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Thread: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

  1. #1
    Senior Member Derf's Avatar
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    Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    Most of you guys have seen my F-14 Lightning picture from Bethpage


    and Last night I took this in Oyster Bay


    .... I would love to see other shots with more info on how people take them and other useful info
    on procedure on when things go south, what we do to make the best of it! All photos welcome...Please Post!
    The three most common expressions in aviation are, "Why is it doing that?", "Where are we?" and "Oh Crap".

  2. #2
    Senior Member Cary's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    Love the lightship photo!
    General Photography - Website | Instagram
    PlaneCaptures - Website | Instagram

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    Senior Member lijk604's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    Fred, those are some AWESOME shots! Can you share??? Where were you when taking that lightship shot...(in your car, under an overhang, etc...)? How did/do you protect your camera from the elements?

    Here is my one and only lightning shot....look closely!

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    Senior Member Derf's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    [quote="lijk604"]Fred, those are some AWESOME shots! Can you share??? Where were you when taking that lightship shot...(in your car, under an overhang, etc...)? How did/do you protect your camera from the elements?..........


    Uh Oh....NOW THE STORY

    I was leaving work when I looked at the weather on my phone when I saw a distant flash to the north west. Tornado
    warnings and a strong, REALLY STRONG super cell drifting south east from Yonkers... I figured north West Nassaw would
    get hit and I was in Jericho N.Y. so my only thought while jumping in the car and hitting the gas to the floor was CONTENT
    better known around these parts a Foreground Clutter! I did the F-14 and would rather be closer than the last shots so I
    remembered the lightship but did not remember where it was...Only that it was inroute to Bayville. So Like the F-14 shot,
    doing 90MPH to get into position, treating my Camry as a F-1 racer, Flew there in notime. Started at the Boat ramp to the
    east of the lightship, quickly realized it was too distant. then went to the pier next to the ship looking at the Gazebo as if it
    would actually help. I figured I would use it do duck an cover if it got bad...you know, like tornado bad... The plan was if
    a tornado, let the bag go, hold the camera and sit indian style on my butt with my back towards the tornado....car would
    be far worse (ALWAYS HAVE A PLAN). SO I go next to the railing about 50 feet from the Gazebo and start shooting






    I got a few with lightning and then the rain really started. I stood in between the railing and the camera to break the wind
    and stop some of the rain. When the camera was way to wet, it happened.



    I then grabbed the camera and ran for the Gazebo and put the camera out of the rain....the rain was driving sideways and
    the mist was covering the camera really good so I pulled off my shirt and cleaned the lens and wrapped the shirt around the
    camera.... I was SOAKED! My shirt was as wet as If I was in the pool for about 2 min (as bad as it gets...I THOUGHT) and
    kept shooting.
    I did get this

    and cleaned it up a bit but it is not really usable



    THAT IS WHEN ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE!!!!
    wind picked up to a steady 50kts or so and rain drove horizontally, The Gazebo was as worthless as t!ts on a bull and I had
    to unwrap my camera and open my bag so the top of the bag shielded the rain. I could no longer see as I was looking into
    the driving rain to keep the contents of my bag dry.... clipped the bag closed and was very happy that it was NOW safe
    from the water and ran Ran RAN to the car about 1/8 of a mile from where I was. I did not think I could get that wet,
    ducked next to the passenger door and watched WAVES of water going horizontal going over my car and never hitting the
    ground. My shoes were submerged in 3 inches of water as I threw my tripod in the back seat (loosing a rubber foot and
    Severely bending one leg destroying it) and gently placed my camera bag in the car. Was going to run around to the drivers
    side but quickly realized this was NOT POSSIBLE and got in on the passenger side. Got into my underwear, NO SHIRT,
    PANTS, SNEAKERS or SOCK...Just underwear and Hydroplaned the entire ride home.

    Plus.... 1 good photo and a few crappy ones

    Minus.... No Tripod, phone now a door stop and very wet clothes.

    Moral of the story... best laid plans will probably be worthless, but HAVE PLANS!....oh and rain gear would be good too!
    The three most common expressions in aviation are, "Why is it doing that?", "Where are we?" and "Oh Crap".

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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    One of mine, from my house - they're all flickr links:



    another, overexposed:



    a more recent one:




    all of these were basically me experimenting with settings from indoors, nothing spectacular....

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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    amazing shots!
    here is my first attempt (not that good):

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    Senior Member Derf's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    :borat: Good stuff, here is one more from last night
    The three most common expressions in aviation are, "Why is it doing that?", "Where are we?" and "Oh Crap".

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    Moderator mirrodie's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    Fred, u inspired me and I havea few from miami beach this week. Will upload soon!
    And I, I took the path less traveled by
    and that has made all the difference......yet...
    I have a feeling a handle of people are going to be very interested in what I post in the near future.

    http://www.jetphotos.net/showphotos.php?userid=187

  9. #9
    Moderator mirrodie's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    OK, so while my daughter is sleeping on me, here are a few quick edits. We were sitting inside admiring G-d's light show when Fred's thread inspired me.

    I had to deal with 30 MPH gusts and no tripod, so many of these are bulb shots( camera braced against table, rail and my finger) or 30 sec exposures. Its been a while since doing night shots, so forgive me.

    These were taken Friday night from our 12th floor room at FontaineBleu Miami (highly recommend!) And yet they still don;t capture it.













    And I, I took the path less traveled by
    and that has made all the difference......yet...
    I have a feeling a handle of people are going to be very interested in what I post in the near future.

    http://www.jetphotos.net/showphotos.php?userid=187

  10. #10
    Senior Member lijk604's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    Yeah Mario....this doesn't capture anything. LOL! Great shot! I love the "fingers" of light crawling across the sky.

  11. #11
    Moderator mirrodie's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    Thanks John. I wanted tighter shots, but with such a wide view, I stuck to a wide angle and just went with it.


    But I meant, photos do no justice to witnessing it live, you know? I love seeing them down in MIA
    And I, I took the path less traveled by
    and that has made all the difference......yet...
    I have a feeling a handle of people are going to be very interested in what I post in the near future.

    http://www.jetphotos.net/showphotos.php?userid=187

  12. #12
    Senior Member moose135's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    Went outside around 10:30 tonight, and saw some big flashes to the north, so I jumped in the car and headed to Oyster Bay. From Teddy Roosevelt Park (where Fred's boat is...) I couldn't see much in the way of lightning bolts, so I took a run up to Charles Ransom Beach in Bayville, and got quite a show across the Sound.

    Most of these are facing Greenwich, CT.






    Yes, those are the nav lights of an airplane in the upper left - look close, you can see the airplane itself, I must have caught it when it was lit up by the lightning!


    That's Stehli Beach on the left, and Westchester in the distance.




    When the lightning started to crackle overhead, and the rain started, I decided it was time to head home. Called Fred, and found he had just gotten to TR Park, so I stopped in there for a bit, but I didn't catch much before the rain started there, and I called it quits. Sounds like Fred should have some neat shots to add in a little bit...


  13. #13
    Senior Member Derf's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    WOW Moose!!! :borat: Those were AWESOME!!!!

    Mine are Lame compared to those....well, anyway


    The boat was SSSsssooooo Last Week!




    We have the Greatest adventures Moose!
    The three most common expressions in aviation are, "Why is it doing that?", "Where are we?" and "Oh Crap".

  14. #14
    Senior Member Derf's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    One from last night
    The three most common expressions in aviation are, "Why is it doing that?", "Where are we?" and "Oh Crap".

  15. #15
    Moderator mirrodie's Avatar
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    Re: Lightning shots!!! The offical thread

    Fred, been meaning to ask, in the foreground of the boat photos, near the benches, what are all the lights??
    And I, I took the path less traveled by
    and that has made all the difference......yet...
    I have a feeling a handle of people are going to be very interested in what I post in the near future.

    http://www.jetphotos.net/showphotos.php?userid=187

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