As I type the last few drops of rain are falling on the verandah. A storm just crossed the Illawarra coast. There was quite a great deal of lightning. I managed to capture one bolt. I left the shutter open for 10 seconds and narrowed the aperture.
Not too high tech or professional but it worked, at least for the photograph above. I have played around with the photography of lightning in the past. I am quite happy with the photograph below. After that shot was taken I went inside. The storm was too close for comfort.
November 17th, 2008 at 5:42 am
Hi John
Those are great shots. I have never been brave enough to even try and catch lightning on film!
Patricia
November 23rd, 2008 at 12:44 pm
Patricia, Thank you for the comment. I find that if I can leave the shutter open for 10 or more seconds during a severe storm I will catch one or more strikes. Sometimes they occur at quite regular intervals as the storm front moves across the land. Storms out at sea seem to be more consistent with timing. I guess that it is just static electricity on a massive scale. A differential in potential energy must be created as the storm moves across the land and the sea. Cheers, John