As I waited for this series of bracketed long exposures of The Pinnacles at Cape Woolamai to complete, I was paying close attention to the storm approaching the coastline and the countless lightning bolts that appeared to be striking at the ocean… my nerves growing as I realised that the storm was heading straight for me, and that the top of my head was one of the highest electrically conductive surfaces in the area!

Just as the shutter closed for the last time, a deluge of torrential rain fell upon The Pinnacles and the cliffs of Cape Woolamai… thunder clapped deafeningly all around me… and I swore I was able to feel the immense electrical energy being discharged from the black cumulonimbus clouds that seemed to hanging just above my head.

I abandoned the photo shoot, oh so close to my intended destination at the bottom of The Pinnacles, and sprinted back along the walking track atop the cliffs of Cape Woolamai. I made it safely back to the Cape Woolamai surf beach, albeit drenched in cold (refreshing) rain from head to toe… where I was able to watch the storm pass before attempting a few dusk photos along the beach.

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1. Canon EOS 450D
2. Canon EF-S 18-55mm IS @ 18mm
3. 60 seconds @ f/8 (ISO100)
4. Hoya NDX400 filter
5. Hoya PRO1D Circular PL filter
6. Cokin P121S + P121L filters
7. Manfrotto 190XB tripod with 804RC2 head
8. HDR generated from 3 exposures (+/-2ev) using Photomatix Pro
9. Corrections/enhancements applied using Photoshop CS4 with Topaz Adjust and Imagenomic Noiseware Professional plug-ins

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