With all my advance planning, I didn't originally book with Arctic Guide Service for our northern lights chases. I didn't plan on a chase for our first day in Norway because I thought we'd be too jet lagged. However, in checking the weather the week before our departure, it looked like the first night was going to be the clearest in terms of weather so we decided to go for it. Booking a northern lights trip on short notice didn't leave us with many choices, but I am sooo glad that Artic Guide Service was our choice!
We saw the best display of the northern lights of all our chases (and we did two others besides this with other companies). In truth, I can't credit the good luck to Arctic Guide Service, but I can credit them with taking us to three fantastic locations for viewing.
In the first location, the lights were present, but very dim. My husband and I were honestly disappointed and we wondered if we traveled all this way for something we aren't really even sure we saw. The guides were helpful in telling you what setting to put your cell phone in for manual setting, but the night mode worked the best for me as long as you could hold the camera steady for a few seconds.
The second and third locations made up for the first and then some - the lights were big and bright and shimmering and magnificent! They were breathtaking! I will never forget this experience for all of my days. We saw them with our naked eyes very well, but truth be told, you camera captures them even better than your eye can. If you just have a cell phone point it up and snap as many as you can because you don't know what you will get until you look at them later. They move and change.
At the third location, the guides took two professional photos of everyone with a proper camera and a tripod and they took professional photos of just the aurora too. Their website was very easy to use to download the photos. They do look terrific on our cameras, laptops and cast to our TV. I haven't tried to print any yet so I can't speak to the resolution if you want to blow them up. We have plenty of photos of our own as well. They had hot chocolate and cookies for everyone, which was very nice.
We dressed properly and were comfortable even though it was -15C. You must dress properly and it helps to have a glove liner with fingers that will react with the screen once you take off your mittens because you can't take photos with mittens. Honestly, if you purchase good warm fingered gloves that can work the screen, you will be fine. Hat, wool layers, snow pants, coat and boots are essential.
So be a cool kid and sit at the back of the bus like us and enjoy the celestial show!