Lightning

[waltesefalcon]

I picked up a used Nikon DX VR Nikkor AF-P 10~20mm 1:4.5-5.6G. I have had it for about a week now and have played with it some but haven't taken any decent photos. Tonight we had a thunderhead roll in so I decided to try and get some lightning shots:



ISO - 5600, 1/500, f4.5

 

[waltesefalcon]

Like most storms around here it was pretty quickly over. I went back out, grabbed one more with some lightning and a few of the clouds.





ISO - 6400, 1/30, f5.6

 

[GregW]

Pretty impressive that you caught lightning at 500th. It is a very rare occasion that lightning happens around here. It's been about 5 years. Usually only one flash and a clap of thunder and done.

 

[Basil]

Some nice lightening "gets". I really like this last two pictures (especially the last). The clouds above and the trees in silhouette framing the sunset, with the road provided leading lines into the scene - really nice composition.

 

[DrEntropy]

Good stuff! The lightning bolt catch, for sure. And the last "street shot" is impressive as well. really like the composition.

 

[waltesefalcon]

Pretty impressive that you caught lightning at 500th. It is a very rare occasion that lightning happens around here. It's been about 5 years. Usually only one flash and a clap of thunder and done.

Thanks. What speed would you normally recommend for catching lightning? I was using auto ISO to compensate for the dark. I was trying my darndest to balance a shutter speed fast enough to catch the lightning versus one slow enough to capture enough light to expose the details in the clouds.

 

[Horsemits]

Like most storms around here it was pretty quickly over. I went back out, grabbed one more with some lightning and a few of the clouds.View attachment 92742
View attachment 92743

View attachment 92744
View attachment 92745

ISO - 6400, 1/30, f5.6

Very nice....They are well executed!

 

[waltesefalcon]

Some nice lightening "gets". I really like this last two pictures (especially the last). The clouds above and the trees in silhouette framing the sunset, with the road provided leading lines into the scene - really nice composition.

I was looking at the sunset and snagged the second to last photo. I really liked what I saw on the screen in that one, so I figured I could frame a better shot by walking into the street and shooting straight down it.

 

[waltesefalcon]

Very nice....They are well executed!

Thanks Mitts.

 

[GregW]

Thanks. What speed would you normally recommend for catching lightning? I was using auto ISO to compensate for the dark. I was trying my darndest to balance a shutter speed fast enough to catch the lightning versus one slow enough to capture enough light to expose the details in the clouds.

You have proven that your reaction time is good enough to capture lightning at that speed. You can however shoot much slower, like 2 seconds or somewhere in between. Using auto ISO like you were, you'd meter just for the ambient light choosing shutter speed then adjusting the aperture. Even though the lightning is much brighter, it is short in duration (usually). An average bolt is about 1/10th of a second (I had to look that up). So with a 2 second shot, the sensor is only recording the bright light 1/20th of the time the shutter is open. The rest of that time the pixels are recording darkness which will be averaged once the photo is complete. Lightning is harder than using strobes because the amount of light reaching the camera can change in duration and intensity from each flash, affecting the exposure.

 

[Celtic 77]

Like most storms around here it was pretty quickly over. I went back out, grabbed one more with some lightning and a few of the clouds.View attachment 92742
View attachment 92743

View attachment 92744
View attachment 92745

ISO - 6400, 1/30, f5.6

Good job! The sunset colors are quite the contrast to the surrounding sky.

 

[waltesefalcon]

Good job! The sunset colors are quite the contrast to the surrounding sky.

Thank you.

 

[waltesefalcon]

You have proven that your reaction time is good enough to capture lightning at that speed. You can however shoot much slower, like 2 seconds or somewhere in between. Using auto ISO like you were, you'd meter just for the ambient light choosing shutter speed then adjusting the aperture. Even though the lightning is much brighter, it is short in duration (usually). An average bolt is about 1/10th of a second (I had to look that up). So with a 2 second shot, the sensor is only recording the bright light 1/20th of the time the shutter is open. The rest of that time the pixels are recording darkness which will be averaged once the photo is complete. Lightning is harder than using strobes because the amount of light reaching the camera can change in duration and intensity from each flash, affecting the exposure.

The next time we have a storm I'll try that. Thanks for the advice.