So I learned a lesson today.   As I turned into my subdivision, I saw a huge, towering cloud lit by the sun that was being quickly pushed toward the east by the rather angry-looking storm clouds that blanketed the skies toward the north and west.   I decided to run into the house and grab my camera.  Since my house is surrounded by tall trees, I knew I’d have to turn around and go back out of the subdivision if I wanted to get a photograph of it.

I told myself as I unlocked the door that it didn’t really matter which lens I had on the camera … any would do for this.   I opened my camera bag … the one that holds not only the camera, but the other lenses, and took out the camera which had the 70-300 mm lens attached.  I headed quickly back to my car and headed out of the subdivision and turned toward the east-northeast and when just a little ways up the road to a shopping center parking lot.   I parked and rolled down the window.   At 70 mm, all I could get was the top of the cloud … like 1/4 of its height.   I was near the road, so I quickly moved back to just in front of the stores, but I still couldn’t get even half of the cloud in the image.

I noted the lesson to be learned here, if you’ve got to open the bag to get the camera, just bring the bag … you never know what you might wish you had with you.

So then I went to Plan B and pulled out my smart phone.  The first image is the magnificent cloud, the second is a quick shot of the angry storm clouds.