Topic: Lightning pics 12-13 October 2006, Santa Maria, CA

[SLOweather]

One of my SLOweather visitors was out in that spectacular storm we had the evening of 12 October 2006, and took some great pics. She allowed me to post some in the SLOweather blog.

http://franklin.tbo.net/blog/?p=267

[W3DRM]

Nice pictures and thanks for sharing them! Not sure I would have wanted to be out in that storm though trying to get pictures, pretty risky...

[kray1000]

Man, those really were some awesome pictures.  

[Mark / Ohio]

Thanks for sharing the pictures.  

Those were some healthy bolts!  I lose my nerve to stand out and watch when they get that big and close.  

[aifan27]

Wow, very nice pictures!

Do you know what kind of camera they were using?

[SLOweather]

Cathy sent me the following in response to the questions posted here and elsewhere about the pictures and how she took them:

"Please tell your blog friends that I set up my tripod in the safety of my car.  I NEVER stepped foot outside of it because I knew how dangerous that storm was....and yes I am a weather fanatic!  Just love it.

Camera Info...I used a Canon EOS 10D (Yes...digital not film), I set it to an f-stop of 22 (focused in midrange) with a
20 second exposure at 200 ASA (or ISO)."

[W3DRM]

They were great pictures but what Kathy is not telling us is how many pictures she had to take to get the couple that were published.

As an amateur photographer myself, I know it may take hundreds (or even thousands) of pictures to get those "few special" shots. But, that's part of the fun of photography. You just never know what you are going to get until you look at the print (or digital image). Fortunately, with todays' digital cameras you see the results almost immediately!

[ocala]

Those are awesome pics. Heck she could probably sell those.

[SLOweather]

Those are awesome pics. Heck she could probably sell those.

She already has a poster for sale at her website, http://www.rhinoconcepts.com/ .

And I scored a cool image for my lightning pages:

[SLOweather]

And, unlike film, once you own the camera and some memory cards, shooting a jillion pics is dang near free, until you print them. That alone makes it more fun and more conducive to experimenting and learning.

They were great pictures but what Kathy is not telling us is how many pictures she had to take to get the couple that were published.

As an amateur photographer myself, I know it may take hundreds (or even thousands) of pictures to get those "few special" shots. But, that's part of the fun of photography. You just never know what you are going to get until you look at the print (or digital image). Fortunately, with todays' digital cameras you see the results almost immediately!

[weatheroz]

She already has a poster for sale at her website, http://www.rhinoconcepts.com/ .

Didn't say how much she was actually selling them for.

Was wondering what they're worth should I ever get a shot anywhere near as good as that one.

[W3DRM]

The prices are on her website and are based on size and whether they are mounted, signed, etc, etc...

[weatheroz]

The prices are on her website and are based on size and whether they are mounted, signed, etc, etc...

Thanks, just didn't scroll down far enough for that link.

[Mark / Ohio]

I'm glad to hear she was in her car taking them.  

I also hope she realizes there is also some danger to that especially if she has the window rolled down or in contact with any of the car's metal parts or electrical system.

A few years ago a car was struck by lightning driving on interstate 70 here near Columbus Ohio.  It blew all four tires and set the car on fire in the process.  The driver was OK but I bet they had more than coffee stains on their clothing.