taking night photos with a gigawatt flash

 Some time ago I posted a POW with a nice time exposure of the flickering lightning on Cape Lookout, but one can not take those 5-minute exposures on even an anchored boat as it requires a nice steady mount on land. 

Last week I started sailing from Adams Creek up the Neuse River as the sunset dimmed and the thunderstorms had passed. Watching the flashes light up the cloud, I wondered if a flash of lightning might be bright enough to take a photo, to give the camera the burst of light it needed for the computer to give it the OK. I tried holding the camera, centering the guide dot within the little on-screen circle... and it WORKED! Sometimes it was a bit blurred, but a few came out quite well and I hope to do more soon... and to catch the far-more-rare bolts of lightning on camera! Here is one lightning along with another, longer exposed pic that is only lit by the moon behind the cloud....