May 26, 2016 – Shelf cloud and lightning

May 26, 2016 brought another round of storms across Kansas. Around 7:30pm, an enormous shelf cloud appeared just west of Great Bend, stretching from the southwest to the northeast. I managed to get ahead of the cloud, and chose to photograph it over the windmill.

Shelf cloud and windmill, 7:56pm.

Shelf cloud and windmill, 7:59pm.

Closeup, 8:00pm.

I watched the shelf cloud slowly approach. The winds picked up, and lightning became common. Most of the lightning was hidden behind the approaching rain. Without the lightning, the clouds were dark; with lightning the amazing structure and colors were revealed.

Hidden lightning, 8:17pm.

Visible lightning, 8:18pm.

Driving rain hit a couple minutes after the above image. I headed back into town. I caught the second half of the Great Bend City Band concert; my step-daughter plays in the band. Afterwards, I went to Stone Sandpit to photograph the incoming storms. The lightning show was good, but I had a hard time keeping the water off of my lens.

Each of the above three images are single 8 second exposures. The storms continued into the early hours of the morning, though I didn’t stay out that late.

Thanks for stopping by,

Rob Graham

 

May 25, 2016 – Lightning

Storms rolled across western Kansas the evening and night of May 24. This outbreak spawned numerous tornadoes around Dodge City and other areas in the western half of the state. After the night was over, I measured almost 3″ of rain in Great Bend, but no tornadoes. I captured the following series of photographs at Stone Sandpit, looking west/northwest as a storm approached just after midnight.

Thanks for stopping by,

Rob Graham

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Great Bend Boom – May 19 and 20, 2016

Great Bend, Kansas is home to the Great Bend Boom, a professional baseball team in the  Pecos League. This is the first season for the Boom. The Boom opened the season on 5/19, which was a chilly, wet evening. The team rallied in the 8th for a come from behind victory. The weather the next night was much nicer, and the team took an early lead on their way to a second victory. I have photographed both games. Here are a few of the highlights from both nights.

Ceremonial first pitch by Gary Pinkall

The Salina left fielder and the outfield spectators watch the first home run of the season.

Look at the chair in the lower left. The first home run hit that chair and I was lucky enough to capture the moment.

Home run #2 on Friday night for Darryl Baca. I managed to capture the ball just he hit it.

Celebrating the win on Friday.

Thanks for visiting my blog.

Rob Graham,Graham Photography

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