michaelwilson
michaelwilson
Stormy

Stormy



Lightning during a summer thunderstorm at Watson Lake in Prescott, Arizona

Lightning during a summer thunderstorm at Watson Lake in Prescott, Arizona
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upload_dateAug, 2015

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7993

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Awards

Contest Finalist in Layers and Rule Of Thirds Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in HDR Landscapes Photo Contest Explore Series
Contest Finalist in Earth Day 2016 Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in World Expeditions Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Discover America Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Exploring The Wilderness Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Landscapes 101 Photo Contest
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Contest Finalist in Monthly Pro Vol 14 Photo Contest
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billmartin_2615 CharlesEDavid Erlingurarnarson ARUNASPINIGIS aliceforrallies stephentinkler DEBOLINA_MOITRA +361
Superb Composition
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Absolute Masterpiece
akankshagulati ppls6 Herbertahollybaker ricrog RLP073 Herbert_A_Franke bethanyeasling +220
Top Choice
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Magnificent Capture
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Outstanding Creativity
kallolmahalanabis gregory__urbano GELeka David-MM BrunoHeeb lucas8463 yoannakrasimirova +60
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Genius
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Love it
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Impressed
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All About Water Photo ContestTop 10 class
Change Of Seasons Photo ContestTop 10 class
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Unique Sceneries Photo ContestTop 10 class week 1
Everything Nature Photo ContestTop 10 class
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The Talent AwardsTop 10 class
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 class
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Water Photo Contest 2017Top 10 class
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Layers and Rule Of Thirds Photo ContestTop 10 class
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Celebrating Nature Photography Day Photo Contest 2016Top 10 class
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HDR Landscapes Photo Contest Explore SeriesTop 10 class week 2
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HDR Landscapes Photo Contest Explore SeriesTop 10 class week 1
The Beauty Of My Hometown Photo ContestTop 10 class
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Monthly Pro Vol 17 Photo ContestTop 10 class
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Categories

27 Comments | Report
RuwanFonseka PRO
 
RuwanFonseka August 05, 2015
Well crafted image.
sharlenescarboroughdodds PRO+
 
sharlenescarboroughdodds August 24, 2015
jaw dropping WOW!
fabs
 
fabs September 21, 2015
WOW
where was this taken? its fantastic! the light, the textures, everything! CONGRATULATIONS! :)
DebbieKMiller81 PRO+
 
DebbieKMiller81 September 22, 2015
WOW, what a gorgeous shot. I just love it. Well done.
JoanLoBo PRO+
 
JoanLoBo October 24, 2015
superior clarity.
didoman PRO+
 
didoman October 25, 2015
WOW -WOW WHAT A GREAT PICTURE AND AWESOME CAMERA WORK
timguzmanphotography
 
timguzmanphotography November 15, 2015
Awesome shot. Great lighting, composition, and lightning strike. The water level sure is low, we sure need some rain.
KoralC PRO
 
KoralC November 29, 2015
Superb!
Silverdarkness PRO+
 
Silverdarkness December 03, 2015
Stunning composition.
bdreyer1
 
bdreyer1 December 13, 2015
I love Watson Lake!!
LindaT
 
LindaT December 15, 2015
Stunning wow!
Fujiguy PRO
 
Fujiguy February 13, 2016
Everything comes together in this superb image. Draws the viewer in and demands exploration of every detail.
CMEYN PRO+
 
CMEYN February 22, 2016
Congratulations on your Daily Dozen selection at NG today! :-)
juvyjgreen
 
juvyjgreen March 01, 2016
Just wow! May I know where is this place?
johneddy
johneddy March 21, 2016
this is watson lake In Prescott AZ
GayleLucci PRO+
 
GayleLucci May 05, 2016
Congratulations Michael! Love this vantage point at Watson Lake. Beautifully captured! Gayle
hhaggins
 
hhaggins May 22, 2016
Beautiful look at God's beautiful work.
AprilMetten
 
AprilMetten May 29, 2016
Beautiful!
LauraEm
 
LauraEm August 13, 2016
Amazing work! Voted!!
Redhorse89
 
Redhorse89 September 25, 2016
I recognized this place immediately. Nice work!
jenibrown
 
jenibrown February 07, 2017
I love how each time I've looked at this I notice something new. Awesome picture!
Aleksander_Tomczuk
 
Aleksander_Tomczuk April 13, 2017
What a shoot!!! What a place!!!
Neckbone
 
Neckbone August 05, 2017
Great shot!
Elithunder
 
Elithunder August 21, 2017
So beautiful! Wonderful shot!!
Alwolfe Premium
 
Alwolfe October 04, 2017
Great capture!
HigginsworthPhotography
 
HigginsworthPhotography October 06, 2017
Awesome
leannedelong
 
leannedelong July 19, 2018
Absolutely stunning 🙌🏻
Sammyjane123
 
Sammyjane123 August 03, 2018
Beautiful!

Submitted to Photo Contests

Tags

#Michael Wilson #prescott #landscape #lightning #az #arizona #Watson Lake #storm

Behind The Lens

Location
This photo was taken during the summer thunderstorm season at Watson Lake, in Prescott, Arizona.
Time
This is definitely one of my favorite images, and I'm glad that other people seem to like it as well. During the summer in the southwest, thunderstorms routinely move in during the daytime. I had scouted out this location, and was prepared for when an afternoon thunderstorm was making it's way across the lake. This was taken before I had a lighting trigger, so I setup the tripod and camera, on top of this precarious rock formation. I then just kept shooting 10-second intervals. I didn't know if I had captured a lighting strike or not until I got back to the computer to review the images.
Lighting
I often hear from other photographers that lightning is the scariest type of storm event to be in. In this image, the storm was moving away from me, so I felt fairly safe. It is definitely a thrill to capture a nice lighting bolt to add another element to an already good composition & image.
Equipment
I used my Nikon D7000 with the 12 to 24mm lens on a tripod. No other equipment was utilized.
Inspiration
I live near Watson Lake and visit it often, so I've become very familiar with good compositions at the lake. Watson Lake is such a picturesque location to begin with. Add to it interesting stormy skies, and you definitely come away with a "keeper" image.
Editing
Because I was continuously shooting images to try and get a lightning bolt, I had quite a few different shots. The sun would peek out from behind the clouds and light the scene in different ways. I started with the image that showed the lighting bolt, then combine a couple different shots where the lighting of the ground was better in particular areas. I also used some HDR processing.
In my camera bag
I always carry my tripod. For lenses, I carry my Nikkor 12-24mm and Nikkor 28-300mm. I feel these two lenses give me enough focal length coverage for most landscape photography situations. There is nothing worse than realizing you left your battery charging back at home, or left your SD card in the card reader, so extra batteries and SD cards are a must. During thunderstorm season, I now carry my lighting trigger too.
Feedback
Summer thunderstorms in the southwest are great, mainly because they are fairly reliable. A stormy sky is great, but it should definitely be balanced with a great composition of the land. Always keep in mind that storms naturally move, so you always have to be thinking about potential other compositions if the action starts happening in a different spot or location.

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