After attending the midKnight showing of THE DARK KNIGHT RISES my friend and I meandered out west of town near the Crown Butte area to see what was going on in the sky. As I looked back toward Bismarck-Mandan I noticed a compact thunderstorm bearing down on the cities. There was a distinct band of rain falling from the amber clouds, so we decided to head for high ground and dig out the camera.

Once I was all set the lightning began. I was absolutely delighted to find such an amazing setting: the band of rain beneath the storm clouds, several bolts of brilliant lightning arcing from the ground, clouds aloft lit by cloud-to-cloud lightning, starry sky above the storm, and a celestial alignment of Venus, Jupiter, and the Pleiades ahead of its advance. That’s a packed photo!

What a blessing to have such a great vantage point for this storm. Despite going an hour early to the movie, we still had to sit in the absolute front row (albeit in the center). That wasn’t really bad seating, but certainly not optimal. Our view of this storm, however, couldn’t be finer.

It’s a good thing I took Friday off from work, because this storm was worth watching (and photographing) until after four in the morning. Some shots turned out better than others, but this one is pretty close to perfect. I’m so thankful we went out that night, and we had no idea we’d be treated to such an amazing spectacle.