Ben Jacobi  has been interested in severe weather ever since he was a kid growing up in Iowa Park, TX.  He chased his first storm when he was 20 years old. He even started studying meteorology so that he could understand more.

Another of Jacobi's passions is photography. The self-taught photographer is currently the co-president of the Red River Photography Club and a member of the Red River Image Cooperative.

When Ben Jacobi's passions intersect, really amazing things happen. Jacobi drives hundreds of miles each year chasing storms and capturing photos. His pictures have been shown in galleries around Texas and he's been published in Nature's Best Photography Magazine and the Wichita Falls Literature and Art Review.

These 17 photos show some of the incredible things he's captured in Oklahoma and Texas. Each photo has a caption from Ben Jacobi describing the scene. You can find out more about Ben Jacobi, buy prints, and see even more of his photography at BDJPhoto.com.

  • Downburst

    Quanah, TX | May 16, 2015
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    A rotating supercell gains strength as it crosses the Red River. Reports of baseball size hail were reported with this storm.

  • Elaisville, TX Tornado

    Elaisville, TX | May 17, 2013
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    Photogenic tornado touches down in Elaisville, TX.

  • Haunted

    Altus, OK | March 31, 2015
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    The title says it all.

  • Henrietta Supercell

    Henrietta, TX | May 7, 2015
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    Incredible storm structure with striated updraft and “beaver tail” inflow band. These are often good indications the storm is intensifying.

  • Midnight Twister

    Archer City, TX | May 19, 2015
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    A nocturnal tornado briefly spins up south of Archer City, TX (bottom left). Night tornadoes can be especially dangerous because they are difficult to see. I was only able to see the tornado when lightning struck close by.

  • Only in Texas

    Archer City, TX | May 7, 2015
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    While chasing this storm I came across this shed with the Texas flag painted on the side and I knew I had to stop and get a shot. After several minutes of failure, I decided to make on last capture before blasting south to avoid the hail core. When I opened my camera’s shutter, lightning burst from the vault of the storm giving me a fantastic shot.

  • Rope Out

    Goodnight, TX | April 22, 2010
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    This beautiful tornado crosses US Highway 287 in the Texas panhandle. I made this image during the rope out stage of the tornado. It started out as a thick stovepipe and shrank into this skinny rope as it came closer to 287.

  • Stacked Plates

    Putnam, OK | July, 12 2010
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    Monstrous high precipitation supercell and stunning “stacked plates” structured mesocyclone in western Oklahoma. This is by far the most dramatic and amazing storm structure I have ever witnessed. This beast of a storm was producing softball size hail and over 80 mph wind gusts and there is no telling what danger is lurking behind that hail core.

  • Starlight and Storm Light

    Petrolia, TX | April 10, 2016
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    Lightning bursts from the upper levels of a severe warned storm behind a starry night sky.

  • Storm on Highway 25

    South of Mankins, TX | April 19, 2016
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    A menacing shelf cloud plows its way along US 82 east towards Mankins, TX.

  • Supercell Decay

    Walters, OK | April 10, 2016
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    A supercell struggles to survive as it encounters a stable air mass. The atmosphere choked the supply of warm unstable air to this storm causing it to quickly deteriorate and eventually die out.

  • Typical Texas Spring

    Palo Pinto, TX | April 18, 2015
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...
  • Stunning Shelf Cloud

    Memphis, TX | June 1, 2009
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    Stunning shelf cloud at sunset near the small town of Memphis, TX. The storm would go on to produce some gusty winds and an intense gustnado that you can see forming on the left side of the frame.

  • Panoramic

    Lockett, TX | June 25, 2014
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    Jaw-dropping structure of a shelf cloud/updraft moving in on the community of Lockett, TX. This image is comprised of 14 photos that are stitched together to create this uniqe
    panoramic view of the storm.

  • Stormy Sunset

    Highway 83 between Paducah and Guthrie, TX | April 16, 2016
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    Picturesque scene of an updraft base backlit by a brilliant sunset. A few miles down the road 1.75”-2.50” hail was covering highway 83. A snowplow was called out to clear the highway.

  • Wall Cloud

    Scotland, TX | May 7, 2014
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    A very low rotating wall cloud hangs ominously over Scotland, TX and Lake Arrowhead. While this storm did produce a few brief funnels there were never any tornadoes sighted with this storm. It did however, dump significant amounts of large hail and heavy rain.

  • Waurika Lake Reflection

    Waurika Lake, OK | May 13, 2016
    © Ben Jacobi
    © Ben Jacobi
    loading...

    A distant thunderstorm in Marlow, OK shoots off a bolt of lightning that reflects in the calm waters of Waurika Lake.

More From 92.9 NiN