Cloud-to-Ground Lightning

[Fayd]

aka SLR

not every SLR has mirror lockup.

 

[MisterJackson]

Great work, man!

 

[Wyndru]

aka SLR

I've never tried messing around with the exposure time on my camera, but it's a sony cybershot 12mp, are pictures like this even possible with point and shoots? Even my old Canon would let me set longer exposure times I just never tried it.

 

[Modelworks]

I know someone who takes lightning pics, but he is a researcher and causes the strikes to happen. He uses a model rocket attached to thin copper wire to fire into clouds, definitely not something for the hobbyist.

 

[Wyndru]

I know someone who takes lightning pics, but he is a researcher and causes the strikes to happen. He uses a model rocket attached to thin copper wire to fire into clouds, definitely not something for the hobbyist.

Modern day Ben Franklin :thumbsup:

 

[dman]

Nice shots. I was out on a boat tour and it was lightning off in the distance, didn't have a tripod but managed to get 2 shots (that showed any lightning at all). I like how mine came out but the lightning is only a minor element in my photo. Incidentally, I probably fired off 1-200 shots and might have deleted a couple that had some lightning since it turns out I couldn't see it very well in the 60d display. I saved one just because of the landscape and it turned out there was a lightning strike when I viewed it on my PC.

Anyway, my method--since I didn't have a tripod, and the boat was rocking anyway (if I did), long exposures weren't much of an option. I was curious and wanted to see what happened if I tried, even a 2-3s expsure at F9 was getting washed out from the lightning lighting up the sky. My handheld shots that came out were at 1/6s, iso 800, and f6.3.

I'll have to try again with that/your method, some solid ground, and a tripod someday. Again, those came out very nice!

 

[Juddog]

Good work! I think I'll use this as my desktop wallpaper

 

[Adul]

I've never tried messing around with the exposure time on my camera, but it's a sony cybershot 12mp, are pictures like this even possible with point and shoots? Even my old Canon would let me set longer exposure times I just never tried it.

Read the manual. Is there a TS, T, or even a full M mode on that camera?

 

[IceBergSLiM]

meh

what did you come in this thread expecting?

 

[Wyndru]

Read the manual. Is there a TS, T, or even a full M mode on that camera?

On my Canon I think there is, my Sony I'm not sure about. I'll have to check it out and play around with it.

 

[MedicBob]

Very nice photos and I agree new background. Where were these taken?

 

[novasatori]

Nice shots.

I have tried to take some myself, but I never had a tripod or a remote, so most were me trying to press the shutter right as it happened.

No where near as nice as yours

 

[BurnItDwn]

Whoa, those are spectacular!

 

[Gibsons]

What are these "cloud" things at the top of the picture, with the light things coming down? They frighten and confuse me... (hasn't rained here in months).

Seriously though, liked the pics, I love watching thunderstorms. Or did, back when they happened.

 

[edro]

Ever use a neutral density filter to cut the ambient brightness down?
Lightning is so bright it overcomes the filter, but the filter will lower everything else (headlights, city lights, etc), so the lightning stands out more.

Your photos turned out great even without a filter though.
Nice job!

 

[Icepick]

Awesome pics!

By the way, doesn't lightning actually flow from the ground to the clouds?

 

[AbAbber2k]

I love how it lights up the valley between the mountains in that second pic! Imagine if we could harness that energy!

 

[Eli]

This is with a Canon PowerShot A710IS:

Of course, nothing like the OPs, and just off my front porch, but yes it's entirely possible to get lightning shots with a point and shoot.