Caught between a dream and reality.
There’s a point in any strong aurora storm where the world around you fades away, and all you can do is look up. Hypnotized by the dazzling display of sapphire and jade dancing across the sky at incredible speeds.
As a photographer, it can be incredibly difficult to step away from moments like this and simply enjoy the spectacle in front of you. Afraid to miss a single shot, we often enjoy the landscape through the lens. But even our best attempt at capturing it is only a fraction of what it was like in person.
Unlike any of my previous experiences with aurora, I decided to put the camera away for a while, and take in this scene hands free. Lying on my back in the snow as ribbons of aurora dashed from horizon to horizon, and waves crashed against the cliffs 1,000 feet below, was my favorite experience from over two months spent in Norway that year. To feel the minuscule nature of being a human under the enormity of the aurora is a reverential experience I’ll remember for the rest of my life.
Artist: Elliot Hawkey
Location: Senja, Norway
