This was taken as I was sitting on Route 66, just off an interstate exit. I had never been in a large flat area during a lightning storm before (without being surrounded by trees), so seeing the lightning so "large" and so far away was pretty cool to me.
p.1 #11 · New Mexico Route 66 Lightning "HDR" (x3)
Thanks again everyone
I've only been using this HDR Efex 2 demo for a day now. So far it's pretty neat, and I've revisited some other older landscape shots, just to see what I could pull off. So far, it's pretty nice.
As a bit of a note on these particular shots, the software doesn't work as well as I'd hoped when you have black/near black in the images - Basically, it nearly forces you to raise black levels (even if the HDR is nearly "disabled), even if you bottom out the black and shadows sliders. I managed to burn off the effects in the first shot, but the 2 and 3 shots I had to take a different approach, barely using the "HDR" effect and then resorting to more manual massaging through NX2 (and color EFex filters) and Lightroom 4 manual editing.
I plan on writing an email to the company to see if this can be patched or something - I realize these shots are probably pseudo-HDR, if that (because frankly I'm burning away detail instead of raising shadows), and maybe the software doesn't apply, but I *do* like some of the effects it pulls off in regards to mid tones and highlights.
p.1 #17 · New Mexico Route 66 Lightning "HDR" (x3)
Wow! These are pretty intense images. I love them all! I love watching thunderstorms, but I don't think I could brave going out and taking pictures of them.
p.1 #20 · New Mexico Route 66 Lightning "HDR" (x3)
nburwell wrote:
Wow! These are pretty intense images. I love them all! I love watching thunderstorms, but I don't think I could brave going out and taking pictures of them.
-Nick
Yeah I also love them, and this was a strange storm in that it was completely silent (I've never seen that). The only thing I can think of is that it was so far away I couldn't hear the thunder?
I could see the storm for literally 50 miles away or more, but it soon edged upon me as I was driving towards it, so I stopped on the side of Route 66 (right next to the interstate) and started shooting from just outside my car.
All of a sudden a huge chain lit up right over me (or so it appeared...not photographed) and I decided I should probably shoot from the dashboard (and say a few prayers just in case)!
(I have cropped away the dashboard in these shots)
The weird thing is, the lightning above me surprised me because again the lightning was completely silent - no thunder (perhaps lightning not striking the ground does this I guess?)
