Shot a few days ago at Rye Back Beach in Victoria - I got lucky with the lightning strike in the brief time the shutter was open.

Canon 1DS MK3 w/ 24mm F1.4L MKII ISO100 F16 3.2 Seconds 3 Stop Hard ND Grad - Post Process LR 2.5
Click to view attachment

Comments and Thoughts welcome as always.

I like how the clouds at the sky and the rocks on the sand have a completely different light, and yet it does not look artificial; very nice.
Sadly, the lightning is very small, I had to look for it.

PD: By the way, I had a look at your landscapes, and they are amazing.

Take all t he lucky ones you can get Josh! This one is absolutely amazing!

Luck is with the prepared - well done!

Beautiful.

I guess that line in the sand on bottom right is just a sand rift. Superb image.

JMR

Great clouds!!

Mike.

Great shot sir!

I was in Geelong for those few successive storms the other day but it was tipping down..

As Wim said, luck certainly favours the prepared mind.. well deserved!

Already in small (and I imagine also from the far hanging on a wall) it looks unusual. Beautiful indeed.

It looks to me like the mark left by a wave lapping up then receding. A beautiful scene indeed.

I've viewed this several times now...it is a very quietly satisfying image somehow. I like the way 3/4/5 proportions turning up in layers throughout support the balance of the overall impression...the right upper 2/3 strip of rose, the lower 1/3 strip, holding the granite feeding up into that strip , the flow across the azure from there across to the left...a very pleasant flow... I love that lens and use it often on botanicals...

only two things I'd be tempted to play with via copy before hanging a very nice print were it mine would be to see if the drag on lower right (suspiciously like tripod) could be softened in pp and maybe a bit of poking around in the very upper left hand corner to bring out just a bit definition...the info looks like it's there..

edit: I just reread this and may not make sense...I'll try to attach a sketch when I get back to my desk... all in all ..very nice. Pat


ok...so here is a quick sketch of what I am trying to say..

It's a beautiful image. There is only one change that I would be tempted to make. Even though the lightning strike is small, I think it could be brought out more by brightening (dodging) it so that it contrasts better with the clouds. As it is, to my eyes the brightness level looks similar to the line in the sand in the lower right (the one that Lois identified -- correctly I believe -- as the line left by a receding wave).

Wish I'd taken that one!

Eric

Here is a crude and rough approximation of what I'm thinking of. I think I overdid it, but this may give you an idea.

Click to view attachment

Eric

Thank you all for the kind words.

The lightning strike is easily visible in a 13 x 19 print. I did think about enhancing it a little for the jpeg -but I think it just ends up looking unnatural.

Good news is I was actually down at Rye shooting a commission of around a dozen landscape shots for a client's beach house when this storm took place and I made this image. I have subsequently shown this shot and the other proofs to the client who is thrilled with the result and confirmed their order for some large prints. I think I am going to have to chase more lightning!

Beautiful photo, the colours are amazing. I think what I love the most is that your eye is gradually drawn down through the layers, it's as though looking through separate shots. It works so well!

I hope you'll take up the storm-chasing a little more, especially since you seem to have a lot of luck for catching lightning like that!