Post your storms/lightning/wild nature shots here

[mtbdudex]

Post your storms/lightning/wild nature shots here, kinda like our version of the weather channel.

I'll start, we had intense storms roll thru 9:30pm-ish EDT tonight.
While it ruined my plan at capturing lightning bugs, the opportunity to capturing some cool lighting bolts replaced that, go with the moment I say.

What a show!
Took these on my front porch - it faces east and offers shelter from most storms, camera on tripod.
Each is 5 second exposure, camera automatically took over 500 via remote, I deleted all but these 11. The one "Blue" is transformer blowing up due to lighting strike, we lost power for 5-7 minutes.

These are all in sequence of storm, 9:52pm - 10:45pm EDT.
All are 5 second exposures, f11, ISO400, 18mm. I took some test shots and that combo "worked" upon quick examination of LCD screen, no cropping done, very minor PP, mainly exposure dialed down due to lightning bolt extremely bright/nearby.
Manually focused the home in background, then slightly tweaked the focus ring trying for infinity, I got close on the focus.
Memo: I need to mark the lens infinity focus point.

The ones where you see my porch top beam, lots of rain/wind so the camera/tripod was at the back of my 8' deep porch, once the rain eased up I moved the tripod further w/o camera getting wet (My T1i would NOT like to get wet)

All clickable to 1600 pix size

The most powerful bolt, it was so bright had to dial down exposure -2.25 via Post Processing

I like how this follows the horizon

This is transformer blowing up @ substation 1.5 miles away on Old US23, we lost power 5-7 minutes until circuits switched over to another line.

 

[mtbdudex]

delete

 

[mtbdudex]

For reference here is the big bolt shot w/o any PP, its so bright the pict is blown out, this bolt was one of those "CRACK/BOOM!" jump up ones.

Same shot but with exposure -2.25 via Post Processing

and using more PP to bring the shadows up to same as original but keep the brightness of the bolt toned down...I'm still learning PP

These are from 6/23 storm that was South of us.

This from Ocean City NJ vacation I just came back yesterday 12 midnight, this shot taken 6/28 on the boardwalk as storm south of us went into the ocean.
I had manually focused at the storm, was pointing at it and as saw lightning pressed the shutter hoping to capture a strike, got one here.

 

[mtbdudex]

angry skies...

This is thru rain/wind, new Canon 15-85 lens at 15mm.

 

[mtbdudex]

PP and crop some prior lightning shots...
#1 this is my fav of all of them, the clouds have depth here

#2 the horizontal bolts are kinda cool as well

 

[jabbott]

Here is an amazing compilation of lightning shots I saw recently:
http://www.greeksky.gr/files/photos/atmospheric/20100628Thunders.htm

 

[VirtualRain]

Amazing stuff... too bad we rarely get thunderstorms here.

 

[mtbdudex]

Here is an amazing compilation of lightning shots I saw recently:
http://www.greeksky.gr/files/photos/atmospheric/20100628Thunders.htm

I spent 10 minutes at that web site, amazing shots, thx for posting.

 

[jabbott]

I spent 10 minutes at that web site, amazing shots, thx for posting.

You're welcome, and thanks for posting your shots. They are quite impressive as well!

Here is my only lightning shot... it was taken the same day that Hurricane Katrina hit the gulf coast. I was 500 miles away from Katrina at the time, if that gives any indication of its size.

 

[xStep]

Edmonton Alberta, August 2006.

 

[mtbdudex]

I was shopping with my boys in Kroger's Hartland Michigan yesterday, the check-out people were freaking out at the clouds, had to capture them. Not too often in Michigan we see these cloud formations.

These taken with my iPhone, 'cause I don't normally carry my DSLR when going shopping....
From Kroger Parking lot.
RH side is due south (Ann Arbor), LH side is due east (Milford) in the photos

Then via a nearby friends house

and 12 minutes later as the sun was setting

for those that like storms, I also took some video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=St7fz5FPcfM&hd=1

 

[patrick0brien]

Here are a few...

 

[Ravaroo]

[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/ravaroo/6080594052/]
DSC_3925 by Ravaroo, on Flickr[/URL]

 

[Peace]

Here's a real old one. I took this out in the country by my old house on the plains of eastern Washington.

A single,solitary tornado.

Believe it if you will.

 

[Designer Dale]

PP and crop some prior lightning shots...
#1 this is my fav of all of them, the clouds have depth here

What, nobody in the pool?

I grew up in Ohio and one of the things that I miss out here in the Pacific NorthWest are real thunderstorms.

Nice photos.

Dale

 

[soco]

God, those photos are just friggin beautiful. I wish we got real thunderstorms here in NY. I wished, when I was younger, that I could live near Tornado-Alley just for this stuff.

Anyone ready/able to capture some hurricane Irene action?

 

[LumbermanSVO]

What, nobody in the pool?

I grew up in Ohio and one of the things that I miss out here in the Pacific NorthWest are real thunderstorms.

Nice photos.

Dale

I live in Kenmore but have to be in Billings every Monday morning. Last sunday I was driving right on the edge of a BIG breadbasket style lightning storm. I was gonna stop at the rest area between Columbus, MT and Laurel but less than a mile from the rest area I saw a horse get a direct hit by a lightning bolt and decided that holding a camera to my head at the top of a hill probably wan't the best idea. Too bad, because there was enough lightning that I could have caught a bolt or two.

 

[Ish]

Here is my only lightning shot... it was taken the same day that Hurricane Katrina hit the gulf coast. I was 500 miles away from Katrina at the time, if that gives any indication of its size.

Don't get anything with that link jabbot. Just a note saying Sorry that page wasn't found.

What, nobody in the pool?
Dale

No lightning but this is a storm from Colorado last year. We'd just been taken to the Garden of the Gods and were driving back to Denver.

 

[mackmgg]

God, those photos are just friggin beautiful. I wish we got real thunderstorms here in NY. I wished, when I was younger, that I could live near Tornado-Alley just for this stuff.

Anyone ready/able to capture some hurricane Irene action?

In NY, shouldn't you be able to capture some of it? I know I would be at least attempting to photograph the lightning, but unfortunately I'll be in Boston this weekend. (Maybe fortunately too, because I'll have power!)

 

[acearchie]

Just spent part of my summer holiday in france and away from a lot of the town orange light that I get here at home.

A storm sort of rolled in. Not as big as I was hoping for but I managed to get a couple of the lightning!

 

[TheReef]

Passing storm...

 

[mtbdudex]

Passing storm...

Very nice, for this did you take a long exposure of the water and PP that into a shorter exposure to hold cloud detail? Or is it all same exposure?

 

[xStep]

Very nice, for this did you take a long exposure of the water and PP that into a shorter exposure to hold cloud detail? Or is it all same exposure?

The EXIF data shows it is a 2 second shot. Unless there is a high wind, clouds wouldn't move that much in relation to the closer water.


TheReef, I think you should crop out that darn light post on the upper left. Now that I see it, I can't ignore it. This is still of my favorite of yours.

 

[Chappers]

A few of you will have already seen this 30 second handheld shot that hit the ground about 50 metres from me - it scared the hell out of me.

 

[TheReef]

The EXIF data shows it is a 2 second shot. Unless there is a high wind, clouds wouldn't move that much in relation to the closer water.


TheReef, I think you should crop out that darn light post on the upper left. Now that I see it, I can't ignore it. This is still of my favorite of yours.

Thanks, and done

Very nice, for this did you take a long exposure of the water and PP that into a shorter exposure to hold cloud detail? Or is it all same exposure?

xStep is correct, the water was moving very fast so only needed a single exposure of 2 seconds.
Also with the wide angle, movements in the far-away background effect the image less significantly (think of star trails at 12mm vs 100mm )