis.  The car park was full, the surrounding roads had lots of cars parked on the road verges. People were everywhere. Eager photographers had set up around the pond with their tripods, groups of people had gathered around make shift camp fires and barbecues and cars raced past with music blaring. Some brave souls appeared to have even taken a dip in the cold waters of the pond and were walking around with towels. I was fortunate to find a car park space as someone was just leaving. So I got my camera kit and a torch - then walked to edge of the pond. As I walked I was greeted with a waft off smoke and the strong smell of skunk cannabis. I then joined another photographer who had travelled all the way from Bristol and had a quick chat, sharing our camera settings and he gave me the good news - the Aurora was showing well.

I trained my camera lens on the Northern Sky and clicked away. Indeed the Northern Lights were showing. The skies above the Sugarloaf had turned a lovely pink magenta with hues of blue,green and yellow.

The skies were quite clear but clouds were starting to slowly creep in and form a thin veil over the twinkling stars.

I loved the way the colours of the night sky were reflected on the surface of the Keepers Pond. For the month of August it was surprisingly cold and a biting wind was whipping up.

In the picture its looks very serene and calm but if anything it was total opposite. The noise of cars speeding by the Keepers, horns beeping, dance music beating out and cackles of laughter from some excited ( and possibly drunk/high) spectators gave it all a "Mad Max feel" to it all.

I yearned for a bit of solace and silence where I could enjoy the Northern lights without feeling on edge all the time.

I said my good byes to the photographer from Bristol and left to find somewhere different and preferably devoid of noisy people.

My inner intuition and knowledge of the area told me to go the Garn Lakes. The location was once a scar on the landscape caused by the industrial level coal mining that occurred in its past. I can remember as a child in the 70's seeing the black colliery waste tips at Garn-Y-erw. It looks very different now. My ancestors on my fathers side once lived in  number 4 Lower Garn Terrace and they would be truly amazed at the view they would have now. The land has been transformed from a  ravaged scarred landscape into a beautiful nature reserve.

The lakes are a good location for astrophotography as its very dark - with the exception of the twinkling street lights of the terrace streets.

I parked my car and stood for a minute in the dark and listened to the sound of silence whilst breathing in the fresh night air. The wind had calmed and it was just "nice". 

There was not a soul around and it appeared I had the place to myself - lovely. I did though think of my close friend Paul Joy and miss his company. Unfortunately he was not able to make it. I missed his enthusiasm and also the banter we have.

I love being out in the night and always have since I was a kid. I feel the  darkness brings a calmness to things, life seems more tranquil and quieter.

Setting up my camera I gazed across the lower lake and marvelled at the scene in front of me. A magenta sky and the Northern Lights dancing before me ,with Perseid meteors raining from above throigh a veil of wispy clouds.

My grandsires must be looking down from the heavens in absolute awe and probably would have never dreamed that their grandson would be taking photographs of the Aurora Borealis opposite their old home in Blaenavon.

I explored the Garn further and walked to a bench that lies between both of the lakes. I have enjoyed many a good cycle ride in the past and sat on the bench after the hard 11 mile climb from Pontypool to catch my breath. I was often accompanied by good friends and we would put the world to right and have a laugh or two, those old memories put a smile on my face.

I never thought I would stand on that same bench one day and watch the Northern Lights.

Time passes by quickly when your enjoying yourself and before I knew it, the witching hour ( an old term I used to use to describe the depths of night) was approaching. 

At 3 am the Aurora appeared to be fading and the clouds were now catching a shroud over the skies.

For the last time, I gazed up at the heavens and watched the rays of light dance away as the curtain of clouds closed ending the astronomical performance for the night.

Another marvellous memory to cherish.

Camera kit and settings.

Nikon Z6 (first model) Full frame  Mirrorless. ( Nikons first mirrorless and my favourite all round camera for landscapes - although my new Olympus OM-1 is extremely good and exceeds it now in many areas).

Nikon Z 24-70 mm lens F4 (A wonderfully sharp lens that I would highly recommend).

XQD memory cards.

Manfrotto Travel Tripod (Essential for night photography).

Camera Settings -

1. Aperture F4
2. Shutter speed 2.5 to 3 seconds
3. ISO - 3000-4000
4. White Balance - 3200K
5. Manual Focus (set your camera up to focus to infinity)
6. Shoot in Raw file format

Post Processing -

1. Adobe Photoshop
2. Luminar Neo
3. Topaz DeNoise.

Overall made minor changes to exposure and contrast. Tools such as Dehaze in camera raw, contrast and sharpness adjustments in Photoshop and Luminar.

Topaz used to clean up the noise from images.