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| From lightning |
Here's another Lightning shot added to the millions of Lightning shots thats available on the internet...i took this pic last night (October 25, 2011) from my apartments in Mangalore, India. its not supposed to be raining this time of the year, however one needs to make most of the situation and stop cribbing.
decided to try out Lightning shots....
ok i still dont have a tripod and sooo had to use a table and stool and kept the camera in various positions before i got a chance to release the shutter.
its not really about speed here. capturing Lightning shots is made easy using a very very slow shutter also known as long exposures. If u have a DSLR or a good digital camera with manual controls, u must have seen the mode dial which shows "bulb" option.
Bulb mode is used for really long exposures like the one i have used here.
Simple Tips for Shooting Lightning - The Camera Settings
1. ISO 100 for crisp and sharp images, highest quality
2. aperture f 8 or higher.
3. tripod or flat surface is a "must"
4. Manual Focus, coz auto focus just wont be able to help in such conditions
5. using Bulb mode
The Technique
1. its a lightning shot, but u dont need to be out there in the open like a sitting duck .
2. be safe indoors.
3. try and protect ur gear and lens from rain
4. anticipate the shot and point the camera in the direction of the lightning.
5. once the camera is rock steady, manually focus, and hold the "bulb" button for long.
6. here the bulb mode allows the shutter to be open for as long as u want and if there are lightning streaks flashing by, it will be captured by the slow shutter.
7. once u think u have captured something worthwhile release the shutter and wait for the camera to process the image
viola u are done
How things can go horribly wrong....
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| From lightning |
ok so remember that u wont "strike" gold with every shot. photography requires a lot of patience and esp Lightning shots, coz u gotto keep guessing where the next streak of light is gonna flash.
if u see the image above, u can see why its pretty flawed...
1. the spots near the lightning is droplets of rain water... my lens got wet when i took this pic
2. i had used a wide aperture of f 22 which would have been good if i had focused properly
3. i had used auto focus and hence the building to the right came in focus, not the lightning streak
4. and i didnt use a tripod or stool. i had kept the camera on the balcony and i think i managed to get a little camera shake as well.
all in all , a horrible pic...
Lens used here was Canon EF 24 to 10 mm f 4 L IS USM on Canon EOS 60D body.
Thanks for the post! It helps but I don't see a 'bulb' mode in my camera. I have ones tried to capture lightning and off course without success.
ReplyDeleteDoes using 'S' mode helps? Or do I need to take it in a complete manual mode?
I like the lightning lighting the area around in that 'horrible pic' !
helluuuuu, which camera model do u have? if u dont have bulb mode.... then u have no option but to use manual mode and use long exposure settings to the highest number.... should be 30 seconds in your camera i am guessing....
ReplyDeletewhat ees S mode???? thank u.... the horrible pic would have been a lot better if the focus was on it...:)
Hi, Nikon D5000 is the camera. And sorry, found out that the Manual mode has this bulb option. S mode is Shutter priority mode. So I think if I work it out, it is possible to get a long exposure shot. Must try. thank you so much for the reply.
ReplyDeleteMaking mistakes simply means you are learning faster said Weston H. Agor. So now you have learnt how to take great lightening photos. F/22 is not really the mistake. If there is ambient light you choose f/22. If the city is dark then choose f/8.
ReplyDeletethank u for your valuable suggestions.... i am pretty honored that u are actually reading my posts!!!!
ReplyDelete