Flash, Bang, Wallop...

So there I was, sitting at the computer watching the World Cup semi a little after midnight, with the occasional flash from an electrical storm outside. I'd figured it was the usual high-in-the-sky stuff that just lit up the clouds, but as it intensified I figured I'd go out and have a gander. Just rested the camera on a wall in the garden, long exposure, see what happens, and 'boom!' a big expansive fork comes down (which is the extra photo). Right. Time for the tripod and the wide angle lens to get as much of the sky covered as possible.

I pondered looking for a viewpoint, mainly the thought of heading down to the shore as I could see flashes off in that direction, but as the intermittent, but hugely heavy, showers came in - hearing them before they suddenly arrived like a tap being turned on - and sheltering under the gazebo to carry on watching and snapping was suddenly the more attractive option.

I like a good thunderstorm, and they really aren't a regular occurrence here, certainly not with the proper big forks. We watched a couple of storms in Greece last year, getting a little too close to one, and a lot of years back there was a stunning show out over the harbour in Singapore. Nice to have this right on the doorstep.

(shot above chosen simply because I liked the colour and the random spidery nature of the couple of flashes caught - if only I'd been properly set up for the massive strike in the extra shot)