August storm

This morning's storm was like the one that passed over Jeziorki on Monday 3 August, kicking off just before 4:00am, intense in the density of lightning discharges. Today's storm, however, did not bring so much rain or hail with it. The above photo, an exposure of 26 seconds, captured no fewer than six separate flashes. The central flash is amazingly complex (click on photo to enlarge).

My recipe for successful flash photography: Set up camera on sturdy tripod. Set exposure mode to Manual, shutter to 'B' ['bulb'] setting. ISO 100, f5.6. Manually set focus to infinity. Switch off Long Exposure Noise Reduction if you have it (doesn't do much, but wastes time and battery power). Point at sky where most action is taking place, and depress shutter. Hold it open - wait, wait, catch a flash, a second one... the further away the flashes, the more of them you'll need to illuminate the sky.