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Storm Chaser: A Photographer's Journey
The weather used to be reported after the news; today, it often is the news. Tracking news-making weather, storm chasers seek dramatic images of tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards, lightning storms, and other extreme and unusual weather phenomena. News organizations compete to broadcast and publish these images because people care passionately about the weather.
Jim Reed is one of America’s most successful and award-winning storm chasers in an era when global climate is changing. His fifteen years of photography documents this change. As the years go by, he sees spring come earlier, summers get hotter, and tornadoes and hurricanes increase in frequency and intensity. In Storm Chaser , a beautiful picture book about some of the most powerful—and sometimes deadly—phenomena in our world, Reed shares his best images and his experiences as he tracks these storms throughout the country.
Jim Reed is one of America’s most successful and award-winning storm chasers in an era when global climate is changing. His fifteen years of photography documents this change. As the years go by, he sees spring come earlier, summers get hotter, and tornadoes and hurricanes increase in frequency and intensity. In Storm Chaser , a beautiful picture book about some of the most powerful—and sometimes deadly—phenomena in our world, Reed shares his best images and his experiences as he tracks these storms throughout the country.
192 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2007
42 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 5, 2026
Very pretty storm pictures, and most importantly, storms of all types. Jim Reed doesn't just go after tornadoes, he goes after hurricanes, snowstorms, flooding...all of it. His book presents a much more balanced view of the types of extreme weather that exist in the USA.
However.
The written introductions to each section were poor. The anecdotes were interesting, but ultimately unlinked. And what a huge missed opportunity to not highlight the pictures taken at the scene on the same pages of the stories!
My other big gripe is age. This book is approaching twenty years old. It predates smartphones and social media, which have increased the amount of good storm pictures and made them easier to find. The book's age also means that it doesn't include more recent and more relevant weather events, like:
The 2011 Super Outbreak
The 2011 EF-5 in Joplin
The death of Tim Samaras and the Twistex team in 2013
While the photographs may be timeless, the book itself is clearly not.
However.
The written introductions to each section were poor. The anecdotes were interesting, but ultimately unlinked. And what a huge missed opportunity to not highlight the pictures taken at the scene on the same pages of the stories!
My other big gripe is age. This book is approaching twenty years old. It predates smartphones and social media, which have increased the amount of good storm pictures and made them easier to find. The book's age also means that it doesn't include more recent and more relevant weather events, like:
The 2011 Super Outbreak
The 2011 EF-5 in Joplin
The death of Tim Samaras and the Twistex team in 2013
While the photographs may be timeless, the book itself is clearly not.
September 15, 2018
A bit disappointing. Jim Reed is a better photographer than he is a writer, and many of the photographs were low resolution and grainy.
April 22, 2020
Beautiful photographic journey of a storm chaser's experiences both jaw dropping and life-threatening. Loved it and has begun a fascination for storm chasing!
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February 8, 2016The title pretty well introduces the book, although the author/photographer doesn't seem like a daredevil, as may be suggested by the job. Primarily, Reed seems to be a concerned citizen and reporter of changes in our world. Beautiful photos with scary details about the increased occurrence and intensity of storms. Well written (although in rather small print).
I was somewhat frustrated by the organization of the book, which is why I only gave this 3.5 stars. Otherwise, I'd say 4 or 4.5. I wanted look at the photos Jim Reed took during the storms he was writing about while I was reading, but they were quite difficult to find. I would have organized the book differently so the photos were more closely aligned with the text, at least in the same order in which they were discussed.
This book is well worth looking through even if you don't read it all....and well worth taking the time to read despite minor difficulties.
I was somewhat frustrated by the organization of the book, which is why I only gave this 3.5 stars. Otherwise, I'd say 4 or 4.5. I wanted look at the photos Jim Reed took during the storms he was writing about while I was reading, but they were quite difficult to find. I would have organized the book differently so the photos were more closely aligned with the text, at least in the same order in which they were discussed.
This book is well worth looking through even if you don't read it all....and well worth taking the time to read despite minor difficulties.
March 17, 2014
The are some absolutely beautiful photographs of all weather - not just tornados. Some of the sunsets he captured are breathtaking.
My problem comes 1) with the fact that his dialogue is SUPER choppy. He jumps around states and years like it's nothing. It's very confusing to get a solid grasp on the timeline of events and 2) this is a slightly older book, so the big storms of the last five years or so are not included which in understandable, but sad and 3) Reed seems very focused on global warming/ climate change as a scapegoat for all bad weather. Is it a factor - yep. Is the sole reason we get so much bad weather - nope. Sorry other environmental aspects play a role too.
Beautiful pics, but the preaching got old after a while.
My problem comes 1) with the fact that his dialogue is SUPER choppy. He jumps around states and years like it's nothing. It's very confusing to get a solid grasp on the timeline of events and 2) this is a slightly older book, so the big storms of the last five years or so are not included which in understandable, but sad and 3) Reed seems very focused on global warming/ climate change as a scapegoat for all bad weather. Is it a factor - yep. Is the sole reason we get so much bad weather - nope. Sorry other environmental aspects play a role too.
Beautiful pics, but the preaching got old after a while.
April 10, 2008
I enjoyed very much this collection of striking color photos of severe weather phenomena. Nature is truly amazing!
October 31, 2010
I loved the photographs.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews