The whole of 2009 and 2010 had only few opportunities for storm chasing and I didn’t have my Canon 350d in my hands which means that you’ll see some kind of “recycling process”. Lightning photography is a very nice photography topic and there are many full or part time photographers who wants to have this kind of images in their galleries.
Just like I said before, English is not my native language so writing articles in English can be painful and time consumption process and I appreciate all comments and grammar corrections.
Start
Lightning photography is not like studio photography and you’ll get probably only one chance for the particular situation. If you failed, you won’t have to many opportunities for another shot and correction. The biggest problems are: exposure, location, potential risk and your camera performance.
What do we need ?
- a decent SLR camera (this can be done with regular p&s cameras but you will need to learn few tricks)
- tripod
- remote shutter option with locking (or at least timer on your camera so you can avoid camera shaking)
- ISO 100 or ISO 200 options
Before you start, clean up your lenses and remove dust or fingerprints.
Where should I go
You will need a nice view and you need to take care about composition. Lightning is not very nice if you see it behind the forest or behind the other objects. Do not choose risky locations (lonely trees, HI voltage towers, mobile antennas, open fields, etc). Remember that this is not a game. Also, try to keep away from other light sources (street lights, highway with high traffic, … ).
Ok, now the practice
Some photographers think that you will need fast hands so you can catch a lightning. NO. We won’t run for them. We will WAIT! That’s why we need a camera with bulb option (the camera shutter will be opened until you press the remote button) and all you need to do is to wait for lightning. Camera shaking will be avoided with remote cable release and tripod. Setup your focus to infinity, set low ISO settings (max 200) because we want to avoid noisy images. Also, turn off noise “remove options” in your camera (this can be done in nice and quiet room on your computer while you drink a hot tea). Also, good idea is to try to catch more than one lightning by keeping your shutter opened after you successfully catch one or two lightnings.
The biggest problem here is the exposure. It depends from current situation and you will need to make small experiment before you decide how long will you keep your shutter opened. Keep in mind that more light means less exposure. 15-30 seconds will be the optimum but just like I said, try it before and see yourself. Exposure also depends on the power and type of the lightning. Lightning photos will not be interesting if you don’t have properly exposed lightning with visible background. Daytime lightning photography means you will need less exposure (less than 1 sec). If you camera don’t have bulb option, set up your exposure manually on specific time.
This article was “in the kitchen” for a long time ago and I’m glad to have it done (finally). Please post your comments about it ant let me know if you find any errors or misspelled words.
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