One quiet, starry night in Northern Ontario, a small voice pierced the stillness. It was 1:30 in the morning, and photographer Timothy Joseph Elzinga had been deep in sleep, but his two-year-old son, Gibson, had other plans. The young boy, with his innocent curiosity, had noticed something extraordinary happening outside their window. He couldn’t quite put it into words, but what he saw was enough to rouse his father from his slumber.
As Gibson tugged on his dad’s arm, he pointed to the sky, where a breathtaking display of lights was dancing above them. Timothy, thinking it was the familiar Northern Lights that often graced the Canadian sky, was about to drift back into his dreams. But then he saw it—a mesmerizing spectacle unlike anything he had ever witnessed. The lights didn’t just shimmer and flicker in the usual patterns of the aurora borealis; they soared upward, swirling and twisting like ethereal pillars of color reaching hundreds of feet into the sky.
This was no ordinary celestial event—it was a rare phenomenon known as light pillars. Timothy, still in awe, wasted no time grabbing his camera to capture the magic unfolding before him. As he framed the shots, he couldn’t help but marvel at the intricate beauty of the moment. What he had stumbled upon was a breathtaking show of nature’s artistry, a delicate dance of light and ice.
So, what exactly are light pillars? They occur when light interacts with ice crystals in the air. As the temperature drops, these crystals align horizontally, creating the perfect conditions for the light to reflect and refract, producing those otherworldly columns of radiant color. It’s as if the very night sky itself has been transformed into a stage for a celestial ballet, where light and ice pirouette in a mesmerizing performance.
Timothy’s photos tell the story of this rare and fleeting moment, capturing the delicate beauty of nature’s hidden wonders. Each image is a testament to the breathtaking wonders that can be found when the world is hushed and the night is at its quietest. So, let yourself be drawn into this visual journey—one where light and ice come together in a harmony that is nothing short of magical.
