Aurora Borealis in Canada Photo Tour (September 7-14, 2026)

Register

PRICE: 

Early Registration: $3749 NANPA/ASMP Members, $3949 non-members by June 7, 2026

After June 7, 2026: $3999 NANPA/ASMP Members, $4199 non-members

If you are not currently a member, you may want to consider joining NANPA to take advantage of member pricing on all NANPA photo tours (1 year membership $100)

Maximum number of attendees: 10

Last date to register: August 7, 2026

LOCATION: Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada

DATES:

• Monday September 7, 2026 to Monday September 14, 2026.
  Due to international flight schedules, September 7 and September 14 are travel days. Activities begin on Tuesday September 8 at 11 am and end after an aurora session on the last evening September 13^th. See preliminary itinerary below for more details.
• (optional) May 28, 2026 7-8 pm (ET) Pre-event Preparatory Webinar for participants
• (optional) TBD 7-9 pm (ET) Post event Image Sharing and Feedback Webinar for participants

Event Check in and Meet & Greet
Tuesday September 8, 2026 at 11 am. Meet at the hotel lobby then proceed to the leader’s room for a briefing.

EVENT OVERVIEW:

Auroras are without a doubt one of the most incredible nature displays – they are jaw-droppingly amazing. Twisty ribbons of green crawl across the sky, occasionally bursting open like a hand reaching down from space, with hints of pink, blue, and red, moving as if under a will of their own. The Milky Way, Big Dipper, and the Pleiades star cluster nearly pop out of the sky, adding a beautiful backdrop to the aurora experience. Yellowknife in Canada’s Northwest Territories is one of the best places in the world to see and photograph auroras (aka the Northern Lights). Yellowknife sits right beneath the aurora oval and is known as a place that has one of the world’s highest percentages of aurora sightings. Its geographic location also means a high percentage of clear nights. In the dark sky country around Yellowknife, you can see the aurora an average of approximately 240 nights a year!

A distinct advantage of the September timing of this event is that there is the opportunity to photograph fall color during the day and overnight temperatures generally do not dip below freezing, making it much more comfortable for aurora photography than wintertime aurora photography which can often involve photographing in temperatures significantly below zero. Since it’s too warm for the lakes to freeze, the open water offers fantastic opportunities for the aurora color and patterns to be reflected in the water.

Leading this tour is nature photographer Rod Barbee who has been photographing auroras in this area of Yellowknife almost every year for over a decade. He knows some of the best locations in the area where interesting foregrounds of treescapes and lakes can be combined with the dancing aurora display above to make outstanding images.

This NANPA tour is being offered through Rod Barbee Photography. Rod Barbee Photography is a Licensed Tourism Operator approved by the Government of the Northwest Territories.

WHAT TO EXPECT:

Auroras occur when solar wind causes electrically charged particles from the Sun to collide with Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere. These charged particles are directed toward the magnetic poles. Their collision with gas molecules (mostly oxygen and nitrogen) heats them up, causing them to glow, creating light displays. Auroras occur in an oval-shaped ring around the magnetic poles, known as the auroral zone. Solar activity peaks following an 11-year cycle. The years 2024 – 2026 is a solar maximum period where there is more aurora activity.

Rod will set you up for success explaining the gear, settings and strategy for good aurora photography. Then in the field Rod and Mary Louise will be available to assist you with questions that arise. Your camera will actually capture more colors than your own night vision can see, revealing colors you didn’t know were there. The resulting pictures are ones you’ll treasure and want to share. You’ll find that seeing and photographing auroras will be one of most exhilarating experiences of your life. 

Even though this tour is mainly about photographing the auroras, we’ll find more to see and do during daylight hours. There are parks with spectacular fall color. There are a couple of nice waterfalls to photograph, as well as lake shores and nature trails. If we’re lucky, we’ll encounter some wildlife too. Old Town Yellowknife also has its charms and there are visitor and cultural centers you’re sure to find fascinating.

It’s important to note that particularly strong auroras may not happen every night and some nights the aurora display may be obscured by clouds, but over the course of the week we should have multiple nights of good aurora photography. Auroras can come in waves and are never the same night after night. They’ll sometimes move slowly and linger. Other times lights will seem to explode overhead. You’ll never really know when you’re done until you’re done. Some nights the auroras might not start dancing until around 1 a.m.

It’s hard to describe a typical day since so much of the photography takes place at night and we may be up photographing auroras past 2 or 3 am. Most likely we’ll have a late breakfast or lunch and then take a trip out to photograph fall color. After returning to our hotel, we’ll take a break and/or nap. After dinner we’ll head out to our aurora site. Some nights we might just grab some boxed dinners and snacks and head out for a sunset location where we’ll also wait for the aurora. These can be long nights, but we’ll be close to our vehicle (ground transportation is provided for this tour) for those needing to warm up, and you can snooze as the leader drives the group back to the hotel.

Your Tour Leaders:

Rod Barbee will be your leader for this event. If there are more than 6 participants on the event, Mary Louise Ravese will be added as a second leader for this event. Rod and Mary Louise have led previous NANPA photo tours.

Rod Barbee

Rod Barbee is a professional photographer, writer, and instructor. He’s been a regular contributor to Outdoor Photographer magazine and has also been published in Nature’s Best magazine, Audubon and Mead calendars, Northwest Travel and Oregon Coast magazines, Orvis clothing catalog, the National Park Service, and more. Several of his images appear in the Amphoto book “American Vision”. His first book, The Photographer’s Guide to the Oregon Coast, co-written with David Middleton, is available nationwide. His book, The Photographer’s Guide to Puget Sound and Northwest Washington was published in the spring of 2007. His latest book is Oregon Coast Memories (Countryman Press).

Throughout the year, Rod leads and co-leads photo workshops across the country. A gifted and enthusiastic field instructor, he likes nothing more than sharing his knowledge and ideas. Besides teaching his own workshops, Rod has led and co-led workshops and tours for Great American Photography Workshops, The Nature Workshops, and Photographer’s Alliance Workshops. Rod has taught nature photography through Bellevue Community College in Washington state, The Mountaineers in Seattle, Olympic College in Bremerton, WA.

The natural beauty discovered during backpacking trips into Olympic National Park led him to nature photography. It has since become a passion in his life from which he continues to learn and grow.

Rod and his wife Tracy Rowley live in Port Ludlow on Washington’s Olympic peninsula. You can learn more about Rod by visiting his website at https://rodbarbee.com/

Mary Louise Ravese

Mary Louise Ravese specializes in fine art nature, travel and creative photography from locations across the world. Professionally trained in the use of both 4×5 and 35 mm cameras, today Mary Louise shoots with full-frame mirrorless cameras, producing award-winning imagery in color and black and white. Her photographs are in private, university & corporate collections in over 40 states, and are exhibited nationally. She has published images in calendars, magazines, books and websites, including special projects for National Geographic Maps, The Nature Conservancy and the National Parks Conservation Association. In 2021 her image was given the NANPA Showcase Judges’ Choice Award in Macro/Micro/All Other. In 2026 her image was given the First Runner Up Award in the ‘Scapes category of the annual NANPA Showcase competition.

Mary Louise is an accomplished photography educator and a regular speaker and competition judge for photography clubs around the country. Through her company, Bella Vista Photography, Mary Louise enjoys teaching both the technical and aesthetic aspects of photography. Based in North Carolina, she leads monthly photo walks at NC State University’s JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh as well as classes and photo workshops at a variety of locations across the US and abroad.

Previously Mary Louise led a NANPA Photo Tour to photograph flowers and gardens in Pennsylvania. She accompanied Rod photographing the auroras in Yellowknife in 2024. She photographs using Canon equipment, but is well versed in multiple camera systems.

 

NEAREST AIRPORT:

Yellowknife Airport (YZF)

There are a number of airlines flying into Yellowknife from Edmonton and Calgary, including WestJet and Air Canada. To avoid long layovers, depending on where you are flying from, you might consider spending a night in Edmonton or Calgary on your way to/from Yellowknife.

Plan to arrive some time on the first day (September 7). Your room will be waiting for you after check-in time. Note you may be arriving after 11 pm, but not to worry, you’ll have the chance for plenty of sleep as we won’t be meeting as a group until lunchtime the next day, September 8th.

Plan on flying out on the last day of the tour, September 14^th.

EVENT TRANSPORTATION:

Transportation during the event is included, you will not need a rental car. We will transport the group in a large SUV style vehicle with multiple rows of seats. While a “cozy” fit, there will be room for 5-6 participants plus gear in each vehicle.

The hotel (only a 5 to10 minute drive from the airport) offers an airport shuttle service.

LODGING: 

We will be based in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada during this photo tour.

NANPA is holding a block of hotel rooms for event participants at a hotel in Yellowknife at the rate of $199 per night plus tax and fees (Canadian dollars). Depending on the prevailing exchange rate that is approximately $156 US dollars including tax.

If you want to arrive early or stay on after the tour, the group price will be honored. However, room availability outside of the blocked dates cannot be guaranteed.

Check in time 4 pm, Check out time 11 am.

Hotel details and reservation procedure will be shared with registered participants.

The last day to reserve a room in the NANPA room block is August 7, 2026

MEALS:

Meals are not included, but snacks and water during our daily and nightly outings will be provided.

There is an onsite restaurant at the hotel that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Yellowknife has many restaurants representing a wide variety of cultures; you won’t be wanting for good choices in dining.

PHOTOGRAPHY LOCATIONS

Your leader will have visited the areas prior to the event and the field trip locations will be based on what’s most photogenic at the time, weather conditions, etc.

There are a variety of locations from which to photograph the northern lights. Most of these are on lakesides so you’ll be able to photograph reflections of the auroras.

During the daylight hours there is fall color in parks and on the roadside, a couple of waterfalls, an outdoor mining museum, and the Old Town area.

PRELIMINARY SCHEDULE:

Please note schedules are fluid and could change due to weather conditions, recent wildlife sightings, the aurora forecast and other variables. 

First Day – Arrival day (Monday, Sept. 7)

• Plan your arrival for some time on the 7th. Since some flights don’t arrive until 11 pm or later, this is just arrival day. Depending on your arrival time, your leader(s) may be able to pick you up at the airport. Otherwise, the hotel provides a shuttle. The airport is very close to town so it’s a short ride.
• There are no planned activities for arrival day 

Second day (Tuesday, Sept. 8)

• Meet and greet 11 a.m. (typically meet in lobby and then go to leader’s room)
• Introductions
• Overview of locations/ short presentation
• Group Lunch
• Shopping, if needed
• Dinner as a group or on your own
• Leave for sunset shoot and first night of auroras! 

Days 3-6 (Wednesday through Sunday, September 9-13)

• Depending on how late we were out the previous night, we’ll leave for daytime destinations around midday, often meeting first for a group breakfast or lunch at a local restaurant.
• Break for rest and dinner.
• Leave for auroras either before sunset or around 9 pm.
• We’ll likely meet midday during one of these days for image sharing and processing discussions. 

Day 8 – Departure (Monday Sept. 14)

• Flights leave starting at around 5 or 6 a.m.
• We may or may not have time for a final group breakfast
• Leaders may be available to take you to the airport, otherwise, the hotel shuttle will be available

 

HEALTH AND FITNESS

There will be very little hiking involved, none of it overly strenuous. Some of the locations are within sight of our cars, but there are a few hikes for those who are interested and able:

•  A short hike to one waterfall.
•  Longer hike to a larger waterfall. It’s not far but it can be challenging in some places. About a mile each way with some elevation loss and gain.
•  A short trail good for fall color details that ends at an overlook and features a slight elevation gain

WEATHER 

The month of September is characterized by rapidly falling daily high temperatures, with daily highs decreasing from 14°C(57°F) to 6°C(43°) over the course of the month, exceeding 19°C (66°F) or dropping below 1°C(34°) only one day in ten. Daily low temperatures range from 1°C to 8°C(46°F), falling below -3°C(27°F) or exceeding 11°C(52°F) only one day in ten.

Over the course of September, the length of the day rapidly decreases. From the start to the end of the month, the length of the day decreases by 2:54 hours, implying an average day-over-day decrease of 5.8 minutes. While we are there, we will have just over 12 hours of sunshine. The sun will rise around 7 am and set around 8 pm.

Throughout September, the most common forms of precipitation, when it does happen, are light rain, light snow, and moderate rain.

CLOTHING

For clothing, the best bet is to dress in layers. Thermal underwear may be appropriate for our night time shooting. If you’re a person who feels the cold easily, then I would suggest wearing thermal underwear. Otherwise, good rain pants can offer sufficient insulation for the lower body while layering shirts, jacket, and a wind/rain proof shell on the upper body will do. Under Armour sells a set of under garment that is optimal for medium activity, cold weather.

For your Jacket, bring a jacket that you can break down in layers. There are numerous winter coats that have removable liners that are also rain repellent.

You should also bring a light weight hiking boot that is rated for fall and warmer winter conditions. A thin pair of gloves is also suggested as we will be shooting at night when it is colder. Hand and toe warmers are also welcome additions. They don’t take up much space but can make your nighttime photo sessions much more comfortable.

It is also important to bring a hat. A hat will keep you warm as you lose 90% of your body heat through the top of your head.

CAMERA GEAR

• Camera – DSLR or mirrorless, full frame or cropped sensor. Also, bring the camera manual should you need to consult it. Cellphone camera is good for time lapse, snaps of your group and videos. Traditionally full frame cameras do better with less noise in low light conditions as compared to APS-C sensor cameras, but both types of digital cameras are welcome.

• Lens choice for photographing auroras is important. In general, you’ll want a fast wide-angle lens for capturing auroras. And by fast, I mean f/2.8 or faster. The reason for this is to use the lowest ISO that we can (to reduce noise) and to be able to get to the shutter speeds needed to create star points rather than slightly elongated stars that don’t know if they’re in focus or not.

Some suggested lenses are:

For Cameras with Full Frame sensors:

• 14-24mm f/2.8
• 16-35mm f/2.8
• 24-70mm f/2.8
• Rokinon line of wide-angle Specifically, the 14mm f/2.8 and the 24mm f/1.4

For Cameras with APS-C sensors:

• Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8
• 14-24mm f/2.8
• 14mm f/2.8

 Renting a lens

Some of the suggested lenses can be very expensive. But you can rent these lenses at a fraction of the cost. For example, the Nikon 14-24 f/2.8 is a $2000 lens. But you can rent it for around $200. The Tokina 11-16 is more reasonable at $525, but you can rent that one for around $100.

We’ll be photographing other subjects besides auroras. Bring along your usual landscape and macro gear. We may also encounter wildlife, but don’t count on it when choosing lenses. If you have a zoom that reaches to 300 or 400mm that should suffice.

• Tripod – A sturdy tripod with a camera remote control / shutter release is a must
• Non-abrasive Lens Cleaning Cloth and Wipes.
• Lots of Memory Card Storage
• Camera Battery Charger and Extra Batteries. Note batteries temporarily lose power quickly in the cold, so multiple spare batteries kept warm in an interior coat pocket are important.
• Polarizing filter(s) for daytime photography
• Neutral Density Filters for daytime waterfall photography and ICM
• Laptop Computer – for downloading, processing and viewing your images (with power cord)
• Image Processing Software – Good choices include Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, or Elements.
• Back-up device – Such as an external hard drive
• Flash Drive – For sharing images (for those unfortunate times the weather is just too awful to be outside.
• Backpack or camera bag to transport your gear

ADDITIONAL ITEMS:

• Passport
• Red-light Headlamp (essential).
  We’ll be spending a considerable amount of time standing around in the dark during aurora and night photography. And it’s important that we don’t go blinding ourselves with our own flashlights or headlamps. Rod uses a Black Diamond “Spot” and it has some features that he really likes. First of all, it’s got a pretty powerful white light, though we don’t really plan on using this all that much while we’re shooting auroras. The white light modes include distance (a powerful spot beam) and proximity (a wider beam). It also has a red light. The feature Rod really likes is the ability to dim these lights to whatever level you need. Even more important, once set in the red-light mode, when it is turned off and then back on, it’s still in red light mode. No need to cycle through blinding white mode first. To dim the light all you need to do is turn it on and just hold down the button. The light will go to its brightest setting and then start dimming. Release and hold again and it will continue to dim until it’s the dimmest that dim can get. Release and hold again and it will brighten up. And it should be easy to use while wearing thin gloves.
• Lens-warmer (optional) for preventing condensation / fogging of the lens due to cold temperatures
• Hand and toe warmers (chemical or rechargeable)
• Black Gaffer’s tape for covering led lights on camera and securing the lens focus
• Star focus aiding filter (optional)
• Cell Phone
• Water bottle
• Rain gear
• Eye mask and ear plugs (for sleeping during the day)
• 2-3 Binder clips (for keeping blackout curtains closed in your room)

GENERAL:

Yellowknife is the capital of the Northwest Territories and is about 250 miles south of the Arctic Circle and has a population of around 20,000. The city’s origin was in gold mining but today it’s a cultural, economic, and government center for the territory. Diamonds were discovered in the area in 1991.

This event is designed for nature photographers at all levels of experience. This tour is open for a maximum of 10 participants to give each plenty of time with the leaders and to retain flexibility based on weather and the best opportunities. For the best experience, please know your camera before you arrive, and bring your manual in case we need to look up something.

Assistance will be available in the field for those who wish to improve their photographic skills. If you already have plenty of photography experience, Rod and Mary Louise will ensure you get to the best locations at the best times to capture those perfect shots.

Please keep in mind this NANPA Event is designed to be a photo tour, not a photo workshop.  There will be a preparatory webinar and aurora photography resources for self-study provided to participants before the tour, informal briefings on settings and post-processing during the tour, and an image-sharing webinar for tour participants after the tour.  That being said, Rod and Mary Louise have extensive experience as photography tour leaders and will be available to answer questions and give you guidance.

If you need help, please advocate for yourself, speak up and ask for help. Be aware that many of your fellow participants may also be accomplished photographers and may be able to help you too.  Part of the NANPA Photo Tour experience is the camaraderie that comes from sharing experiences and lessons learned among participants. If you notice someone with the same or similar camera, perhaps they can help you with an issue you’ve been wondering about, and maybe you can return the favor.

Attendance and participation at NANPA Photo Tours is limited to registered attendees only.  Anyone wishing to participate in any portion of, or travel with a registered attendee during the group event must contact the NANPA office and pay the full registration fee.

NANPA Photo Tour Cancellation and No Refund Policy: 

NANPA Photo Tour registration fees are non-refundable and non-transferable. If participant cancels their event registration, NANPA will not offer any refunds for event registration fees for this event regardless of when the cancellation is made or the reason for the cancellation.

NANPA reserves the right to cancel any event or activity due to insufficient registration or any unforeseen circumstances. It also has the right to substitute event leaders, or adjust the number of event leaders if those originally scheduled cannot attend, or other unforeseen circumstances arise.

If NANPA cancels the event, NANPA will offer a variety of options to participants, including the transfer of their registration fees to a future NANPA event or a refund of the event registration fee unless the cancellation is due to a force majeure* occurrence. NANPA assumes no liability whatsoever for fees, penalties, or other costs incurred by you from airlines, hotels, or any other sources outside of the event registration fees.  

*Force Majeure 

“Force Majeure” means that NANPA will not be liable for any alleged damages because of any circumstances including, but without limitation, explosion, flood, storm, fire, war or threat of war, civil disturbance, sickness, pandemic, quarantine, weather conditions or other unexpected occurrences. If a Force Majeure event occurs, NANPA will notify you of the nature and extent of the incident. NANPA may unilaterally vary or cancel an itinerary in cases of Force Majeure. Refunds or partial refunds will be at the sole and absolute discretion of NANPA. NANPA will attempt to reimburse you where possible however we will deduct from any refund the reasonable actual and potential costs to NANPA of the Force Majeure event. 

Please know that sometimes unanticipated and uncontrollable circumstances will force us to alter expected plans during a photo tour. NANPA cannot be held responsible for unanticipated events (such as park closures, natural disasters, civil unrest, weather, etc.) that either prevents you from attending or us altering our location shoots. NANPA will do their best to work around any unforeseen circumstances.

Tour participants without travel insurance will be considered “self insured” meaning you assume all risks and losses for any condition requiring your cancellation.

Since this is an international trip, NANPA strongly encourages participants to purchase travel insurance and possibly travel medical insurance since your personal medical insurance in the US might not cover medical expenses when traveling outside the US. NANPA is affiliated with two different travel insurance providers.

Event Registration Fee Cancellation Insurance:

We offer event cancellation insurance (which solely covers your event registration fee if you need to cancel your participation) as part of the registration process through NANPA’s partner, Allianz. More information on this option will be shown during the checkout process for the event registration.

NOTE: If you do not purchase event (registration fee) insurance at the time that you pay for your registration, you will NOT be able to go back and purchase it with Allianz later. However, you can add the NANPA event registration fee to the expenses you cover with an alternative travel insurance policy. 

Travel Insurance and Travel Medical Insurance: 

We understand that the need to make last minute cancellations due to illness, family, or business matters can happen to anyone. For maximum coverage, you may want to consider an alternative travel insurance policy that offers a “cancel for any reason” clause. However, be aware that such options may only be available if you purchase your travel insurance within 1 to 2 weeks of your tour payment. A “cancel for any reason” option is not available with the Allianz insurance option we provide during registration, but is available with other travel insurance purchased separately.

If you want coverage for other travel expenses like flights, you will need to purchase travel insurance separately, you can do so with your own insurance carrier, or NANPA members can receive a special travel insurance rate that covers other travel-related expenses besides your registration fee through USI Affinity/Travel Insurance Services.

We advise you to check with your existing medical insurance provider to see if you are covered in Canada. If your existing medical insurance does not cover you, some travel insurance policies might. Otherwise, consider purchasing a travel medical insurance policy for the trip.

Feel free to use any travel insurance company you choose. Compare rates, shop around. However, to protect your investment, we recommend purchasing travel insurance whenever a non-refundable amount such as your NANPA registration fees has been paid. You may increase the amount of coverage as the date of departure nears and additional non-refundable payments are made. The sites www.travelinsurance.com and www.insuremytrip.com can be useful for comparing policies.