The Northern Lights glow magically over the small church of the town of Hvammstangi, on Iceland's northern coast.

I think my first couple experiences with the Northern Lights is similar to many others'. My trip to Iceland had been primarily defined by very thick clouds, with no chance of seeing the Aurora Borealis. When we got to Lake Myvatn, the forecast showed a few patches of clear sky nearby, and decent Aurora activity. So we called around to hire a local tour guide who was willing to drive us around in his jeep. He was constantly on the phone with others in the area to try to figure out where the best chance of seeing the aurora was, and driving us around accordingly. We did end up seeing the Northern Lights, only for about 20 minutes, but it was magical. However, in the magic of the moment, I forgot to execute many simple photographic routines (namely focus bracketing), and as such my photographs suffered. However, just two nights later, we got clear skies and very active aurora right outside our hotel room! I used this chance to find a proper foreground, and learn from my mistakes two nights prior.

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