I enjoy the photos that you share H, but please play it safe with your new sport. When I was a kid I used to love getting out and watching the wild storms that would wash in after a hot summers day. One day I was unlucky (lucky?) enough to be 10m from a tall palm tree that was struck by lightning in our back yard.
The blinding flash of light, heat and noise seared the event into my memory. The tree was on fire in the pouring rain and had a split in its trunk. I never want to be that close to a lightning strike again.
Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM
15s f/9.0 @ 24.0mm iso400
H, what time of day was that? I've just been trying the current storm and anything more than 4 sec f/22 and ISO50 with ND8 filter gets totally washed out.
Last edited by mithrandir; 24-12-2012 at 06:05 PM.
Great pic H I love storm chasing. Hope you are having a blast again tonight. The storms that you are getting now swept through here about 3 hours ago. Only just got the power back on.
Good one H. I love lightning shots. I was imaging some last night as well.
I like the light and foreground you've captured. Some delicate hues in there.
Chasing can be very addictive. I drove into Victoria one day chasing a storm.
Some basic rules for storm chasing is keep at least 20km to the right or the left of the storm. Don't sit directly in its path. That can be dangerous to you and your equipment. Besides you get the best view doing that.
If it starts to rain it is time to move or seek cover. Lightning will strike easily when raining and it can strike very close.
Nice image, difficult getting the Lightning to sit in the frame where you want it, unless its highly energised storm. I typically do anywhere from 300-1000km on a chase, sometimes greater, I think the longest chase I did was over 2000km for a single storm event. Next you will want a lightning trigger to get those daylight strikes....
Some basic rules for storm chasing is keep at least 20km to the right or the left of the storm. Don't sit directly in its path. That can be dangerous to you and your equipment. Besides you get the best view doing that.
If it starts to rain it is time to move or seek cover. Lightning will strike easily when raining and it can strike very close.
How safe/dangerous is it? I've heard that sitting inside a car is safe(r) due to the rubber tyres and Faraday cage effect of the car body. I'm guessing that standing in an open plain with a tripod would be somewhat dangerous...
How safe/dangerous is it? I've heard that sitting inside a car is safe(r) due to the rubber tyres and Faraday cage effect of the car body. I'm guessing that standing in an open plain with a tripod would be somewhat dangerous...
Well if you follow the basic rules it is quite safe. I have been right angles to a storm passing by me and only 3km (something I would not normally do but it passed close by and I had setup well before it approached my position) or so and sitting in the car while it takes frames. I would not be outside during that time. Being in the car is quite safe.
If the storm is 25-40km away and not striking near you, you can be standing out side with the tripod, but try to ensure there is a taller object near you.
I love storm chasing. Hope you are having a blast again tonight. The storms that you are getting now swept through here about 3 hours ago. Only just got the power back on.
