Most Northern Lights photos show vivid green, but strong displays add violet, pink and even red. The colours aren't random — they depend on which gas the solar particles hit, and at what altitude.
What each colour comes from
- Green — the most common colour, from oxygen at around 100–150 km altitude.
- Red — from oxygen higher up, above 200 km, and rarer.
- Blue and violet/purple — from nitrogen, usually at the lower edges of a strong display.
During a powerful geomagnetic storm you can see all of these at once, filling the whole sky.
What your eyes see vs the camera
Cameras are far more sensitive to colour than the human eye in the dark. To your eyes, a faint aurora often looks greenish-white or grey — while your camera reveals the full green and violet. On active nights, though, the colours are vivid to the naked eye too. This is why aurora photography is so rewarding.
The reflection effect
When the aurora appears above a frozen lake, the ice mirrors the colours below you — guests consistently describe standing between two auroras as the most beautiful thing they've ever seen. Our guides know exactly which frozen lakes near Rovaniemi deliver this.