VillageBoi: Pretty similar to what Prof has said but let's think of this as 'actual' high-speed 'photography' for now and not high-speed filming... yes they are pretty much the same thing but let's think in terms of a stills camera that pretty much anyone here can lay hands on.
Almost all DSLRs can shoot up to 8000 fps (frames per second) and that is a serious amount of speed. Of course a speeding bullet needs even faster frame rates than that. The KEY to capturing high-speed photography is actually light - the use of flashes is a MUST. Now many DSLRs will go to a max of 250fps with a flash, however, if the DSLR and flash can do high-speed sync together then the limit is even higher. The faster the shutter speed - the more light is needed.
Almost all, if not all, the pics posted, were taken with a regular DSLR camera. Going the route of high-speed video cameras is not a good idea unless you specifically want slo-mo video. The reason being the resolution is far, far less than what you will get with a stills camera.
Posting a video here that shows what you can get with a very 'common' 160th of a second shutter speed. I hope this has been a bit useful.
Let me walk in here from angle of being an expirienced photographer and filmaker With my canon camera, and with a shutter speeed of 1/500, I can capture any fast moving thing but i av to compensate for d darkness I av increased by using such a shutter speed by really increasing my ISO and really open my aperture or use more lights. In video.u dont need such stress unless u want to achieve slow motion
Capturing bolts of lightning is pretty simple if you follow the 'right' procedure. Can I assume you were using a DSLR? Don't go into video mode, rather switch back to stills mode.
Here are the basic tricks -
Observe the storm you want to shoot... position yourself so it is not coming towards you or away from you but rather across from left to right or right to left - just like something panning across your camera.
Use a TRIPOD, you will never get this handheld. It pretty impossible that you will ever get the FIRST flash... observe lightning and you will notice that almost every big flash is followed very quickly by a number of smaller flashes.
Your distance from the storm is also very important. For safety you want to be probably 10-20km away from the storm... you are using metal items outside (preferably under some building cover just in case of a downpour of rain... or indoors from an open window that doesn't show in the frame. When you see a flash - count how long it takes before you hear the THUNDER. 30 seconds and above is a good distance.
Ok you are ready to shoot... you want a wide-angle lens - the stock 18-55 or 18-135 or whatever is a good lens for this. Set you focus to infinity or focus on something in the area where the lightning bolts are happening then switch your lens to manual so it doesn't keep hunting for focus. It will also be best if you have a shutter release cable of a remote control - this prevents camera shake from touching the camera. Use an aperture of around 5.6 for starters and a low iso of 100. Set your camera to BULB mode... not manual, not aperture priority and not shutter priority! When you see the first flash press the button until a few more flashes have fired across the frame. You can have your shutter open anywhere from 30secs to 2 mins at a time. Then check the back of your lcd. If it's too dark then try a wider aperture or higher iso or longer exposure time and also do the opposite if they are too bright. Trial and error until you get it right. This are the rules for taking these shots at night.
If the storm is during the daytime then use these different rules - Put your camera in SHUTTER PRIORITY mode. Select a shutter speed of 1/15 to 1/4 of a second. A low iso of 100 or 200 and then take some test shots to see the image is properly exposed. Have a polarising filter or ND filter that will reduce the exposure and help slow down the shutter speed. Then use the same rules as - when you see the first flash then you press the button. Got to be honest day time ligning capture is harder than night time and can be a bit of hit and miss.
Hopefully this helps you figure things out. Oh and its the opposite of high-speed photography - this is very slow speed photography.
Lobolintin: NYSC SAED prog.. I majored in Photography, tho, I have some expy on it formerly, photography is all about love and passion.. Read a lot and check youtube for videos on capturing images in the speed of light... Thanks
. Our saed instructor on photography no sabi laidat.
