Dusk, lightning and the eye of an opal miner have made up the pick of the popular “Skies in Lightning Ridge" photography Facebook group for 2022.

The Western Plains App asked Lizzie Peters, founder and administrator of the popular "Skies Lightning Ridge Skies" Facebook to choose the best photographs out of the hundreds posted on the site in the last 12 months.

Lizzie has selected what she thinks are the best two photos submitted to the group of the hundreds posted in 2022, for the Western Plains App.

The first photograph Peters sent us was this haunting dusk scene at an opal mine by Nick Lohse (see banner photo).

"Nick Lohse is an opal miner and often has the opportunity to capture some of the early sunrises and late sunsets that others tend to miss," Ms Peters said. "I personally love the bright colours and the contrasting clouds."

Peters told the Western Plains App that her group “Started around the time everyone was being isolated."

"I had noticed all of my friends had all these great sunset and sunrise photos. I thought it would be great if everyone had the one place to go put these and at the same create a sense of community”.

Peters reached to her friends to take photos with their smart phones as well as professional photographers. Now the Facebook group has 1500 members, mainly people from Lighting Ridge and surrounds.

As you can see Peters is quite handy with the camera herself. (below)

Image: Lizzie Peters.

Lizzie lives on an opal field just out of Lightning Ridge. 

She spent the first part of her life in the southern suburbs of Brisbane. She came to visit Lightning Ridge about 11 years ago and never left.

"My in-laws used Lightning Ridge as their home base as they travelled Australia" she said.

"When I got here I just had two small children. I really needed a change of scenery I think. I loved the lifestyle it was just really relaxed. 

"It’s a common theme – you come to visit, you end up staying here," said Lizzie.

"I know one man who came for one night and he has been here for 40 years.

"It is such a unique place. It is multicultural. We have a lot of tourists here. The community here is wonderful. You get so much help when times get tough whether you ask for it or not".

Photography and Lightning Ridge – Lizzie has put two things she loves in one place - her social media page.

She told the Western Plains App the best time to take photos are March through to October when the "air gets cooler" and "there are good places to go to capture sunset and sunrise".

"Photographs are very open to interpretation," she said

"What I love about the photographs are the really bright colors we get here in Lightning Ridge. Particularly in winter we get bright blue and deep blue, rich red, rich orange, magenta. 

"We get good lights from the cloud and it creates different effects. This allows people to get all sort of effects and angles. Then you get freakish clouds. Despite our name, lightning often swings around the town, but we do get people just out of town capturing that also".

The other image that Ms Peters selected is this one from Jess Smith (below)

"There are a few favorite spots in Lightning Ridge to take photos, whether it be of a sunrise, sunset, freaky clouds or a lightning storm," Ms Peters said.

"Jess Smith has a great talent for capturing the lightning strikes and dark eerie clouds at the highest point in town, at Nettleton’s Lookout.".

Ms Smith told the Western Plains App she currently just treats photography like a hobby, but is looking to sell some of her photographs next year.

She loves how "The beauty of how the skies can change to magnificent colors one minute, clear the next and to storming/thunder & lightning."

"I take photos of other things that interest me eg. Horses and cars but can beat a great storm and a beautiful sunset," she said.

"I’ve always love taking photos from a young age, for as long as I could remember. It’s a great way to keep memories alive."