Photo By: Landscapes of the Blue Ridge
Location: View Arnold Valley Overlook, Milepost 76.
A most fortunate time to be up on Thunder Ridge at the View Arnold Valley Overlook watching storms come through on 7/20/13.
Camera: Sony A580
Lens: Zeiss 16-35
ISO: 100
Aperture: f/22
Shutter: 5 exposures 1/8 thru 1/80
Exposure: manual and multiple
Focal Length: 24mm
Filters: none
How I Got This Shot
The parkway north of Roanoke lends itself to storm photography with the road running the ridge and storms having a lengthy crossing of the Great Valley. I saw them on the radar and got moving, upon arrival on the ridge saw 2 storms and chased them from MP 100 all the way to 75, trying to get lightning shots. There were cloudy skies mixed with sun all around and 2 confined storm events following one another up the valley. Thunder Ridge, near Virginia’s parkway highpoint, is where the best action occurred. This is where the storms crossed the Blue Ridge and it made for some varied and active scenes in the sky. In the photo I caught a clearing with a light beam in between the 2 rain plumes.
I almost always use a tripod and remote shutter, and typically shoot 4 or more exposure brackets in RAW. I am a “post process” fan using Photoshop CS-6 most often manually blending exposures using luminosity and layer masking to attempt creating the most realistic scenes as seen by the eye. I no longer use HDR software. I will be offering Photoshop tutoring in the Roanoke, VA area…visit my Facebook page Landscapes of the Blue Ridge.
For More Information
- Additional photographs by Landscapes of the Blue Ridge
- Categories where this photo is found: Overlook Views