Electrifying: the Grand Canyon in all its glory

Photographer Rolf Maeder used long exposure techniques to capture this image of multiple lightning strikes in the Grand Canyon

Maeder said the opportunity to take the photograph was “very unexpected”. After he and two photographer friends failed to get sunset shots due to hazy light they decided to stop at a viewing point and noticed a lightning storm building up far away.

“That was much more than we expected, so we started setting up our tripods and started to take pictures,” he said.

The long exposures used, which included one of 25 seconds, made it possible to catch two or more lightning strikes in a single shot. The photos were taken at Moran Point, on the South Rim of the canyon, with Scott Stulberg and Holly Kehrt.