Shoot the moon

Yep, just get a tripod and spend $$ on a camera and $$$ on a lens and fire away, right?

Well, maybe. 

Here's part the first:

Camera, tripod, big-ass lens (can't see it for the camera). Oh and there's the moon. Shot at 7:15 pm on Oct 17, 2024. There are light clouds low, just above the trees. Shot with the phone cam while I was waiting for the clouds to dissipate, or the moon to rise above them. It looked to me that the moon was going to rise above them.

In order to get here (finding the moon... I figured out the area from which to search for it on my own), I often use photoephemeris.com which is data-rich and always correct (a moderate learning curve is required):

(note, as with all photos on this blog, click to enlarge)

My viewing area (the intersection of Norris and W Cutler in DeWitt) was chosen due to the topgraphy looking east (see tripod/cam pic above). A field and no power lines.

So the next step is to figure out exposure values. Here's an early test shot, letting the camera do the thinking stuff (auto exposure).

Not sure why I have that dark smudge to the left of the moon... it was just a quick snapshot, trees out of focus, yada yada... but that's what a Hunter's Moon looks like at moonrise (note, still no sunset at 7:02:40 pm). That's a cloud across the moon... several.

Shot 13 minutes before the first photo in this article... note the moon is closer to the tree line here (lower), and that focal length is 800 mm, my full telephoto reach, but I've got clouds. Hmm. Gonna have to wait.

Meanwhile, here's what the Google says about the Hunter's moon:

Spiritually, this [moon] represents taking stock of your life and expressing gratitude for what you've achieved.

So, we have camera-lens-subject figured out... let's get into... 

part the second:

O what settings to use... this is where the trouble always starts.

I shot 34 frames from 8:01 pm until 9:25 pm, and the settings were all over the map, so to speak. I settled on a shot from 8:12 pm, once I got home to do what actual photographers call "post processing". 

I was battling camera settings (aperture, shutter speed, ISO choice) and camera shake - my remote trigger device was failin' me big-time and I knew I had to fix that once I got home, but I'd have to improvise in the field.

So I set my camera to delay tripping the shutter for two seconds after I pressed the shutter button. Those two seconds should absorb the vibrations from my hands messing with the camera, even though it was on a tripod.

Thus I kept shooting at various settings, hoping to eliminate camera shake, and trying to accurately capture the color I was seeing with my eyes.

Here's what I ended up with as my "show shot", with 33 other frames kicked to the cutting room floor (what, showing my age?):

Gratitude.