A Big Dam Storm

Well since the USA vs. Guatemala World Cup Qualifying match being played tonight isn't being shown on tv, it meant I wasn't distracted and got around to working on a few pictures taken late last night/early this morning.

So around 11:45 last night, several flashes of light began to light up the window of my apartment. I'm not famous enough to be stalked by paparazzi, so it meant that a storm was brewing outside. I went to the balcony and saw the sky being absolutely lit up by flashes of lightning. Which proved to be a dilemma - do I go to bed now (my alarm clock goes of at 6:40), or head out to take pictures of the storm? Of course I made the most logical choice, and grabbed the camera.

I hurried to the Big Dam Bridge, which I thought might make a good location for some pictures. The storm was still strong, but wasn't all that close. It wasn't even raining when I got to the bridge.

Game update: Managed to find an online stream of the game, which may or may not be legal. I'm sure hundreds of viruses are being downloaded to my computer now. First half, 0-0.

Anyways, the storm was a bit too far south and most of the lightning was obscured by clouds. But I managed to get a few good shots of lightning, after standing out there for about 45 minutes. This is probably the best one:



Most of the storm had passed by, so I thought it would be ok to head on home. Plus, I was being eaten alive by mosquitoes out there. Of course, when I got back to my place, I looked and saw even more lighting. But my needing to be at work at 7:30 meant that it'd be wise to call it a night.

Getting shots of lightning is pretty difficult.  You have to be lucky to have the camera pointed at the right spot in the sky, at the right time.  And then, just hope that the camera is actually taking a picture when the lightning strikes.  I've made a few decent shots of lightning before, the best one was also taken at the Big Dam Bridge back in 2008: 

 

The worst thing about watching dodgy streams of international soccer games are the annoying ads placed over the screen.  There was one just now for "Russian Girls Love Americans."  I apologize to the future Ms. Cormack if she's in Moscow right now, but I didn't click on the ad.

GOAL USA! 1-0 in the 40th minute!

OK, time to sign out and watch the game.  Adios!

Update:  I had countless viruses downloaded to my computer, had my bank account mysteriously emptied, and the game ended with the USA drawing 1-1 with Guatemala.