Wise Advanced

Navigating the Dangers of Storm Photography

Weather Photographer

My life and weather are inseparable. For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by storms, lightning and thunder. At night my father always had to stand with me at the window when the lightning flashed across the sky. But, a few years passed until I began training to become a glider pilot at the age of 14. Aviation is the second passion in my life.

Through gliding I found my way into meteorology. The connection was simple: the better I could read the clouds and the weather, the longer, faster and further I could be in the air with my glider. I began to gradually find the weather more fascinating than flying itself. I delved deeper and deeper into meteorology and began photographing the weather with my camera.

First, I took photos of the weather for people who are weather enthusiasts themselves. But I wanted to use my photographs to trigger the same enthusiasm in other people that I felt when observing the weather phenomena. I recreated the term “weather photography”. This form of landscape photography uses targeted weather forecasting to only photograph a specific landscape when the weather will be particularly pleasant.

For my Abitur I took mathematics and physics as advanced courses. I decided against studying meteorology because I didn't want my job to destroy my passion for the weather. Physics became my subject of choice. However, after 3 semesters I realized that this subject was not my personal preference either. Too dry. I wanted to experience the phenomena I was studying first-hand rather than just studying the formulas in a book!

In 2020 I completed my studies in optics and image processing. From now on, things got serious, because for me this meant I am a 100% self-employed landscape and weather photographer! Admittedly, I wasn't the fastest student, but I was able to graduate with good degrees. I wrote my bachelor's thesis at the German Weather Service. I used the remaining time outside of my studies to make a name for myself as a weather photographer in Germany and beyond.

In 2016 my book “Photography with Wind and Weather” was published – my big breakthrough! Three more books followed. I, Bastian Werner, made weather photography practical for the masses of nature photographers. The publishing bestseller opened its doors. Since then, I have given lectures, seminars and workshops at all well-known photography fairs.

But I still had a big dream: I wanted to develop my own weather app for nature photographers. All existing apps did not meet my personal wishes. The idea of VIEWFINDR was born.

VIEWFINDR has been on the market since the end of 2021 and now benefits over 10,000 photographers in Germany, Europe and North America. The revolutionary design of the weather app, as well as algorithms developed specifically for landscape photography, make VIEWFINDR the best planning tool for landscape photographers.

“If the daylight is still bright, I get exposure times around 1/10th of a second. My only chance to capture lightning is to shoot a great number of pictures. Fast memory cards from Wise are the best tool for that.”

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Equipment

Memory Cards

Wise CFexpress 4.0 Type A

Wise SDXC UHS-II V90

Wise CFexpress 4.0 Type A (Card Reader)

Wise CFexpress Type A / SD UHS-II (Card Reader)

Cameras

Sony α7 IV

Sony α7 III

Sony α7C

Camera Setup

N/A

The storm is coming. Yet watching this miracle from God's nature far from it may not be a bad idea. “Don’t be stupid, know what you do! Don’t just drive out to chase a Tornado. Best way to die,” said weather photographer Bastian Werner. “The weather man” – nothing can be more precise to describe this guy with a scruffy beard and beaming eyes. “As I do every year, I went storm chasing in the Tornado Alley of the USA. This specific area stretches from Texas up to the Canadian border. My target was to capture stunning supercell structures with lightning coming out of the clouds,” Bastian said excitedly. “At night, my father always had to stand at the window with me when the lightning flashed across the sky.” When Bastian turned 14, he was trained as a glider pilot. Aviation became his second passion in his life. “Gliding gave me an introduction to meteorology. The connection was simple: the better I could read the clouds and the weather, the longer, faster and further I could fly in my glider. I gradually began to find the weather more fascinating than flying itself. I got deeper and deeper into meteorology and began to photograph the weather with my camera.”

Bastian doesn't think of himself as a typical landscape photographer. “I coined the term ‘weather photography’ in a new way, which targeted weather forecasts to photograph a particular landscape only when the weather is going to be particularly appealing. For my A-levels, I took mathematics and physics as advanced courses.” As a weather photographer, these courses help with weather forecasting, which is no doubt, one of the biggest challenges in this type of photography. “Some days there are different target areas, which are hours of driving apart. Based on different weather parameters I have to decide where to go. If I choose wrong, the whole day could be a bust.” Careful calculations are required so as to not waste time. Once he arrives the target area, his real work begins, a boxing match with the storm. “I also need to stay away from the giant hail storms and of course I should not get too close to a Tornado. Then there are bad roads. Sometimes it gets so muddy that even with an offroad capable car you can get stuck easily.”

Well, so what preparation does a weather photographer need to do to witness the magical moments? “The most important thing is to have a decent car. We use offroad capable cars with all-wheel-drive and enough clearance to drive on the mud roads of the great plains. Second will be the internet connection to receive weather radar data. And after that of course my camera captures the stunning skies into pictures.”

He knew that these elusive magical moments appear for less than a second. Time is extremely precious, and we must make Wise choices. There is no room to hesitate. “In my attempt to capture magic (stunning lightning strikes), I need to shoot continuously. When lightning strikes, I capture it.”

There are many intricacies that come with chasing and capturing storms, and having great technical skills are just one of the requirements. “If the daylight is still bright, I get exposure times around 1/10th of a second. My only chance to capture lightning is to shoot a great number of pictures. Fast memory cards from Wise are the best tool for that,” said Bastian.

He jumps into his beloved car with gear and endless passion in hand, ready for the next match.