The Northern Lights
For the past few months, I’ve been obsessing about Aurora Borealis, also known as The Northern Lights – not that I need an excuse to plan a trip to Norther Canada, Serbia or Norway. Sign me up. The images of this natural wonder are, well, wonderful.
They’re like a spell from Albus Dumbledore.
They could be from the brush of Thomas Kinkade, Painter of Light 
Or suddenly appear in an episode of J.J. Abrams LOST.
Northern Lights by Flickr user Joar Andre
The Northern Lights appear magical, conjured, out-of-this-world and spell binding. Who wouldn’t want to see them?In anticipation of Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington bringing us Season 2 of The Idiot Abroad, The Bucket List, I figured the Northern Lights would be a good topic. I’m really not a fan of ‘bucket lists’ – it’s kind of annoying phrase, but renaming this topic to Pail Tally reeks of pretense. So begrudgingly, it’s bucket list.
But back to the Northern Lights.
Northern Lights by Flickr user Kaimp
They appeal to me on several levels -
- It’s a far away trip to a place I’ve never visited
- It involves lots of photography
- I’d eat a ton of seafood
- It would reveal unforgettable imagery
Northern Lights by Flick user 11304375@N07
Norway and the Northern Lights (obviously Northern Canada or Alaska would suffice). I love getting up early with camera, although in this case, it would mean staying up late. Either way, the thought of standing patiently outside in freezing temperatures, waiting for the skies to clear, wary of my eyelid sticking to my viewfinder sounds like….heaven. After all, aren’t the Northern Lights almost like a glimpse of heaven?
Connecting with nature...
Since grabbing this image at dusk in the Valley of Fire, I’ve been more serious about photography and the natural environment. Instead of simply planning travel to travel, I’ve been thinking about travel for photography. I’d like to think that I’m becoming more serious about life, finding new connections to our environment and slowly building a more beautiful legacy to leave behind. Time will tell, but in the meantime, that’s my path.
So, the Northern Lights it is. Hvordan sier man dette på norsk?
Where would you go, camera in hand?
