Northern Light Photography with Nikon Z6iii question

[figali]

I recently purchased the Z6iii and spent some time in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada to photograph the Northern Lights. Unfortunately, only one in five pictures was in focus. I would rotate the manual focus ring to infinity and then take multiple pictures as the lights were changing rapidly and constantly. I was using a lens with no auto/manual focus button. I read Steve's focus guide but am not clear on the possibility of setting the focus to constant manual rather than turning the ring before each shot. I would appreciate any suggestion for using this type of lens. Sometimes I simply want to take multiple pictures without changing anything. Thank you.

 

[Mal Paso]

For reasons specific to autofocus current lenses focus Past infinity unlike the old SLRs where focus stopped at infinity. Other than that if it's sharp in the viewfinder I should be sharp at the sensor.

 

[DRwyoming]

I recently purchased the Z6iii and spent some time in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada to photograph the Northern Lights. Unfortunately, only one in five pictures was in focus. I would rotate the manual focus ring to infinity and then take multiple pictures as the lights were changing rapidly and constantly. I was using a lens with no auto/manual focus button. I read Steve's focus guide but am not clear on the possibility of setting the focus to constant manual rather than turning the ring before each shot. I would appreciate any suggestion for using this type of lens. Sometimes I simply want to take multiple pictures without changing anything. Thank you.

I’d set the camera to manual focus and not allow any AF.

 

[JAJohnson]

I read Steve's focus guide but am not clear on the possibility of setting the focus to constant manual rather than turning the ring before each shot. I would appreciate any suggestion for using this type of lens. Sometimes I simply want to take multiple pictures without changing anything. Thank you.

In the Photo Shooting Menu, set Focus Mode to "MF Manual Focus". Use of a12 Focus Peaking may help in confirming that your intended subject is in indeed in focus as you adjust the focus ring on the lens. Once properly set, any further adjustment should be minimal.

 

[Russ4750]

Agree that manual focus is the way to go with Northern Lights and that autofocus should be disabled.

I may not be fully understanding your post, so I apologize if you're already familiar with the following suggestions. When photographing the Northern Lights, you should only need to focus the camera once, at the beginning of the session, assuming the camera and lens are at ambient temperature and are on a tripod. It's best to manually obtain sharp focus on a star or other bright object, like a planet (and not attempt to focus on the Northern Lights themselves). It helps to magnify the image of the star in the viewfinder, then manually adjust focus so that the point of light is as small as possible, which will be infinity focus for your setup. Then it's important not to accidentally bump the focus ring, or you'll have to focus again. But you should not have to focus frequently, as I think I'm understanding you were doing.

 

[ricardo00]

One addition to the advice above, is that after focussing, some photographers use some Gaffer's tape (a non-stick tape) to make sure the focus isn't accidentally changed while working in the cold and dark with potentially gloved hands. Just put some on the focus ring and the barrel of the lens.

 

[GregT943]

How did you like Yellowknife? I'm going there in a few weeks to also hopefully photograph the aurora. Any tips or advice? I'll be renting a car and self driving.

As for focusing, set focus to manual focus mode. On my Z8 I go into starlight mode and zoom way in on the brightest star I can find. I start around the infinity mark on the focus ring and then fine tune the focus by turning the focus ring until the star is as small and sharp as possible. I assume the Z6III also has this capability?

 

[figali]

In the Photo Shooting Menu, set Focus Mode to "MF Manual Focus". Use of a12 Focus Peaking may help in confirming that your intended subject is in indeed in focus as you adjust the focus ring on the lens. Once properly set, any further adjustment should be minimal.

Thank you JAJohnson. For some reason I missed this setting as the camera was new just before this trip. I was used to the manual/auto button on my lenses with the mirror. I expect my night pictures to be much improved. So simple! Thanks again.

 

[JAJohnson]

Thank you JAJohnson. For some reason I missed this setting as the camera was new just before this trip. I was used to the manual/auto button on my lenses with the mirror. I expect my night pictures to be much improved. So simple! Thanks again.

You’re welcome!

 

[figali]

How did you like Yellowknife? I'm going there in a few weeks to also hopefully photograph the aurora. Any tips or advice? I'll be renting a car and self driving.

As for focusing, set focus to manual focus mode. On my Z8 I go into starlight mode and zoom way in on the brightest star I can find. I start around the infinity mark on the focus ring and then fine tune the focus by turning the focus ring until the star is as small and sharp as possible. I assume the Z6III also has this capability?

I enjoyed Yellowknife. We were there in September in our RV and had to wait till 11:00 - 12:00 to go out since it was still light. Since you are under the aurora band, the lights can be seen in almost any direction. I recommend driving out Ingraham Road to stop at a number of lakes to photograph the Northern Lights with good reflection. However, if the lakes are frozen and covered with snow there may be none. There are no other roads away from Yellowknife that have no light pollution. My favorite is Pontoon Lake where you can go off the trail and find a spot where reflections can be seen about 270 degrees. Other spots are Prosperous Lake, Powder Point, and the beach (day use area parking) at Long Lake in Yellowknife. You could probably stop along the road anywhere, but parking is not always available. We also went to Hay River and Fort Smith which was also interesting. It should be wonderful, and the Aurora is forecast to be strong this winter. We are taking the Hurtigruten Coastal Cruise in three weeks since I wasn't very pleased with my pictures.

Thanks for your advice. Somehow, I missed the ability to go to manual focus mode.

 

[figali]

Agree that manual focus is the way to go with Northern Lights and that autofocus should be disabled.

I may not be fully understanding your post, so I apologize if you're already familiar with the following suggestions. When photographing the Northern Lights, you should only need to focus the camera once, at the beginning of the session, assuming the camera and lens are at ambient temperature and are on a tripod. It's best to manually obtain sharp focus on a star or other bright object, like a planet (and not attempt to focus on the Northern Lights themselves). It helps to magnify the image of the star in the viewfinder, then manually adjust focus so that the point of light is as small as possible, which will be infinity focus for your setup. Then it's important not to accidentally bump the focus ring, or you'll have to focus again. But you should not have to focus frequently, as I think I'm understanding you were doing.

Thanks Russ, I understand how to focus but was simply unaware of the available manual focus mode. The camera was new I wasn't prepared.

 

[Neil H.]

The advice to use magnified live view to focus on a star and get it as small as possible is spot on. If you wish you could then lock focus. This will have it set up for the sky for the duration of the shoot. Night photography is ALL manual settings, and if your lens has image stabilisation switch it off. When you have finished shooting the sky, have a look at the foreground in your images. If not sharp you may want to shoot foregrounds after re-focusing. If you are low trying to get reflections in pools you will almost certainly want to focus stack as well. If it is very dark you should consider some light painting. If interested in the latter just Google Richard Tatti and be amazed.

 

[figali]

The advice to use magnified live view to focus on a star and get it as small as possible is spot on. If you wish you could then lock focus. This will have it set up for the sky for the duration of the shoot. Night photography is ALL manual settings, and if your lens has image stabilisation switch it off. When you have finished shooting the sky, have a look at the foreground in your images. If not sharp you may want to shoot foregrounds after re-focusing. If you are low trying to get reflections in pools you will almost certainly want to focus stack as well. If it is very dark you should consider some light painting. If interested in the latter just Google Richard Tatti and be amazed.

Thank you for your advice. Much appreciated.