A special page for the Australian & notibly European visitors to the website as this is a very small taste re the story they will read in Geo Europe in March 2008. The magazine is not readily available in Australia although can be ordered online. Geo Europe is committing seven pages i think to Darwin storms and my chasing in the actual magazine.
The photo is self-explanatory but the two weeks were an absolute joy to be involved in. Not only having the professional photographic education from the Geo photographer, Nick Moir but also the excellent company that Geo Pacific's correspondent, Florence De'Camp was for the week talking and chasing with her. Her easy to get along with attitude and willingness to be open to discussions about storms in Darwin was very welcoming. The more technical the better and hopefully she left with a little more knowledge than when she arrived with! Florence was extremely friendly and she has some fantastic stories from her past travels around the globe obtaining stories for the magazine.
I'm confident we'll keep in touch. Her warm friendly character is pretty infectious!
Sunday Territorian news feature re myself and Florence and the European connection with Geo Europe Magazine.
* Special thank you to Kirsty Reid, Editor of the Sunday Territorian weekend newspaper here in Darwin for placing the feature. Her advice and help in putting it all together with the reporters was fantastic and to Alison Bevage, reporter for this feature - great stuff!
BIG REPUTATION: The Territory's own storm chaser Mike O'Neill and European Geo South Pacific correspondent Florence De'Camp check out a storm at Stokes Hill Wharf last week. Picture: CLIVE HYDE
Mike has a nose for wild storms
ALISON BEVEGE
16Dec07
CHASING storms and dodging lightning has made a Territory man world famous.
Armed only with a digital camera, amateur storm photographer Michael O'Neill has run into some of the worst onslaughts the Top End climate can hurl in his quest for the perfect picture.
He has ducked lightning bolts not once but four times in the 18 months since he picked up his new hobby.
"You hear a low buzzing - a metallic static sound - and all the hairs on your arms stand up on end," he said.
"When that happens you either take cover, jump in your car or crouch up in a ball and hope it doesn't hit you."
Two weeks ago, Mr O'Neill was chasing a storm front from Humpty Doo to Darwin when he saw lightning strike a transformer on the Stuart Highway multiple times, leaving a powerline sagging dangerously across the road.
After alerting police, the storm chaser flashed his lights to warn oncoming traffic - until one car drove straight through, snapping the dead cable.
Despite the dangers, Mr O'Neill is not afraid.
"Storms are not about sitting on your balcony," he said.
Mr O'Neill has captured storm phenomena and five different forms of lightning in his images.
His reputation for capturing top shots and finding the best weather has now spread as far as Europe.
The apprentice printer has been headhunted by French magazine Geo - the European equivalent of Australian Geographic - which has a readership of more than five million people across Europe.
Geo's South Pacific correspondent Florence De'Camp flew to Darwin this week to chase storms with Mr O'Neill for a special issue on Australia, to be released in March.
She said Mr O'Neill, from the Palmerston suburb of Durack, had a special gift for finding storms.
"He can smell them," she said.