’Mother Nature, You’re The Boss’ | New Bern, NC
A storm cell from Tropical Storm Alberto (at this point I believe it is a Tropical Depression) moves toward the setting sun tonight over New Bern (you can see the town through the rain bands). This is easily one of the most awe inspiring scenes I’ve shot. I see plenty of sunsets and plenty of storms, but to see a combination of the two was pretty intense. I think I just kept muttering ‘wow’ as I shot. This was shot from Bridgeton, across the Neuse River from New Bern. I’m glad I hustled to get around to the front side of the storm when I decided to go out and chase it!
Purchase print here- http://www.uprootedphotographer.smugmug.com/
A February Storm Chase
After a routine print delivery to Vanceboro, NC, I noticed some neat clouds in the sky. As I drove along, I began to see a really big billowing storm cloud that normally brings severe summer weather. Driving blindly with my eyes on the clouds, I took twists and turns until I had no idea where I was. That’s when I came down a very long, straight road, cut a u-turn, got out of my Jeep and laid down on the road to shoot. I went up and down this stretch of road and I must have been there for over half an hour and never saw another car. There was a brief period where the wind really kicked up and I thought the movie ‘Twister’ was going to play out in front of me, but luckily it blew by with nothing more than a little rain!
Big thanks to Accuweather.com and The Weather Channel for the mention and share both online and on air today!
Waterfront Strike
During the early evening yesterday, I noticed some large, billowing clouds starting to roll in. Seeing that it would more than likely develop into a pretty big storm, I rushed home to grab my gear and find a vantage point where I could get some shots. In the following few hours, the sky took on many different awe inspiring tones. The clouds made formations that I have never seen in person and things were going really well. I was set up shooting some HDRs at Union Point Park when I noticed that I couldn’t see the massive Neuse River Bridge anymore. Uh oh, here comes the rain. Before I could get my tripod folded, I was caught in a downpour. I retreated to my Jeep and suddenly there was lightning all around. I wasn’t about to get out, so I decided to head home. Just as I pulled out, the rain stopped. I took a short drive to a good vantage point just up the street and set up my gear once again. There were some really great lightning strikes, but for the most part they were either just off frame or missed completely. This strike was the first really good lighting strike that I’ve ever captured.
I’ve been following the work of Arizona-based photographer Mike Olbinski (see his lightning gallery here) for some time now and I’m always blown away by his shots. My image is nowhere near the level of his, but it’s a start. Please take a minute to check out his gallery!
The shot: 30” exposure, 25mm, f/25, iso-100. Tripod held, remote fired.
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Photo ©2011 Zach Frailey
