The Vacuum by MikeOlbinski

This incredibly photogenic storm near Booker, Texas back on June 3rd, 2013, was like a dust-eating machine. Everything around it seemed to get sucked into the updraft of this stunning supercell. The colors at sunset added to the apocalyptic look of this storm.

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Another World by MikeOlbinski

Standing here, near Bledsoe, Texas on the night of May 29th…it felt like I had traveled to another planet. The wind, the storm, the lightning…but it was the surreal orange glow everywhere that created this otherworldy mood which I’ll never forget. It was utterly amazing and mesmerizing. One of those moments you wish would never end.

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South of Holly by MikeOlbinski

The beauty of storm chasing is seeing structure and organization in clouds that appears unnatural. When you look up and just know…something wicked this way comes.

This was May 24th of this year south of Holly, Colorado. One heck of a day chasing…it started south of Lamar and would end up near Moscow, Kansas before the night was over.

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Aurora II by MikeOlbinski

Another image from this gorgeous little supercell near Aurora, Colorado on June 3rd, 2015. My chase was over and I was heading home to Phoenix after having been in Wyoming all day and busting. I crossed my fingers for some weather on the way through Denver and sure enough some cells exploded over town and I was able to hang out with this guy, time-lapse it for a long time and get a bunch of lightning. A sublime way to end a 12-day chase!

You can see this storm and a bunch of others in my time-lapse film The Chase: http://ift.tt/1RPXsBS

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Rapid City Supercell by MikeOlbinski

This was most likely the second greatest supercell I’ve seen in person thus far. The first was Booker, Texas in 2013…but this guy near Rapid City, South Dakota was incredible. It essentially hovered in one general area for hours…and by the time I finally punched the core and got in position to photograph it, the structure was amazing.

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The End by MikeOlbinski

Driving through an abandoned town and then turning the corner to see this scene was truly one I’ll never forget. We had just witnessed the Dora tornado 30 minutes before, and so we blasted towards the storm in hopes of seeing another one. This was just as good. The sun igniting the rain into a horizon of orange, the blue hail core in the supercell and lightning. It was incredible to witness. I know if I returned to this spot during the day, it would seem normal and boring. But on this night, with the wind, the colors…the lightning…it felt like we were watching the end of the world or something.

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Farewell by MikeOlbinski

On Wednesday, my final day of chasing…I saw way more storm chasers than actual storms most of the day. I decided to target Wyoming instead of Denver because less crowds and beautiful landscapes. But we sat there most of the afternoon watching storms die off in the mountains.

I knew I was headed home that night, so at one point near Chugwater, WY, I called it quits and headed home, hoping that once I hit the Denver area, maybe I’d get lucky with a storm on the way.

And yes. I did. One final, beautiful, stunning LP cell that I time-lapsed for about 20 minutes and caught all kinds of CG’s.

At one point, thanks to some knowledge dropped on me from Paige Burress, you could actually HEAR the masisve hail falling just 1/2 mile away.

Had an amazing 12 days out there…the photos will be coming in the next week and month and all summer I’m sure.

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