Electrifying Finish To Labor Day Weekend

Cloud-to-ground and cloud-to-cloud lightning appears to emanate from the same point a mile or more behind a building unit of the Colton Circle Condominums in Cedar Rapids, Iowa just before 9:00 PM, Monday, September 6, 2010. The condos are located near the intersection of Boyson Road and C Avenue NE in Cedar Rapids. The Labor Day thunderstorm was approaching head-on from the perspective of the camera and immediately after this capture I needed to gather my gear quickly and head for my car as it began to rain. A strong line of storms began to fire up around the Atlantic area in southwest Iowa around 6:00 PM and moved swiftly northeast around 55 mph, reaching this location about three hours later. This image is a 15-second exposure at f/10 with an ISO rating of 200.