Tuesday 6 September 2011

It was a dark and stormy night!

There was  a very noisy and stormy evening here a few days ago.   I was fascinated by the changing sky and took several photos from various positions, which I thought you might enjoy.  I have to say that, at the end of  this celestial display, despite watching the rain falling not too far away, we did not receive one single drop!!  The clouds  and thunder circled all around us for a while, then dispersed for about three quarters of an hour, only to return with even more visual and sound effects. I have tried to place the photos in the order that I took them.
Early on, with the rain very visible at the back on the right
My neighbour's sheep in the foreground, getting on with what sheep do!

The sun just starting to set

This looked like flames in the sky to me

Suddenly the sky started to clear

As the sun caught the edges of the cloud

But then it returned with a vengeance



65 comments:

  1. Some beautiful, dramatic shots!

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  2. Oh, wow Dianne! Those captures are spectacular! If those were our sheep they would be huddled under the shed! I hate it when everything is full of the promise of rain and then...nothing...such a cliche! I want the full works the minute I hear thunder..I need to hear those raindrops on our sink roof!! Those skies and clouds were just beautiful. Thanks for sharing!
    Liesl

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  3. Beautiful cloud pictures. Love the last one with the lightening.

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  4. Great photos, Diane. I love a good thunderstorm, so long as I'm safely indoors at the time.
    Lightning destroyed a 200 year old sequoia tree in Loches earlier this year, splitting it down the middle and scattering branches over a wide area. Dangerous thing, lightning.

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  5. Oh these are fantastic pictures. The clouds are amazing. And the bonus was you didn't get any rain. You couldn't really ask for better than that could you?

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  6. Menacing but gorgeous skies. The shot before the last one is amazing, Diane!

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  7. Hello Diane:
    What a remarkable sequence of photographs which, arranged as they are, give all the suggestion of watching the progression of the storm. And, yes, in that one picture the sky really could be on fire. But we are so sorry that the rain, which we suspect you want, missed you.

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  8. Wonderful photographs of a spectacular sky! I love them

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  9. I love the photos Diane! You did a great job of capturing the changing sky. How come you never get any rain?
    Are you in sahara - sur - charente? :)

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  10. Wow, beautiful sky and storm ...

    It's so frustrating when rain falls everywhere except on you - some of us seem to have a patch of oil over our heads to keep the rain away ... :)

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  11. A very pretty sky, indeed! We've had over 40" of precipitation this year to date, whereas normal is about 25". I wish I could have enjoyed a couple of those storms the way you enjoyed this one!

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  12. Strange - I thought I left a message earlier - those photos are fantastic. Do they do justice to be actually being there?
    Leon

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  13. Great pictures. I enjoy following your blog. I am 50ish grandmother who is studying french and loves to read about french life.

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  14. Wow, what a storm. Shame you got no rain. But that lightning shot is Great!

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  15. I love esp. the picture whet the sky starts to clear. This summer was very stormy here:(

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  16. Hi Diane .. lovely photos .. and it sure can storm in France. It always amazes me how the weather can go round and round .. I remember being at school in Oxford and listening to a storm reverberate round the hills three or four times ..

    Nature is amazing .. and it's lovely seeing your captured shots - thank you .. Hilary

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  17. Some great pictures, I always seem to have to take so many to capture lightning.

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  18. Apologies to everyone above who commented and I have taken a while to publish them. I was not well yesterday and after an early night last night I stayed in bed this morning. I feel in a bit of a haze today but an improvement on yesterday.

    Joyful, thanks for the comment.

    Liesl, I was surprised that the sheep appeared to be in total ignorance of the weather around them!!

    Cuisine de Provence, thanks for the comment.

    Thanks Susan It is nice to know our skies are appreciated.

    Jean yes lightning can be very unpleasant. That was what has just burnt Richard Branson's house to the ground!! It is great thought o watch from a distance :-)

    Ellie not having rain was in fact a bummer we really needed it!!!

    Thanks JM I think that is my favourite pic as well.

    Leon and Sue sorry, yes you had left a message earlier but I slept through it all, see my note above! I think the pictures are fairly good but no seeing the real think was much more dramatic.

    Daily Grace. Thanks so much for the visit and comment.

    Jane and Lance yes you are so right we really did need the rain but c'est la vie!!

    Gaynor, thanks I was pretty chuffed with the series myself :-)

    Craig I wish I knew the answer, I so often watch the rain as I did in the first picture just sailing by us, but this year was a dry year anyway.

    Thanks Graham, so that is the answer I will have to get some solvent and remove that patch of oil LOL

    Marjie it was quite dramatic and I was surprised that I was brave enough to trot around outside! I did take cover though when the serious lightening started towards the end!!

    Christine's Pantry, it was not too scary until the end, that was when I decided that discretion was the better part of valour and I came in.

    kclily thanks so much for your visit and comment. I bet your French is better than mine!!

    Gaelyn yes it is very frustrating to watch the rain all around and get non when you really need it!!

    Ola That clearing sky was quite sudden but it did not last very long!!

    Hilary you are so right nature can be so beautiful and other times so destructive and ugly, We used to get very bad storms in Africa but we have had a couple here that have really scared me.

    Steve it is just the luck of the draw!!!! It does not happen often.

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  19. Le ciel est un magnifique tableau, une oeuvre d'art vue à travers votre appareil photo.
    Dommage que vous n'ayez pas eu de pluie. Mais je suis contente que vous belles fleurs de la publication précédente ne soient pas abîmées!

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  20. Merci Lucie, j'étais désolé sans pluie. Mais oui les fleurs restent belles.

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  21. What a wonderful job you did in getting the sky in pictures and especially the last one..Wow, beautiful..As you know, it is my favorite topic..You know even in the storm, there is something so peaceful looking at the pictures..
    Hope you are enjoying the week..
    xoRosebud/Carolyn

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  22. fascinating images of skies. It's very cloudy and hazy over here for the past 3 days..looks like it's going to rain but it didnt.

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  23. Hi Diane , I do hope that you are feeling better now ..

    Your photos are fantastic , what a range of dramatic skies .. the formation of the clouds is unbelievable .

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  24. oops and yes so sorry the rain missed you. You can have some of ours if you wish .. we have had a quite a bit in the last few days. xx

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  25. Fantastic pictures!
    I can imagine your amazement at this display of light from those heavy clouds!
    It does not happen often and it is well worth taking pics!
    We also have from time to time that kind of spectacle over the mountains and some storms will pass along the river Garonne, 12 km from us, and we hardly have rain then!
    Have a great day!
    Cheers!

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  26. Fabulous photographs of the storm, Diane!

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  27. Wow, wonderful photos Diane - I love the storms we have here, nature is so powerful - and you captured the orangey light that comes with a stormy sunset. I hope you are well xxx

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  28. We've been drowning here!!! How lovely to see the beautiful part of the storm.. here it's just dreary as all get out... and the basement finally flooded!!! What a world!

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  29. Lovely pics in this and the earlier posts, I was watching the rain go through the field at the bottom of our land, like a wall, yet we got none.

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  30. This is a beautiful post Diane, I love the drama of the skies. It did rather spook me though that we were thinking along the same lines, I have just done a sky post, published today! It is different to yours, but what a coincidence. It was the Haze theme for BW today that gave me the idea.

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  31. C'est tout simplement très beau.
    A très bientôt

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  32. Beautiful and dramatic pictures. Nature can be so amazing and exciting!

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  33. Fantastic shots! So lovely to watch such an incredible changing sky!
    Mary

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  34. Sorry this has not been a good week and I am only just beginning to feel a bit like me again!! I have barely touched the computer but I have popped in the odd comment on a few blogs.

    Rosebud/Carolyn thanks for the very kind comment. I am fascinated by the sky, but I am not always so good at getting the photos I want to come out just right. This was a good evening!!

    Lena it is infuriating if you want rain and don't get it, on the other hand it is just as annoying if you do not want it and you get a downpour!

    Anne Since you wrote that comment we have had a few millimetres, certainly enough to keep the garden damp.
    Yes, at last I am feeling a bit better but not ready to throw a party as yet!! I spoke to a woman down the road today who seems to have had what I had - a mystery virus!!

    Rosaria thanks for the comment have a good day.

    Noushka you are so right, there are some very spectacular storms in France and many are worth taking pictures of if you get a chance. xx

    Thanks Chez Loulou it was amazing to watch the rapid changes in the sky.

    Roz I think I had a few lucky shots there and the camera did catch the sky colour well. It has not been a good week as you can see above! xx

    lostpastremembered yes nature can be beautiful but it can also be very cruel. I hope that your flooded cellar is drying out!!

    Paul and Roz how annoying it is to watch the rain sail by when you need it and you remain bone dry.

    Merci Nadji, A très bientôt.

    Thanks Boye By Red I was quite pleased with this selection :-)

    Mary - Mum's Kitchen, thanks for the kind comments, nature can be very beautiful.

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  35. I love storms - the photos are awesome!

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  36. Diane these are some spectacular shots! I am always watching the sky and it always amazes me. Around here we get some great clouds moving in..then sun...and rain all around us but not a drop. When driving or out on the Gulf of Mexico you can see the lines where the rain ends...or begins! Thanks for sharing!

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  37. Oh my, I enjoyed the transformation. All your shots are beautiful but my favorite is the one with the lightning, perfect! Have a blessed weekend Diane!

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  38. Beautiful shots. Here in California we almost never get lightning and thunder which is why we have enjoyed the few fierce storms we have experienced in Provence.

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  39. Pam. Glad you enjoyed these photos I have to admit to being pretty pleased with them!

    Lyndsey I am fascinated by the sky and when the clouds change so quickly, and pick up the colour from the sun they are quite beautiful.

    Thanks Sonia, have a good day.

    chubskulit There was so much lightning around but it is not always easy to get it on camera!!

    chcmichel after the big storms we used to get in Africa, I was surprised when we moved to a wet and rainy UK that there was seldom thunder or lightning. French storms I think are even more violent than the ones I experienced in Africa and there were a few nasty ones there.

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  40. Hi Diane.Fascinating storm! When we get storms in Oz we get amazing rain to accompany the sound and light show. I must say you took some delightful moody photos. I've never really seen a storm overseas except in Germany.

    I've put up some more French Village photos on my Paris blog and photos of Morocco on my travel blog if you have time to take a peek at one or both...

    Denise @ http://pichetsinparis.blogspot.com

    http://laussiestravelblog.blogspot.com

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  41. Hi Diane, I just came back to pay you a wee visit only to see that you haven't been very well. I'm sorry to hear that and I hope you feel better now.

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  42. I had a lovely visit on your blog looking at all your updates. Your walls look so much better than the usual plastered walls that so many houses in France have. As for the Friesians horses – they have such a beautiful coat and lovely form. I used to go horseback riding when I lived in France, but here it is not as easy unless you own a horse.

    You have a lovely garden. This year I made 44 jars of fig jam – but that is the only tree I have – not other vegetable or fruits. Your flowers are spectacular, especially that pretty light peach color rose – maybe if you sent the picture via email to the American Rose Society, they might know? They have a place “contact us” on their site - http://www.ars.org/. I love to look at the sky – your sky photos are stunning.

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  43. Looks dramatic, but nice. I like your photos.:-) Hugs Stina

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  44. What great shots Dianne. It does seem funny to not get any rain when you can see it in the distance. It happened to us often when we sat on our porch in the islands, praying for rain, and could see it in the distance and watching it move away. We relied on rainwater for our cistern.
    Sam

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  45. L'Aussie, This was a storm I could enjoy and take pictures of. There have been a few which are very scary!!!

    Thanks Ellie, I feel better one day then go down the next, I will get there!

    Vagabonde thanks for all your very kind comments. Re the rose, I took the real thing into a nursery in the UK and was told that even with that it was impossible for them to identify it. I think a photo is a waste of time. It seems it has to be the real thing and even with specialists they may have problems with identification there are no so many roses. I have lost count of how many bottles of fig jam I have made, also fig chutney and I still have more on the tree! Keep well.

    Thanks Stina I was pretty pleased with these photos as well.

    Sam the place that used to really fascinate me was Lake Kariba. We would be sunbathing on the Southern shore while watching storms and lightning over Zambia in the North.

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  46. What stunning views. You have captured a dramatic play :)

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  47. Hi Dianne......What spectacular photos.....as I have gotten older I enjoy watching the sky and I so love it when storms happen here.

    It was so nice to hear from you.

    xo

    Jo

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  48. Oh my God, what a beautiful and scary sky Diane, I can´t believe you didn't get any rain! YOur pictures are amazing, really great. Big hug

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  49. Olga, thanks for the kind comment, these were photos that I particularly enjoyed taking.

    Jo I am totally fascinated by the sky, I could watch it for days :-)

    Pamela it is frustrating when you need rain to be able to watch it passing by!!! Hugs

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  50. Great photos of clouds, it is like being there :-).
    I confess, I actually like storms... as long as everyone is safe :-).

    Ciao
    Alessandra

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  51. Ya'll sure have some gorgeous skies there. Great capture.

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  52. You got some amazing shots!! That last one - my, even National Geographic would use that one in its pages!

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  53. Allessandra I also like storms when they are like this one and I can enjoy. We have had a few horrific ones here that have been very unpleasant!!

    Becca, thanks for the kind comments, I admit to being quite please with these pics.

    Thanks Ann not sure it is that good but I was pretty pleased with it :-) Diane

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  54. What a stunning selection of photos showing the clouds activity. Amazing. Thank you for sharing them.

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  55. That's what we called as nature. You'll never know what comes next! But I'll have to admit that they're super gorgeous.
    Kristy

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  56. Hi Karen and thanks for your visit. Your comments are appreciated many thanks Diane

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  57. Kristy you are right, you never know what to expect with a changing sky and it can happen so quickly !! Diane

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  58. Thanks JM, your comments are always appreciated. Diane

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