Experience 4k Ultra High Definition Video of the Northern Lights Captured with a Sony a7S and Atomos Shogun

Married photographer team Ronn and Marketa Murray recently shot some test footage of what it’s like to chase the Northern Lights up in the Murphy Dome area near their home in Fairbanks, Alaska with a newly acquired Atomos Shogun 4K external recorder... and the video is just gorgeous looking!

Ronn explained to me that this was just a first run with all the gear together. He locked a Rokinon 24mm f/1.4 lens on to his Sony a7s body, and the combination of a fast lens and high ISO allowed for some amazing real time video capability. Murray stated, "this camera is the best lowlight video option on the market and made real-time Aurora [Borealis] possible." Combine those with the Atomos Shogun recorder and monitor, and everything got even more epic! He admits the video isn’t the most stable-looking although he was using a DJI Ronin gimbal stabilizer: “The Ronin gave me some jittery issues which I'm in the process of working out with DJI [support] and have attributed to the cold temperatures. It's done that the last few times I've taken it out in temps colder than 10ºF. Keep in mind it is very windy, I'm stumbling around in knee deep snow, and it's about 0ºF.” All things considered, it still looks great.

Again, Murray wanted to enforce the idea that this video was created to test & demonstrate capabilities of the gear, and to show people what it’s like to be out in sub-zero temperatures shooting the heavens: “It's not polished and quite intentionally. The next objective is to film throughout the rest of the season and release a 4K highly-polished production hopefully this fall. We'll put out a few short clips along the way to hold folks over."

We can’t wait to see what he puts together. For now, you should check out some of the Murray's other polished pieces on their YouTube channel and at their website. You can also follow Ronn Murray Photography on Twitter and Facebook.