To capture an elusive aurora borealis, or northern lights, you need patience and a little good fortune. To capture footage of humpback whales playing in the ocean, you need more patience and more good fortune.
To capture humpback whales playing underneath a spectacular aurora borealis? Patience, skills and just about a miracle.
For photographer Harald Albrigtsen, documenting the delightful humpback whales flipping their fins under an aurora borealis was all in an evening’s work. Albrigtsen was working off the coast of Tromso in Norway for NRK, the Norwegian state broadcasting company when he captured the footage. The clip has gone viral and is a powerful reminder of the spectacular beauty of nature and the importance of preserving wildlife. The beauty of humpback whales, coupled with the magnificence of the aurora borealis, should amplify our awareness and passion in safeguarding our planet.
“On my journey, I suddenly came across a group of humpback whales that were playing in the Northern Lights. I went back the next day to see if I could come closer,” Albrigtsen tells The Local. “After a few hours I had almost given up, but then they showed up again.”
“It was a great feeling when I saw that I had managed to capture the whales under the Northern Lights for two days in a row,” he said. “Many may be getting tired of standard Northern Lights photography. Now, there is an opportunity to capture living beings under the Northern Lights. The possibilities for creating new images are greater.”
The bar has certainly been raised.