Before a Storm © Mikhail Shcheglov

Before a Storm © Mikhail Shcheglov

Photographer name: Mikhail Shcheglov

From: Moscow, Russia

Age: 51

Photo title: Before a Storm

Photo location: Dyrholaey, Iceland

Date photo taken: 10 September 2019

Story behind the photo: The weather in Iceland is changing dramatically – all-time strong winds draw fantastic images in the sky, which follow each other rapidly.

Sometimes they are vivid, picturesque and rich in contrast, sometimes – deep and dramatic. You need to stand by holding your camera ready to shoot the outstanding moment of nature transformation. This photo captures the surroundings of Dyrholaey Cape. Taken in the evening, a moment prior to a strong thunderstorm with hail.

Weather caption: Rainbows are the result of the refraction and reflection of sunlight entering raindrops in the atmosphere. The refraction, or change in direction of light, gives the colours of the rainbow, whilst the reflection results in the circular arc shape. If the sunlight is reflected twice within the raindrops, then a second rainbow is formed. This is broader than the primary rainbow and the sequence of colours is inverted. As the name suggests, this image was taken just before a storm and the wispy virga are clearly visible. Virga frequently precede heavy downpours when the air below the cloud base is not yet humid enough to support full precipitation. The trails of precipitation evaporate or sublime in the drier air before they reach the ground.

Technical details:

Camera          NIKON D800

ISO                 100