It is not safe for a person to be this close to a storm. I have an unusually safe location well inset on a second floor balcony of a building that is heavily grounded and with a number of tall poles that attract lightning to strike them instead. Taking pictures from your porch or shooting out of an open window of your home is not safe. Extreme caution is necessary to avoid being struck.

These lightning pictures were taken in New Orleans, Louisiana, in June of 1997. The last 4 were taken looking out over Lake Pontchartrain, a lake that borders the city limits on the north side. This lake has a pronounced effect on thunderstorm occurrence and distribution around the New Orleans area in different weather patterns during the hot summer months.