How to Photograph Lightning

A Storm Chaser’s Guide to Capturing Nature’s Power in Southern Arizona

Lightning is one of nature's most spectacular and elusive phenomena, and capturing it with a camera takes more than pointing at the sky and hoping for the best. It requires patience, technical skill, meteorological awareness, and deep respect for the storm's power. As storm chasers and photographers working across Southern Arizona and into New Mexico, we've learned that success comes from planning, preparation, and making deliberate decisions in the field. This guide walks you through our approach to safety, forecasting, camera setup, and location so you can chase with confidence and come home with images that electrify.

In Southern Arizona and New Mexico, the monsoon typically runs from mid-June through late September. This is when we see the highest concentration of convection-driven storms and lightning activity, with peak months in July and August.

Lightning Safety in the Field

Before we discuss gear, forecasts, or camera settings, safety must be our top priority. Lightning is dangerous—each year claiming the lives of some in the US. Your safety is our number one priority.

We avoid setting up on ridgelines, near isolated trees, or in open fields where we’d be the tallest object. We also stay away from fences, power lines, metal structures, and anything conductive. Using the flash-to-bang method—counting the seconds between lightning and thunder—and modern radar apps helps us gauge distance. Every five seconds equals roughly one mile. If strikes are hitting within two to three miles, it’s time to reevaluate. We also watch for anvil crawlers and positive strikes, which can travel ten or more miles from the storm core, even under clear skies.

Because we often shoot without the protection of permanent shelter, we always remain close to our chase vehicles, plan escape routes, and stay aware. The storm doesn’t care about our composition. Getting the shot matters—but not more than staying safe.

Storm Chasing:

Planning the Intercept

Chasing lightning starts long before the storm appears. The best images are captured by getting into position before convection begins, and that starts with careful forecasting. In our workshop’s class sessions, we teach our students how to use forecasting tools and reinforce the learning in the chase vehicles while en route to the storms.

We begin by comparing weather forecast models, looking at when they align. That is a strong indicator of storm initiation zones. The University of Arizona's high-resolution WRF model is particularly valuable for capturing the local terrain's influence during the monsoon. We also use Pivotal Weather for quick model overlays, the Storm Prediction Center for outlooks and mesoscale discussions, and the College of DuPage’s Nexlab site for satellite and radar composites. Once storms initiate, we switch to Radar Omega, Radarscope, SatSquatch WX, and Pivotal Weather to track real-time movement, structure, and lightning activity.

But no matter how good the models are, they’re still forecasts, not guarantees. One of the most important tools we have is our own eyes. Being able to read clouds in the field—watching for signs of vertical growth, rotation, outflows, or collapsing towers—can reveal dynamics that radar hasn't yet caught.

I’ve been told that one of my strengths as a storm chaser is my ability to read the weather in real time. I remember a chase where every radar model pointed northwest, but when I stepped outside, I saw an enormous tower building to the east, entirely off the radar's focus. I followed my instincts instead of the models, and it turned into one of the best storms of the season.

Forecasting helps us choose a target region—but selecting the best location within that region is what separates snapshots from portfolio shots. That's where the creative payoff really happens—where the light, the land, and the atmosphere align to turn weather into art. An exceptional Arizona storm chaser puts it, "Planning gets us to the stadium—next, we need to find our seat." That seat is where the angle, the structure, the light, and the landscape all come together.

Choosing Your Location:

Landscape, Line of Sight, and Lightning Potential

The bolt may be the subject, but the foreground makes the photo. We’ve scouted and marked over 500 storm-shooting locations across Cochise, Pima, and Santa Cruz counties in Southern Arizona and southern New Mexico near the Arizona border. These aren’t just pretty places—they’re high-probability setups where we’ve learned how storms behave, where bolts land, and how light plays across the land.

During monsoon season, southerly to southeasterly flow brings moist air from the Gulf of California and eastern Pacific into the region, often leading to storm development just north of the U.S.–Mexico border. As a result, Cochise County consistently records more lightning strikes than any other county in Arizona.

One of the biggest drivers of storm formation here is the orographic lift from the Sky Island mountain ranges—the Huachucas, Chiricahuas, and Santa Ritas. A familiar and fascinating sight during monsoon season is the appearance of small clouds over these mountains by late morning. These early-stage formations often build into moisture-rich cumulonimbus clouds by early afternoon, signaling the onset of storm development. These mountain-driven storms frequently form in the early afternoon and can persist well into the night.

When selecting a shooting location, we look for clean views toward where storms usually approach, as well as strong compositional elements such as saguaros, ridgelines, old ranch fences, or lone trees. Open landscapes are great for structure, but without foreground context, even a dramatic bolt can fall flat. Many of our best locations also offer room to reposition as storms evolve. We favor sites with 180- to 360-degree views when possible, allowing us to adjust quickly if multiple storm cells develop or shift unexpectedly.

And we don’t just choose spots based on the view—we choose them based on storm behavior. Some locations are known to produce lightning-heavy storms with frequent cloud-to-ground (CG) strikes. Understanding those dynamics helps us get into the right place more quickly and stay productive for longer.

Some compositional thoughts to keep in mind. Some bolts are vertical, others sprawl horizontally. Anticipate the direction of structure, and leave negative space accordingly. Wide compositions with sky-dominant framing often outperform tight crops, especially when lightning strikes outside the center.

Camera Settings and Shooting Techniques

Settings vary by time of day and storm intensity, but our approach stays consistent. Here are some things we have learned the hard way. Always make sure that Long Exposure Noise Reduction is off. Double-check that you do not have a timed delay enabled. Turn off image review. We know you want to check if you captured the shot (chimping) - don't! I explain why below.

The settings suggested below are accurate starting points. As with all photography, field conditions will require needed adjustments.

Daytime

For daytime lightning, you will need a lightning trigger. This device is sensitive to the infrared change that occurs before a strike becomes visible, triggering your shutter. The goal in shooting in bright ambient light is to find the proper balance between the landscape exposure and capturing a strong lightning strike. Here is the strategy that works for us.

We set up in manual mode at ISO 50, f/8, and shutter speeds between 1/15 and 1/4 second and adjust from there. These slower exposures increase the chance that the shutter is open when the Lightning Bug Plus Lightning trigger fires, allowing the camera to capture the bolt while maintaining proper exposure. When using a lightning trigger, the camera operates in single-shot mode, not continuous or interval shooting. We focus once using autofocus, then switch to manual to avoid lens hunting. We shoot in RAW and disable in-camera noise reduction. Depending on conditions, we use anything from a Circular Polarizer to a 3-stop ND filter to help achieve slower shutter speeds.

Sunset

When the daylight begins to fade is the most magical time to shoot storms. The golden hour in Arizona offers a rich saturation of purple to orange hues in the sky, making lightning strikes and storm structure stand out.

At sunset, we shift to aperture priority mode. Our filters are removed, and we set the aperture to f/11 and the ISO to 50, allowing the camera to determine an exposure between 2 and 4 seconds. We adjust the aperture until we get to the 2 to 4-second goal. This gives us a good dynamic range—detail in the clouds, and enough ambient light in the landscape to capture Arizona's stunning sunset colors, as well as visibility in the bolts.

Night Lightning

If your goal is to capture powerful multiple strikes with many step leaders as the primary focus, then nighttime is the best time to shoot.

As the sky transitions from sunset to night, light conditions change rapidly, requiring closer attention to camera settings and frequent adjustments. When night falls, we return to manual mode, working at ISO 200 to 400, f/8, and 10-second exposures. We try not to exceed 15 seconds, as longer exposures tend to introduce too much ambient haze, softening the bolts. After years of experimentation, we can confidently say that shooting with an interval timer or a lightning trigger at night yields similar results. Our personal choice is to use an intervalometer at night. Digital film is cheap, and culling night images is quick.

Sprites and Transient Luminous Events (TLEs)

Sprites, blue jets, and other transient luminous events (TLEs) are rare plasma discharges that occur high above thunderclouds. While they are triggered by powerful cloud-to-ground lightning, they are a distinct phenomenon from traditional lightning strikes. Sprites, the most commonly photographed, appear as brief reddish-orange tendrils or columns shooting upward into the mesosphere.

To photograph sprites, we shoot in continuous mode with four or 5-second exposures at ISO between 1250 and 4000 and f1.4 or f/1.8. The lens choice depends on the distance to the storm, typically 24mm or 50mm. A fast, wide-angle lens and a sturdy tripod are key. Sprites are best captured by pointing the camera toward active lightning storms located 100 to 300 miles away, with a clear, dark horizon.

Being based near the U.S.–Mexico border gives us an advantage: we often have a clear line of sight to powerful storms in northern Mexico. These distant systems can generate strong positive lightning strikes that trigger sprites, making southern Arizona and New Mexico prime territory for observing and photographing this rare phenomenon.

Active Conditions

In active conditions, we often run two or more cameras, intending to capture wide shots for structure and tighter images for bolt detail. This expands coverage, increases the hit rate, and provides a richer visual narrative of the storm.

A Note about Chimping

It is natural to check to see if you captured that amazing lightning strike. We strongly suggest that you resist the temptation. You never know when the next strike will happen, and Murphy has assured us that it will strike while you are checking your images. Also, many strikes will not be visible on your LCD but will be easily viewed on your computer. If you must check, then

·      Use 10x zoom to check the sharpness of distant bolts.

·      Look for faint branches that are often invisible in LCD previews.

·      Turn off image review delay if using continuous or interval shooting.

Camera Presets for Fast Field Work

Most modern cameras from Canon, Sony, and Nikon allow users to create and save custom shooting presets. Many models allow you to save presets to an SD card, enabling photographers to preload their presets for various scenarios. These presets make it easy to quickly switch between settings tailored for separate situations, such as storms, landscapes, night scenes, or wildlife photography. Saving presets to an SD card also enables backup and rapid deployment across multiple camera bodies. This flexibility is a powerful asset when light changes rapidly in the field.

To stay efficient in changing light, we rely on custom shooting presets. On Canon cameras, we set C1 for daytime lightning: manual mode, ISO 50, f/8, 1/20 second. C2 is optimized for sunset: aperture priority, ISO 50, f/11, and variable shutter. C3 is for nighttime: manual mode, ISO 200-400, f/8, 10 seconds.

Having presets locked in allows us to adapt quickly when storms fire up. When lightning becomes frequent, we often switch to continuous mode or interval shooting to maximize our chances of capturing the moment. With bolts firing every few seconds, the best strategy is to keep the cameras rolling.

Gear and Filter Choices

Lightning photography doesn’t require the most exotic equipment, but it does demand reliability and responsiveness. Here is an overview of our suggestions. We list more specific gear recommendations in the summary at the end of this article.

Mirrorless cameras are generally preferred for lightning photography due to their fast sensor readouts, higher sensitivity, and near-instant electronic shutter response. These advantages improve the odds of capturing split-second lightning strikes, especially when using a trigger. That said, any good DSLR can still perform well with the proper setup.

Based on our preferred location from the storms, we typically shoot with a 24–70mm or 24–105mm lens for flexibility, and keep a 50mm prime on our second camera. We also always have a 70–200mm lens to get tight shots of the storm and a 16–35mm for wider shots or when the storm is closer. A heavy-duty tripod is essential to manage wind gusts. For daytime lightning, we use the MK Controls Lightning Bug Plus trigger. It reacts quickly and significantly improves bolt-capture success. The Lightning Bug Plus detects the invisible infrared burst that occurs just before a lightning strike, triggering the shutter in time to capture the visible bolt. At night, we rely on a remote shutter release or intervalometer to enable continuous shooting and minimize vibration during exposures.

For daytime shooting, we typically use a 3-stop ND filter or a Circular Polarizer. If needed, we will use a 6-stop ND filter, understanding that heavier NDs may darken the ambient light too much and can cause lightning to fade in the exposure. A circular polarizer is a good first choice to cut glare and deepen skies while preserving bolt clarity.

Rain and wind are both a part of monsoon storms. While we make every attempt to stay dry, we will inevitably get wet and face powerful outflow winds. It is important to:

·      Always carry lens cloths, a rain cover, or a shower cap for the camera.

·      Know how to stabilize a tripod against gusts (e.g., low stance, hang weight).

·      Consider protective sleeves for lenses.

Final Thoughts

One of the most rewarding aspects of storm chasing in southern Arizona is the sense of community. The network of chasers here is tight-knit, supportive, and generous with their knowledge. Social Media groups, such as the Official Tucson Storm Chasers, promote a spirit of learning and support for one another.  We've all learned from each other—and continue to. While many of us run workshops during monsoon season, it's only right to acknowledge those whose experience, insight, and encouragement have shaped how we chase and shoot. We're especially grateful to giants in the field, Lori Grace Bailey, John (Flano) Flanagan, Greg McCown, and John Sirlin—not just for what they’ve taught, but for how they represent the spirit of the storm chasing community.

Lightning photography is part science, part instinct, and part adrenaline rush. It demands planning, patience, and humility in the face of nature’s unpredictability. Every storm is different. Every bolt is unique. And every image is a story waiting to be told.

With the right tools, solid forecasting habits, a deep understanding of terrain, and respect for the atmosphere, we can consistently put ourselves in the best position to capture something extraordinary.

We may photograph from public roads or with private landowner permission. Please always remember that respect for property, ranches, and local communities is key to keeping this craft sustainable and welcome.

So chase smart. Compose with purpose. And when the sky lights up and the shutter clicks, be ready to capture something unforgettable.

If you found this article helpful and want to take your skills to the next level, we'd love to have you join one of our monsoon storm photography workshops.

Gear Summary

We have affiliate relationships with some of the companies on this page

Cameras

·      DSLR or mirrorless camera with manual mode capability (We use Canon R5 as primary, 5DIV as secondary, and 5DIII for third and fourth bodies)

Lenses

·      24–70mm or 24–105mm (primary lens)

·      50mm prime (secondary lens, second camera, Sprites)

·      70–200mm (tight storm shots and night)

·      16–35mm (wide compositions and close-range storms)

·      24mm prime (Sprites)

Tripods

·      Heavy-duty tripod (We use Pro Media Gear. Use code Father10 for 10% off)

Pro Media Gear has distinguished itself with intelligent design and rock-solid craftsmanship. From their revolutionary and smartly designed L Brackets to their Gimbal Heads and Tripods, we have found them to exceed all our expectations.

Cable Releases and Intervelometers

·      Remote shutter release or intervalometer (We use Vello)

Filters

We strongly recommend Breakthrough Filters (contact me for a 10% discount)
Breakthrough is set to release magnetic filters in mid-July 2025. Any filters purchased before then will be upgraded at no charge

·      3 or 6-stop neutral density filter 

·      Circular polarizer

Lightning Trigger

We have done extensive testing on the most popular lightning triggers on the market. The winners are the Lightning Bug Plus and Stepping Stones Lightning Trigger IV. However, the Lightning Bug Plus is half the price and comes with the cable.

·      MK Controls Lightning Bug Plus (Use code RGallucci at checkout for free shipping)

Camera Bags

·      Gura Gear (Use Code RGallucci for 10% off)

We love using best-in-class equipment and have found that the initial investment pays dividends through quality workmanship and intelligent design. The Kiboko 2.0 22L with its simple access and ample gear protection is our daily bag. When we need to bring our long lens into the field, we move to the 30L, the only bag in the market to handle an 800mm 5.6 lens.

Weather Tools and Forecasting Resources

Mobile Tools

·      RadarScope

·      Radar Omega

·      SatSquatch

·      WX

·      Pivotal Weather

Desktop Tools

·      Pivotal Weather

·      University of Arizona WRF Model

·      NOAA Storm Prediction Center

·      College of DuPage Nexlab (Satellite, Radar, and Forecast Tools)

·      HRRR and NAM3K forecast models

·      RadarScope

·      Radar Omega