Aurora captured over Oxford
An Oxford Area School Observatory astrophotographer has captured a magical image of the township bathed in the beauty of the Aurora Australis.
Gary Naulls took the photograph just before midnight on June 1 at his Ashley Gorge Road home overlooking the township.
He set his Canon RP mirrorless camera, fitted with a Sigma 40mm prime lens up inside before heading out into the chilly darkness.
''I set the exposure to M (manual), focus is set to manual as well.
''I used the lens near or at full aperture.
In this case, I was at f1.8, with ISO set to 1600,'' he said.
He uses a cable release to shoot the images and a tripod for stabilising his camera, but said sitting it on a solid surface would work just as well.
''This aurora was pretty bright, so I was using a shutter speed of 3.2 seconds.
''Sometimes I use a longer shutter speed, but there is a limit before the stars start to trail and turn into eggshaped objects.
''This will also depend on the focal length of the lens being used.
I focus using live view on a bright star, and once I am happy with the focus, I compose the image, and take the image.
''The aurora is in a southern direction, so aim your camera in that general direction, and off you go.''
To keep track of when Auroroa Australis, which is also known as the Southern Lights in the southern hemisphere, might be coming out to play Gary has downloaded two free apps to his mobile phone.
''One is called AuroraNotifier, and the other is called Aurora,'' he says.
The apps send alerts when there is a chance of seeing an aurora, at any time, during the day, in the middle of the night, and while it is raining.
''There is a Kp scale that ranges up to Kp 9.0. At the moment it is Kp 0.67. Once the Kp value goes past 5.0, I will go out and try some test shots to see if the camera can see any aurora activity,'' he says.
Sometimes there is nothing, other times the aurora is visible.
''It is not a continuous light show.
''It will flair up, it will die down, and then it will flair up again.
''You just have to be patient, sometimes it will fall flat, other times it will be very active.''
Although perseverance is required to capture aurora magic, owning an expensive camera and lense is not necessary.
''Try your mobile phone,'' Gary says. ''I have seen some fantastic pictures taken with phones.
''You don't need to own a camera.''
Although auroras, which are known as Aurora Borealis in the northern hemisphere, happen all year round around the world, in New Zealand the best time to see them is during June and July.
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Otago Daily Times
26-06-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Aurora captured over Oxford
By Shelley Topp An Oxford Area School Observatory astrophotographer has captured a magical image of the township bathed in the beauty of the Aurora Australis. Gary Naulls took the photograph just before midnight on June 1 at his Ashley Gorge Road home overlooking the township. He set his Canon RP mirrorless camera, fitted with a Sigma 40mm prime lens up inside before heading out into the chilly darkness. ''I set the exposure to M (manual), focus is set to manual as well. ''I used the lens near or at full aperture. In this case, I was at f1.8, with ISO set to 1600,'' he said. He uses a cable release to shoot the images and a tripod for stabilising his camera, but said sitting it on a solid surface would work just as well. ''This aurora was pretty bright, so I was using a shutter speed of 3.2 seconds. ''Sometimes I use a longer shutter speed, but there is a limit before the stars start to trail and turn into eggshaped objects. ''This will also depend on the focal length of the lens being used. I focus using live view on a bright star, and once I am happy with the focus, I compose the image, and take the image. ''The aurora is in a southern direction, so aim your camera in that general direction, and off you go.'' To keep track of when Auroroa Australis, which is also known as the Southern Lights in the southern hemisphere, might be coming out to play Gary has downloaded two free apps to his mobile phone. ''One is called AuroraNotifier, and the other is called Aurora,'' he says. The apps send alerts when there is a chance of seeing an aurora, at any time, during the day, in the middle of the night, and while it is raining. ''There is a Kp scale that ranges up to Kp 9.0. At the moment it is Kp 0.67. Once the Kp value goes past 5.0, I will go out and try some test shots to see if the camera can see any aurora activity,'' he says. Sometimes there is nothing, other times the aurora is visible. ''It is not a continuous light show. ''It will flair up, it will die down, and then it will flair up again. ''You just have to be patient, sometimes it will fall flat, other times it will be very active.'' Although perseverance is required to capture aurora magic, owning an expensive camera and lense is not necessary. ''Try your mobile phone,'' Gary says. ''I have seen some fantastic pictures taken with phones. ''You don't need to own a camera.'' Although auroras, which are known as Aurora Borealis in the northern hemisphere, happen all year round around the world, in New Zealand the best time to see them is during June and July.
NZ Herald
02-06-2025
- NZ Herald
Dazzling aurora lights up New Zealand's skies, display may return tonight
By If you missed out on the aurora light show that lit up southern lights on Sunday night, you might have another chance, as night falls on King's Birthday Monday. Aurora Australis, the colourful natural phenomenon also called the southern lights, put on a
RNZ News
02-06-2025
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Dazzling aurora scenes delight as strong displays seen from many places
Photographers braved the cold on Sunday night to capture colourful aurora images, with a bright active display visible even from some places in the North Island. Photo: Supplied/ Grant Birley If you missed out on the aurora light show that lit up southern lights on Sunday night, you might have another chance, as night falls on King's Birthday Monday. Aurora Australis, the colourful natural phenomenon also called the southern lights, put on a strong display visible in the night sky across many parts of New Zealand on Sunday night, prompting photographers to set up their tripods during the largely cloudless but cold night, to capture the lights. Astronomer and Otago Museum director, Dr Ian Griffin, told RNZ the spectacular display was unusual as it was seen further north than usual. "Last night's clear skies across the country gave everybody a really good chance to see what I think is one of the greatest shows on earth." 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"One of the coolest thing about New Zealand is it's pretty much the only place in the world where you can watch an aurora in the middle of summer, wearing shorts and jandals." Australia & New Zealand are getting some nice aurora right now, here's the view from Queenstown, NZ! We are currently at G2 storm level (we did hit Hp30=8 earlier). Solar wind speed is currently very high (900+ km/s), but Bt and Bz are not very favourable. We are still in the… On Sunday night some Australian aurora fans also got a glimpse of the lights, which are rarely spotted across the ditch. ABC reported spotters as far north as Tamworth north of Sydney, in New South Wales had seen the lights. Photographers usually use special astrophotography settings on their cameras to capture aurora, but Sunday's display was also visible to the naked eye, and would have looked closer to this. Photo: Supplied/ Dan Bailey Cressida Toorenburg told the ABC she had seen the natural light show from East Devonport, in Tasmania, after the clouds cleared away. "We sat for half an hour in the hope that the clouds would move away and then wow," she said. "There was Lady Aurora! It was breathtaking - you could see her with the naked eye, but much bigger and brighter through the screen on my phone." Toorenburg said she has lived in the area for seven years and never seen an aurora as dazzling. "The colours were so beautiful and vibrant," she said. From Lake Ellesmere on Sunday. Photo: Supplied/ Grant Birley - RNZ/ ABC Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
