Aurora Borealis prints? | digital photo printing | paper type recommendations

[@fluxtubes]

I'm getting some of my aurora shots from May in print ready state at the moment so this is useful! The issue I'm running into is that a lot of photographers say to push your exposure up 0.5 to 1 EV to compensate for the darkness of reflected light prints vs backlit screen. But if I do that, the colours lose a lot of their saturation on screen. Did you brighten the images for print at all in these images, as they seem to have come out really well? Definitely will be ordering test prints on more types of paper too now!

[@ggoudey-photo]

To be honest I never use EV compensation when shooting auroras. It could have benefits I suppose. When I edit aurora photos I turn off any lens correction in Lightroom so it actually makes the corners appear darker due to some vignetting but I personally like the vignette effect as it usually makes the aurora POP a bit more. I don’t typically raise highlights or brighten shadows. I do raise exposure a bit, unless the aurora is very bright. What I use most often is are color grading wheels and a touch of dehaze. I believe several other photo editors now have color grading options if you don’t use Lightroom. Color grading is probably most associated with video work but I have found it a very useful tool for all types of photos. Perhaps I will make a video explaining my process of editing Aurora photos. I think getting test prints on different paper types is a very good idea, it’s helped me figure out what looks best for my photos. Have fun on your journey into printing your photos, it’s very rewarding to see them in a tangible form!