‘Bad weather’-That time of the year when all hell breaks loose, and you can't go to that favourite movie because apparently, Mother Nature decided so. Well, if you’re a normal person, you’d like to sit in the house, listen to some music and drink hot chocolate (or tea if you’re from India). But not so for us photographers, for whom capturing photos on natural photography backdrops is an elixir of life. We always await moments like this. Nature is beautiful both when it’s all calm and also when it’s angry and raging: a thunderstorm with crackling lightning, for example. And we never want to miss moments like these. It doesn’t matter whether you are a professional photographer or an amateur one, if you have the passion to capture amazing pictures, this time could be your time to shine. No photography classes can teach you how to be brave enough to capture photos in bad weather. So, let’s see how one should go about capturing these dangerous but ‘oh so beautiful’ moments.
- Safety: This is and should be primarily on your list. Always make sure to keep yourself safe in such situations. Take precautions, wear a warm jacket. Make sure it’s waterproof in case it’s raining. Cover your head. Wear shoes with a good grip. Besides taking care of yourself, make sure you take care of your costly photography camera too. Take a waterproof camera bag and also take precautions to protect high-quality lenses. Make sure to not roam out in the open or stand near trees or even on elevated areas during a storm.
- The beauty of rain: We all love that first drizzle of rain in the hot summer and we all love the patterning of raindrops on the ground and the sweet smell of mud. We also love the beautiful sight of falling rain and as photographers, it is almost like a duty for us to capture this wonderful event. What’s even more beautiful than this is the lovely drops of rain sitting on leaves. Don’t miss these moments of nature’s beauty.
- Lightning: Another one of the beauties which accompany rain. But I’m sure that in our childhood, most of us were pretty scared of the rumbling sound of thunder that follows lightning. But as we grew up, our fear turned into fascination and it has always been the wish of photographers to get a picture of that amazing streak of lightning that lights up the dark skies. Lightning can give you the best photography lighting.
- Fog and mist: Do you wake up early in the morning and go for a jog? If you do, then you must have seen how you cannot see two meters in front of you when there’s heavy fog. Well, fog and mist are natural phenomena which also provide some excellent photographs if taken in the right manner. So, if you’re not an early bird, at the least, one day, make sure to get up and go for a walk. Also, don’t forget your camera and your lenses and your battery. You might also get some amazing shots of the sun rising if you are in the right place.
- Reflections: We might all like rain, but one thing we do not like is puddles and water just standing on the road and pavements. But if you have the artistic eye, you will notice how some beautiful reflections of buildings or arcs or even trees and stuff are formed and how some amazing pictures can be captured here. So, loathe not the puddles, be amazed by them and click some awesome pictures. Just don’t drop your camera in there.
- Coastline: The beauty of a coastline perhaps gets amplified by a thunderstorm or a rainstorm. With the waves in full tide and the churning of the sea water, you would perhaps get a good shot or two. Just make sure you don’t get pulled by the water currents. The same goes for your camera.
- Amazing landscapes: With rain or wind or any kind of bad weather, places start to look completely different. It is as if the place is awash in some heavenly beauty. Again, a passionate photographer would give anything to capture such pictures with such amazing photography backdrops. If you live in a valley or near a riverside or maybe even next to a forest, you would be capturing some beautiful snaps. Nonetheless, even urban areas have their own beauty, especially old castles, forts, temples, mosques or churches. In a different weather condition, they definitely look a lot different than what they look like on a regular basis.
