Lightning Bolt

Artist: Matt Merritt
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Card: US$4.49
Print: from US$19.24

Lightning Bolt

This storm developed in the evening, and produced several spectacular displays of lightning, such as this bolt of lightning, that landed quite a distance from the rain area. The clouds are lit and coloured by three light sources: the lightning, both inside and outside, the blue glow of the late twilight in the west, and the orange light of the city of Lutz, Florida.

Lightning Bolt belongs to the following groups:

*A Beautiful Blur, Abstract Realism, All Things Poetic, Artistic, Philosophical, Extreme Weather , Florida the Sunshine State , avatar challenge is open, Light In The Darkness, Lightning and Storms, Live, Love, Dream: , Miniatures and Mammoths, Mood & Ambience - Strictly Photos, Nature's Wonders, Night Photography, Out of the Blue (75%+ Blue), Shameless Self-Promotion, The true beauty and United States Available for sale as

Greeting Cards, Matted Prints, Laminated Prints, Mounted Prints, Canvas Prints and Framed Prints

Carrie Glenn

This is an excellent shot Matt!
Matt Merritt

Thanks!
Bekster

Great shot!!!
davesophfinn

Love the glow to the right in the cloud, sensation pic Matt.
sticky

Ooooh can hear the thunder.
Michael Rowley...

brilliant capture well done great timming
Kenneth Fugate

Wow love it the star and the lightning love it!
Michelle Boyer

Great capture
Matt Merritt

Thank you everyone!
Wanda Lechene

out standing capture great work
EOS20

Great capture!
Rikki Pool

one strong positive bolt of lightning there. :D
Matt Merritt

Thanks wanda, EOS20, and Rikki!
Nick Johnson

Fantastic shot Matt!
Daniel J. McCa...

Tremendous capture, Matt. Excellent work!
Robyn Carter

a difficult shot – fantastic – everything is wonderful about this one :)
Arlene Zapata

WOW! striking, decisive capture + those clouds look very much alive!
Thanx for your favorite too!
Jan Cartwright

Shockingly beautiful (sorry for the pun, it’s early yet). The bright light at the source of the lighting in the cloud is very cool. Great shot!
Alwyn Wentzel

what an amazing capture, your work is out standing!!
Mark Weaver

i really like your lightning shots, do you use a trigger or just set up longer exposures to try and catch the bolt?
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you 914studios. Unfortunately I don’t have a trigger. I do use long exposures; this was 20 sec. at an aperture of F 4.5, and set to be a little underexposed (to reduce cloud motion-blur). And I also try to anticipate when the lightning strike will happen. For example, if a strike just occurred, I would wait for about 15 sec. before opening the shutter (more or less, depending on how strong the storm is).
Mark Weaver

Thanks! We do live in the lightning capitol of the world ya know ;)
Matt Merritt

Thank you everyone for your kind words!
Cecil Fuselier

Matt this is stunning!!!!!!
David Iori

Great Capture
Rhonda Fulks

Outstanding image!
Kenny Gulley Jr.

absolutely impecable shot!
hollys1wedding

I LOVE THIS HOW DO YOU GET A PICTURE OF LIGHTNING? I LOVE STORMS!!!
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks! I live near Tampa, Florida, so we get a lot of thunderstorms in the spring and summer. So with practice, I have learned what camera settings to use, and how thunderstorms generally act.
Matt Merritt

Thank you ccfuse, David, Rhonda, Kenny, and hollys!
missmilly

Can’t get more amazing than this !Well done on a fab shot and great gallery!
stephen jones

Wonderful capter.
Jen Cannella

Stunning image…love the stars!
jlynn

Wow! Perfect!
jaydawnooo

fantastic! how do you add pics into ur profile?
JoLennox

very impressive!!
Wendy Slee

awesome power!
Carine Boustany

very bold and dramatic i love it and thankyou for added my San Remo image to your favorites
Cadence Gamache

Wow, what a striking capture! Impressive! And the matted print preview looks amazing!
Matt Merritt

Thank you missmilly, stephen, Jen, jlynn, jaydawnooo, Jo, Wendy, Carine, and Cadence! I appreciate all your comments!
mikrin

Wow Awesome capture!
Laura Marsh

amazing capture
Ine Spee

Wow, stunning photo! Love all the different lights in this, as well as the shape and colour of the cloud. And of course the lightning! Great work!
Jeremy Harrington

awesome shot Matt
Dan Jesperson

Very well don. I grew up in Florida and know what kind of storms happen down there. Awesome!
Matt Merritt

Thanks mikrin, Laura, Ine, Jeremy, and Daniel!
Heloisa Castro

Excellent shot.
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Heloisa!
lurline

AA really extraordinary shot! Superb work! :)
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks lurline!
bettyboop

This is fantastic, well done
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you bettyboop!
ClaireBare

what a stunner! great capture here- i like the way the clouds are kind of framing the lightning. a beaut!
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks for the complement Claire!
Mui-Ling Teh

AWESOME!
Matt Merritt replied

Yes, it was awesome!
John Dekker

stunning capture Matt…brilliantly done
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks John!
Ginger Barritt

Everything that comes to mind is redundant…stunning, shocking, beautiful, amazing…but that is what this photo is.
bmckain

Fantastic lightning shot! Made my favorites.
Matt Merritt

Thanks for the favorite Bob!
zenmasterlauren

absolutely amazing!!!!!!!! and not an easy thing to catch in your camera…I can’t tell you how long I’ve stood during one of our intense thunderstorms just waiting for the right shot! well done-
Matt Merritt

Thanks for the complement Lauren!
Stay safe while shooting thunderstorms!
crackgerbal

gorgeous work sir! i have a soft spot for lightning images and this is excellent!
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks crackgerbal!
Jess Andrews

Really great shot – well done
Matt Merritt

Thank you Jessica!
Rose S. Williams

Excellent capture with this one!!!
Matt Merritt

Thanks Rose!
dancinfreakshow

Great timing and fabulous capture:)
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Robert!
fixtape

Wow!!!
Rosalie Scanlon

Wow, excellent capture, so tough to get. We have hundreds of lightning bolts in my area, but I am too scared to go out and try to photograph them. (Only in the Summer, I might add)
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you Rosalie!
Yes, central Florida is the lightning capital of North America, and most of the lightning activity here is in the summer. Being a lightning photographer demands that I respect the dangers of lightning. Generally I stay inside if lightning is closer than 4 miles away (20 seconds between the flash and the thunder), and 4 miles is probably closer than I should be. But I have gotten good photos from storms that were over 20 miles away.
Steve Sharp

Another belter of a photo! I love the way the cloud glows.
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Steve!
Justyna1309

MY FAVORITE:):):)
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Justyna!
Donna Adamski

Awesome capture Matt :)
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Orphie!
van049

What a great image & fantastic capture!!!!
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you!
Lori Peters

Beautiful, Matt.
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Lori!
Vonnie Murfin

All I can say is WOW! Great shot!!
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks for the complement Vonnie, and the favorite!
Cassie Gannon

Superb capture!!! Breathtaking well done.
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you Cassie!
Matt White

great shot
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Matt!
down23

WOW!!!! What an amazing capture! Spectacular!!!!
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you!
Tania Birch

Wow great capture, love the light in the cloud!
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Tania, the light does look beautiful.
deannedaffy

Wow it’s an amazing capture.
Great catch!
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks deannedaffy!
Visual Inspi...

Wooooooooooo.. what a capture!! AWESOME!! rhonda ;0)
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks Rhonda! ;o)
dinghysailor1

sensational capture!! briliant work !!
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks so much!
clizzio

You sure do know just the right moment to push that shutter button.
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks clizzio! Actually, it wasn’t THAT had to get this photo. Since it was almost night, I was able to keep the shutter open for 20 seconds. Still, I did miss a few bolts.
kathy s gillen...

excellent capture
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you kathy!
Rosalie Scanlon

Congratulations,
Gareth Bowell

Totally awesome capture. Nothing like a good lightening shot and this is definately one of those.
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks for the complement Gareth!
laureenr

Stunning shot. Well done.
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks laureen!
ISMAIL ALAOUI ...

are you a lightning hunter!!
Matt Merritt replied

Yes, part time! :-)
Andrew Murrell

great lightning image, well done.
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you Andrew!
Scott d'Almeida

fabulous;
Matt Merritt replied

Thanks!
frankjames

Beautiful. Love nights like that.
Matt Merritt

Thanks Frank!
Steve Chapple

Outstanding detail and a real sense of the power and force of the storm.
Matt Merritt replied

Thank you Steve!
Joanne Bradley

WOW! Fantastic capture, excellent shot: color, clarity, composition and exposure are all extraordinary!
Dave & Trena P...

wow what a great shot! perfect timng. Beautiful
Nasif Hussain

fantastic shot….