Aurora Australis Field Kit
Chase the southern lights with a clearer plan.
A practical PDF guide for Australian aurora chasers: decide if the forecast is worth the drive, set your camera fast, and keep a field workflow on your phone when the colour appears.
The field kit is for the messy part after the alert.
Aurora chasing is part forecast, part patience, and part quick fixes in the dark. The guide keeps those decisions in a simple order so you are not guessing from a random post while the sky is changing.
Before you leave
Check forecast strength, cloud, moon, timing, road distance, and whether your chosen horizon makes sense.
When you arrive
Start with practical settings, get focus sorted, shoot a test frame, and adjust before the best colour fades.
If it changes
Use the troubleshooting notes for faint glow, strong pillars, soft stars, dead batteries, and phone-only backup.
- Before the drive
- Forecast, cloud, moon, distance and a southern horizon that makes sense.
- At the camera
- Starting settings, focus checks and quick adjustments before the colour fades.
- In the field
- A compact reference for a phone screen when reception or patience runs thin.
Free second-chance path
Not ready to buy? Take the pre-drive checklist.
The checklist gives you the fast version: what to check before you get in the car. You can also opt in to occasional, conditions-based aurora alerts when there is something worth watching.
What the free path is, and what it is not.
The checklist is a quick filter. The paid kit is the fuller field guide for the moment you are already out there and need the next step.
- Checklist: quick pre-drive checks for forecast, weather, moon, gear, and location.
- Alerts: occasional conditions-based notes for people who want a nudge, not a noisy feed.
- Field Kit: the deeper PDF with settings, troubleshooting, packing, phone fallback, and field workflow.
Written by someone who actually shoots this sky.
Corey from Shameless Visuals photographs aurora work in South Australia. The guide is direct, practical, and written for people who want a clearer plan before they spend the night chasing a forecast.
Camera starts
Dark-sky workflow
Phone fallback
Quick questions
What do I get after checkout?
You get the full PDF field guide delivery path. Save it to your phone before you leave so it is still usable when reception is patchy.
Is it for beginners or experienced aurora chasers?
Both. It gives beginners a starting order for forecast checks, location choice, settings, and packing. More experienced chasers can use it as a field reference when conditions change fast.
Do I need an expensive camera?
No. The camera settings are written for DSLR and mirrorless users, but the forecast workflow, packing list, location checks, and phone fallback still help if you are starting simple.
What is the difference between the free checklist and the paid kit?
The checklist is the quick pre-drive filter. The Field Kit goes deeper into camera starts, troubleshooting, packing, phone fallback, and what to do once you are already under the sky.
Does it tell me where to go?
It helps you choose better locations by checking the southern horizon, cloud, moon, distance, timing, and foreground. It is a decision guide, not a promise that one fixed spot will work every night.
Will it guarantee I see an aurora?
No guide can guarantee the sky. The point is to reduce wasted trips, make the go/no-go call clearer, and help you react properly if the colour does show.
Can I use it on my phone in the field?
Yes. It is built as a practical PDF reference, so you can keep it on your phone and check it when you are working in the dark.
Should I join the alert list as well?
Yes, if you want a second chance to stay in the loop. The alerts are occasional and conditions-based, so they are meant to support the guide without turning into a noisy feed.