Photo Tips III

Summer is here and with it comes thunderstorms. Ever want to catch lightning? Alright here is Pete's tip for catching that brilliant flash. Ok safety first, don't stand out in the open with an umbrella, under trees, on a hill or anywhere you might have the chance of getting hit. After all who wants to have their last photo being one of themselves getting fried by a bolt of electricity. First off you are going to need a tripod or a very stable surface to mount your camera. I recommend using a wide angle lens my fave being 20mm to catch more sky. Set your camera to manual and set your shutter speed to around 15 - 30 seconds depending on weather it is night or day. Set your f-stop high between f 16 - f 22. Trying to balance the exposure with the ambiant light is the hardest part, you want to make sure that you can keep the shutter open long enough to catch a bolt as it flashes while maintaining the dramatic look of a dark sky. As the storm approaches just trigger the shutter and wait for the light show. With a point and shoot you will have to try to dial the settings down to as slow a shutter speed the camera can do and as high of an f - stop it can go. Now get out there and enjoy natures best light show.