Landscape Picture - Kgalagadi Lightning Strike

I took this landscape picture of a lightning strike in the Mata Mata Restcamp of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. My wife had to take over the braai I had going when the lightning started striking...

Luck? Sure! There is always luck involved in taking a photograph such as this one. But they say the more you practice the luckier you get... Here I took about 30 exposures with my camera on a tripod hoping the lightning would strike where I aimed my long lens (100-400mm zoom at 400mm with an effective focal length of 640mm). I got only one shot worth keeping!

As I say so often, that is one of the greatest lessons I have learned as a nature photographer. Use the first and last light well. You simply can't get stunning photographs without stunning light. Most of your award winning photographs will be taken less than half and hour before or after sunrise or less than half an hour before or after sunset.

The key elements here were spotting the thunderstorm, setting up on a tripod, choosing an aperture that would let through little light — to keep the scene sharp, and exposing for 30 to 40 seconds at a time.

The Kgalagadi has spectacular thunder storms with lightning strikes during summer, but offers the nature photographer way more than just that! I can't recommend this reserve enough to serious nature photographers. The main advantages are the crisp desert air, and the open desert savannah. Not to mention the high prevalence of big cat species. Very good for award-winning photography...

However, you will need some patience. In the Kruger National Park you might see something every ten minutes. In the Kgalagadi, you often have to drive around for much longer to find sightings. If you sit at a waterhole, you might just spend an hour or three before getting a worthwhile picture.

If you would like opportunities to take pictures like this one, scratch around in my Africa Safaris section and start planning a trip! It won't happen unless you plan for it.