Hurricane Katrina: Through the Eyes of Storm Chasers offers a historic and unprecedented view inside a Category 5 hurricane—and of the devastating aftermath. Award-winning extreme-weather photographer Jim Reed and storm-chaser/videographer Mike Theiss document the most destructive natural disaster in U.S. history at every stage, from the days in which the Gulf Coast prepared for the approaching hurricane and evacuation procedures began to the moments when the hurricane made it's monstrous landfall and wrecked havoc on the region.The compilation includes photographs of Louisiana, including New Orleans, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. Chilling "before and after" images demonstrate the power of this historic hurricane. Captions detailing personal stories and weather facts accompany the shocking images.
Jim Reed: Jim Reed is emerging as one of the world's most accomplished extreme weather photographers for his striking images of America's changing climate. A 15-year veteran storm chaser, Jim has documented nearly every type of meteorological phenomena, including tornadoes, electrical storms and floods. He has been in the eye of nine major hurricanes. Jim’s career as a photographer has its roots in his childhood fascination with severe weather. In 1969, when Jim was eight years old, he and his mother unwittingly drove through the outer bands of Hurricane Camille while returning from a family vacation to Florida. By age 11, Jim was shooting home movies of nature’s wrath. Jim has received awards and recognition from the National Press Photographers Association, Pictures of the Year International, American PHOTO, MSNBC Readers' Choice Picture of the Year, the National Weather Service, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. He is a member of the Writer’s Guild of America West, National Press Photographers Association and National Association of Photoshop Professionals. He is featured in the Yearbook of Experts.
Mike Theiss: A native of the Florida Keys, has been interested in severe weather since age 6, when he would sit with his father on the porch and watch the effects of thunder and lightning in typical summer thunderstorms. His interest in extreme weather has grown into a passion. Call it fate, but his middle school's mascot was a tornado and his high school mascot was a hurricane. Mike set his sights on studying meteorology in college, but chose to pursue hands-on field work instead. In 2001, Mike combined his love of photography, video production, and film making and started Ultimate Chase Video Productions. Mike currently works as a stringer for the Weather Channel. Each spring, Mike travels to Tornado Alley in search of supercells, tornadoes, lightning, and hail storms with Cyclone Tours. In the summer months, he is on the lookout for waterspouts and stands at the ready to hop on a plane for the Caribbean when hurricanes threaten.
