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View Full Version : Shooting the "Weather" - Heading for Tornado Alley this Spring



Cletus
22-Mar-2013, 07:00
I've always admired the work of Mitch Dobrowner. If you're not familiar, he's done some beautiful B&W work with clouds, extreme weather, tornados and the like in the Western, Central and North Central US.

I spent a few early Spring months near Clovis, NM one year and experienced some of the most phenomenal weather, on a daily basis, than I can recall before or since. At the time - this was many years ago - I was not well equipped, nor did I have the time, to properly photograph any of this awesome display.

So, each year around this time I begin cobbling together plans to head a bit north and a bit west (I live in Dallas), with full LF and MF camera gear in tow, to seek out some of that awe inspiring weather. It's getting to be about that time again for this year. The "Tornado Tourists" are getting geared up and reserving their spots with the storm chaser tours.

I've begun to revisit my old bookmarks for NOAA, NWS, and some of the other sites pertaining to weather and more importantly, severe weather. My problem is, I have no meteorologist blood and if the weather reports don't say "There's probably gonna be a severe thunderstorm RIGHT HERE", I have a tough time making good guesses which way to head that morning. I have to rely on dumb luck and my weak to non-existent understanding of frontal boundaries, dry lines, cloud types and altitudes and other meteorlogical data to try to eke out where some neat clouds might be that day.

There are a few tiny flaws in this method, not the least of which is inadvertently findng myself looking down the business end of a tornado with nowhere to run, but there is also extreme hail, high winds, torrential rain, etc.. You can surely guess.

Storm Chasing is really a sport best reserved for the experienced and weather educated set, but that won't stop me from trying to get out there anyway and make a few Dobrowneresque images of clouds and other weather phenomena. Which isn't exactly the same as storm chasing anyway, per se.

So all that to get to this: Anyone else get excited and start loading film holders and mounting long lenses when Spring comes to Tornado Alley? I'm doing a weather check this morning (much good may it do me), firing up my portable Mi-Fi and weather radio and will probably be heading toward Clovis this evening to see what I can see this weekend.

Any 'amateur storm chasers' out there thinking about dong the same thing? Any tips or tricks to contribute? Other than "Avoid the big funnel cloud coming down the road at you!" I'm up for a little adventure and hopefully an awesome image or two - anybody local wanna come along?

QT Luong
22-Mar-2013, 10:50
Mitch Dobrowner works with a DSLR. For LF photographs of weather, check Kevin Erskine's Supercell
www.amazon.com/Kevin-Erskine-Supercell-Richard-Hamblyn/dp/3775732098/?tag=8419-20
Here's a portfolio of the work: http://www.photoeye.com/Gallery/forms2/index.cfm?image=3&id=195686&imagePosition=3&Door=1&Portfolio=Portfolio2&Gallery=PhotoShowcase

Ed Richards
22-Mar-2013, 11:12
Having chased a few big thunderstorms, you really risk getting drenched or worse. The adverse conditions probably wash out any benefits of lf. At least get a Walker camera and a lens you are not attached to.

Cletus
22-Mar-2013, 15:18
Wow, thanks QT. (I must say I feel a bit honored to hear from you...) I appreciate the links too, I'd never heard of Kevin Erskine until now. Great work! Now I'm even more fired up about getting out there this spring and chasing some big anvil clouds!

Jack Coleman of Grapeland
8-Apr-2013, 18:03
Hello, I am new to the forum and never fired the shutter on my Toyo 4x5CX but I do live in the southeastern edge of "Tornado Alley." From playing with the camera and knowing fast moving fronts, I have two concerns: There's more to these things than wind, tornadoes, and hail. Lightening is the greatest risk and is almost always fatal. Most modern tripods are metal and well-grounded when set up. Two, winds can go from calm to 60 miles per hour in an instant. In a 60 MPH gust, none of us are strong enough to hold onto the camera, tripod, and our own behinds.

If I it were me doing this, I would think in terms of a storm moving away and far enough distant to capture the majesty of the cyclone. Leave the drama to the guys who sacrifice families and careers in order to get underneath a big storm. Personally, I like the thumbnail rule: If you can cover it with your thumbnail extended at arms length, you are far enough away.

I suggest a NWS Storm Spotter training class, Advanced if you can find one. Much of it focuses on personal safety and how to assess the risk of the perils of storm spotting.

My dream is to spend the month of May in Aspermont, Texas to photograph the big storms and I understand the compulsion to photograph them so I am not trying to scare you away. I want you to be safe. And, I find no interest in seeing your name associated with an article entitled "In Memorium"....

Here's what I got digitally last summer: http://www.panoramio.com/photo/76308912 I was about 50 miles away.

Jack

ImSoNegative
8-Apr-2013, 19:28
I couldn't imagine taking my LF camera out to take pictures of a tornado too risky.. for my camera that is good luck though

bobwysiwyg
8-Apr-2013, 19:53
Jack, nice anvil shot!