Olivier Morin, photographer for Agence France-Presse (AFP) managed to capture champion runner Usain 'lightning' Bolt approaching the finishing line at the same time as an actual lightning bolt lit up the sky behind him. The image, captured at the IAAF World Championships in Moscow, was taken using a remote-controlled camera, one of five that Morin had set up by the side of the track to cover the finishing line.

Usain Bolt approaches the finish line as lightning illuminates the sky behind him. Picture: Olivier Morin

According to Morin, 'The remote-controlled camera that took this picture was the fifth of my rig, set pretty far back, about 30 metres, from the finish line. The idea was to make a photo of the winner with his arms raised and with the stadium in the background, as well as capturing a little bit of the sky. I was thinking more along the lines of an enduring feature photograph, rather than your typical news shot'.

Morin has been shooting for AFP for more than 20 years, and is based out of Milan. He is refreshingly modest about the final image, saying 'Let's be honest: the only things I was able to control were the framing of the shot and when to hit the remote-controlled trigger. [...] In my 25 years as a photographer I’ve never had an uncontrollable external element make a photo like this, and I imagine if I tried again for a similar result for the next 50 years, it wouldn’t happen again. So, I only really give myself credit for one percent of this picture!'