Northern Lights in Lofoten

Some nights whisper. Others shout. This one? It kicked the door in.

A G2 geomagnetic storm rolled across the Arctic and lit up Lofoten like a cosmic firework finale. Curtains of green, sudden bursts of pink, and fast-moving structures that demanded speed, mobility, and zero faffing about. Exactly my kind of night.

I was out with my Sony A7S III, boots buried in fresh snow, wind nibbling at my ears, and two absolute heroes attached to the camera: the Platypod Traveler and Platypod Delta from Platypod.

Speed wins aurora nights

Aurora photography is not about setting up camp and waiting politely. It is about reacting. That G2 storm went from “oh hello” to “are you kidding me?” in minutes. I needed fast deployment, rock-solid stability, and the freedom to move every few seconds as the sky evolved.

This is where Platypod shines. The Traveler x Delta combo was perfect when I wanted to stay ultra-light and low, dropped straight onto compacted snow, feet splayed just enough to bite in. The Delta came out when the wind picked up and the sky went absolutely feral. Flat, stable, planted. No sinking. No wobble. No drama.

I love that I can literally throw one down, adjust my composition, and shoot. No extending legs. No fighting frozen locks. No tripod yoga while the aurora dances off without me.

Low angle, high impact

Shooting low in snow is magic. You get foreground texture, reflections, and scale, especially when mountains rise straight from the sea like they do here. Resting the Platypod directly in the snow kept my setup grounded and let me work angles I would never bother with using a traditional tripod.

Mobility mattered too. I was constantly repositioning, literally chasing light, reframing as the aurora twisted overhead. Pick up. Move. Drop. Shoot. Repeat. It felt more like street photography… just at minus temperatures with a solar storm overhead. Minor details.

The takeaway

When the aurora goes wild, your gear either keeps up or gets left behind. That night in Lofoten proved, again, that a low-profile, fast-deploy support system can be the difference between “I saw it” and “I nailed it”.

G2 storms do not wait. Neither should you.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I am still thawing out… and checking the space weather forecast with a big stupid grin on my face.