Post your lunar landscapes (the moon)

[Jezz]

I'm really interested to see what you all have stored up in the way of shots of the moon.

I'm only using a G5 for all my shots and i just cant seem to get close enough to get a good shot so i was wondering if anyone can give me some hints?

Plus i love the shots of the moon that ive seen from a few of you in the past, so i would like to see some more?

So bring them on.

[almo]

I'm really interested to see what you all have stored up in the way of shots of the moon.

I'm only using a G5 for all my shots and i just cant seem to get close enough to get a good shot so i was wondering if anyone can give me some hints?

Plus i love the shots of the moon that ive seen from a few of you in the past, so i would like to see some more?

So bring them on.

I saw that Photo of yours and my first thought was " he ripped me off!"

But upon closer inspection I realized that it was not so.

Well here is mine. I am using a DiMage 7i. I could use some tips too. I have had a hard time with the moon, though the more I shoot it the better the results I am getting.

Cool idea for a thread Jezz

almo

[Speed]

I'm really interested to see what you all have stored up in the way of shots of the moon.

I'm only using a G5 for all my shots and i just cant seem to get close enough to get a good shot so i was wondering if anyone can give me some hints?

Plus i love the shots of the moon that ive seen from a few of you in the past, so i would like to see some more?

So bring them on.

First and foremost - A tripod!

Second - A cable release helps, or use the self-timer.

Third - Use the sunny f16 rule as a starting point. Brackett on either side to get it right. While the moon is always lit by the sun (except during eclipses), the brightness varies from magnitude -10 to magniture -13. Also, weather and time of day/night also have an effect, so definitely brackett.

Use the best long glass you've got. Got a tele-converter? Use it. Got a telescope? You are in business. A good source for telescopes and photographic accessories is Orion Telescopes. www.telescope.com


The first two shots were taken with a Coolpix 5700, with the lens at 280mm (35mm equivalent). The first one is a cresent moon, the second one is a full moon shot.

The next two were taken with my N80 attached to my Celestron C-8. Number three is an 8 day old moon, and number four is a full moon.

BTW, I've got lots more!

[Old Timer]

[QUOTE=Jezz]I'm really interested to see what you all have stored up in the way of shots of the moon.


Ok I'll play. Can't stay up with Speed and some of the others, but here are the ones I could find.

[almo]

First and foremost - A tripod!

Second - A cable release helps, or use the self-timer.

Third - Use the sunny f16 rule as a starting point. Brackett on either side to get it right. While the moon is always lit by the sun (except during eclipses), the brightness varies from magnitude -10 to magniture -13. Also, weather and time of day/night also have an effect, so definitely brackett.

Well I got the tripod and timer. I need to look into getting a tele-converter.


thanks speed!

almo

[Speed]

First and foremost - A tripod!

Second - A cable release helps, or use the self-timer.

Third - Use the sunny f16 rule as a starting point. Brackett on either side to get it right. While the moon is always lit by the sun (except during eclipses), the brightness varies from magnitude -10 to magniture -13. Also, weather and time of day/night also have an effect, so definitely brackett.

Use the best long glass you've got. Got a tele-converter? Use it. Got a telescope? You are in business. A good source for telescopes and photographic accessories is Orion Telescopes. www.telescope.com


The first two shots were taken with a Coolpix 5700, with the lens at 280mm (35mm equivalent). The first one is a cresent moon, the second one is a full moon shot.

The next two were taken with my N80 attached to my Celestron C-8. Number three is an 8 day old moon, and number four is a full moon.

BTW, I've got lots more!

Don't use digital zoom! At best, your image gets real soft. At worse, your image gets badly pixelated! Digital zoom has made big improvements over the first generation gear. With the office Coolpix 800, as soon as you go into the digital zoom range, the pixelation gets bad. But for most applications, even the experts (George Lepp, Rob Sheppard, etc) say to NOT use digital zoom.

Here's a series I shot of the moon to demonstrate the effects of digital zoom. The first shot is of the moon at full optical zoom. The second is at a digital zoom factor of 2.0, then one at 3.0, and finally one at 4.0 digital zoom factor. You can clearly see that the larger image size is negated by the softness of the larger image.

[Lava Lamp]

Don't use digital zoom! At best, your image gets real soft. At worse, your image gets badly pixelated! Digital zoom has made big improvements over the first generation gear. With the office Coolpix 800, as soon as you go into the digital zoom range, the pixelation gets bad. But for most applications, even the experts (George Lepp, Rob Sheppard, etc) say to NOT use digital zoom.

Here's a series I shot of the moon to demonstrate the effects of digital zoom. The first shot is of the moon at full optical zoom. The second is at a digital zoom factor of 2.0, then one at 3.0, and finally one at 4.0 digital zoom factor. You can clearly see that the larger image size is negated by the softness of the larger image.

Speed is the astro man. Here my first ever moonshot. Posted in critque, too.

[Clicker]

Just.............wow.

[Clicker]

oh, i guess not "just" because i also want to share a tip on moon shots...
The moon is the largest when its still daylight, right as its turning dark, so it is closer to the horizon and appears larger....

just f.y.i,that you probably already knew....

Old Timer: Nice shots! Especially like the first one.

Lava: WOW, such detail! amazing...

[walterick]

BUT! I do have some lunar "tips" if anyone's interested...

Like Speedo said, the Sunny 16 rule should get you pretty close. Don't let your shutter drag below 1/60 or so b/c the moon will blur due to Earth's rotation and moon's falling toward Earth (isn't that last bit right, Speed?) Maybe Speedo also has a better estimate from experience as to the slowest shutter you can use.

As to finding the moon:
The full moon always rises at sunset. And sets at sunrise. It then rises approx 45-50 later each day. Until the next full moon, which will again like clockwork be rising in the east just as you are watching the sun setting in the west
Isn't life sweet? )

Rick

[Jezz]

Thanks guys, I do use a tripod and a shutter release, However, i dont have the tele converter, Thats my problem. I cant get close enough! hmm, no i just gotta buy one!!

The shots are awesome, Speed, you have some really nice shots there! Wish i could afford half the stuff i need! like a DSLR, oh well, in time!!

Now keep those moons coming!

[opus]

Now keep those moons coming!

Well, I've posted these here before, but I guess I can post them again.

First one is one of the first moon shots I ever took, with my new lens, at sunset.

Second one is a typical inky black night shot I took over the next few nights while working on improving.

Third one I worked on in photoshop, converting to a duotone. I love this one.

[Jezz]

Nice, i also like the duo tone, it looks really good. Like a blue moon!
He he, keep em coming, please?

[Old Timer]

These are very nice images of the moon. I wish my first images of the moon were anywhere near this quality. It took me several trial and errors to even get an image I could show anyone. Nice job.

[Speed]

Speed is the astro man. Here my first ever moonshot. Posted in critque, too.

Cool shot LL! Awesome shot for your first moon shot!

Now for the details. I'm guessing you used your D70. What size/resolution? Jpeg, Tiff, or Raw? How about the lens? Something in the 70-300mm range @ 300mm? (That's a wild guess) Did you use a teleconverter? How much is it cropped? Tripod? Cable release? Don't leave me hanging buddy.

:-)

[Lava Lamp]

Cool shot LL! Awesome shot for your first moon shot!

Now for the details. I'm guessing you used your D70. What size/resolution? Jpeg, Tiff, or Raw? How about the lens? Something in the 70-300mm range @ 300mm? (That's a wild guess) Did you use a teleconverter? How much is it cropped? Tripod? Cable release? Don't leave me hanging buddy.

:-)

Actually, I was thinking about it some more and realized that I had tried to photograph the lunar eclipse (last year?) with myN80 and 75-30mm. Not one picture came out. I was on my way to the same result when I had the bright idea to look at the first dozen or so pictures I took with the D70 and realized that there was just a really bright white spot where the moon should be.

I can't remember ever seeing the moon so low and so bright as it was over the last two days. Is that some kind of lunar phenomenon?

Anyway, here's what I used: D70, Nikon 300mm f/4 lens, Tamron 1.4x SP teleconverter and Vivitar tripod I got at Walmart. I set it to spot meter on the moon (matrix didn't work) and set it to aperture priority at f/11 (f/16 with the teleconverter) and 1/320, ISO 400 or maybe 800, can't remember. Used the self-timer. Cropped about 60%.

[Speed]

oh, i guess not "just" because i also want to share a tip on moon shots...
The moon is the largest when its still daylight, right as its turning dark, so it is closer to the horizon and appears larger....

just f.y.i,that you probably already knew....

Old Timer: Nice shots! Especially like the first one.

Lava: WOW, such detail! amazing...

You are correct! It appears larger when near the horizon. It is being magnified by the atmosphere. And it makes for impressive shots with a landscape. (Coming up over the ocean, or trees, or mountains.)

It also makes for a very soft (read little detail) shot of the moon itself. All that atmophere distorts the image to some degree. How much depends on where you are and how clear the atmosphere is. So whether to shoot the moon near the horizon or when it's well above the horizon depends on what type of shot you are after.

Thanks for pointing that out. I was hung up on shooting the moon itself, but as Old Timer showed us, adding some terrestrial elements can really give a moon shot some punch.

[Speed]

Actually, I was thinking about it some more and realized that I had tried to photograph the lunar eclipse (last year?) with myN80 and 75-30mm. Not one picture came out. I was on my way to the same result when I had the bright idea to look at the first dozen or so pictures I took with the D70 and realized that there was just a really bright white spot where the moon should be.

I can't remember ever seeing the moon so low and so bright as it was over the last two days. Is that some kind of lunar phenomenon?

Anyway, here's what I used: D70, Nikon 300mm f/4 lens, Tamron 1.4x SP teleconverter and Vivitar tripod I got at Walmart. I set it to spot meter on the moon (matrix didn't work) and set it to aperture priority at f/11 (f/16 with the teleconverter) and 1/320, ISO 400 or maybe 800, can't remember. Used the self-timer. Cropped about 60%.

You know inquiring minds wanted to know. OK, I wanted to know. ;-)

As for the moon being so large and bright. This past full moon (28 Oct) was the Harvest Moon. I know the closest full moon was several months ago, but as I recall, the Harvest Moon is a bit closer to earth than most of the year.

Used the D70 (OK, so that was a no-brainer). 300mm f4! Alright. Nice lens. Teleconverter. I suspected as much. Self-timer. You are on top of it!

A couple of thoughts for future shots. When shooting the moon itself, I don't bother trying to meter it. Even with my spot meter on the moon, my N80 constantly over-exposes it. Go to manual mode, then use the sunny f/16 rule as a starting place (f11 with the teleconverter). With your D70 you can check the image right away and know whether you've got it or not.

Use the lowest ISO available to you. The moon is a very bright subject. Shutter speeds are going to be fairly high. I find that 1/250 to 1/500th of a second usually gives me the best results, regardless of the film being used. 100 speed or 400 speed, those shutter speeds usually give me the best result.

Try some shots tonight if you can. Use manual mode, f11, and try those shutter speeds. Then show us what you got. Happy shooting!

[Speed]

[QUOTE=Old Timer]

I'm really interested to see what you all have stored up in the way of shots of the moon.


Ok I'll play. Can't stay up with Speed and some of the others, but here are the ones I could find.

Riiiiight! ;-)

Translation: My shots aren't as big as theirs. You do an awesome job shooting the moon OT! And you prove that you don't need a telescope to take impressive moon shots!

:-)

[Speed]

Thanks guys, I do use a tripod and a shutter release, However, i dont have the tele converter, Thats my problem. I cant get close enough! hmm, no i just gotta buy one!!

The shots are awesome, Speed, you have some really nice shots there! Wish i could afford half the stuff i need! like a DSLR, oh well, in time!!

Now keep those moons coming!

Me neither! :-O

But I do have a Celestron C-8, which lets you take impressive, frame filling shots.

A teleconverter is much cheaper than a C-8, so that is the way to start. A DSLR will also give your favorite long lens a nice boost in magnification. An 80-200mm f2.8 becomes a 120-450mm f2.8 on a Nikon digital. Pretty cool. And LOTS cheaper than buying a 400mm f2.8!!!

Lots of gear (and lots of money to buy that gear) isn't a necessity. You can get pretty impressive results with an advanced compact digital camera. Or, incorporate some landscape elements into your shot, and the image really pops.

I like this thread. It shows different takes on how to take moon shots. Hopefully it will imspire others to get out there and shoot the moon! :-)

[Speed]

Well, I've posted these here before, but I guess I can post them again.

First one is one of the first moon shots I ever took, with my new lens, at sunset.

Second one is a typical inky black night shot I took over the next few nights while working on improving.

Third one I worked on in photoshop, converting to a duotone. I love this one.

Now please tell us what gear you used...

Pretty please!

[opus]

Now please tell us what gear you used...

Pretty please!

Ok, gear used:

Canon DRebel
Canon 75-300 f4.5 IS USM lens
Cable release
Tripod
Photoshop to crop

The first one (sunset) I didn't use a tripod, it's handheld.

Here's another one I took as the (blue) moon was rising. It demonstrates how much the atmosphere softens and distorts the moon. But I love the colors, at least.

I don't have too many besides this one to post. They all start looking the same after awhile, y'know??

[Speed]

BUT! I do have some lunar "tips" if anyone's interested...

Like Speedo said, the Sunny 16 rule should get you pretty close. Don't let your shutter drag below 1/60 or so b/c the moon will blur due to Earth's rotation and moon's falling toward Earth (isn't that last bit right, Speed?) Maybe Speedo also has a better estimate from experience as to the slowest shutter you can use.

As to finding the moon:
The full moon always rises at sunset. And sets at sunrise. It then rises approx 45-50 later each day. Until the next full moon, which will again like clockwork be rising in the east just as you are watching the sun setting in the west
Isn't life sweet? )

Rick

Since we are talking about "moon" shots! :-O


You are correct on many counts my friend. The earth's rotation will blur longer shots. And while I've taken them down to 1/8th of a second, keeping your shutter speed up is a very good idea. If you want sharp photo's, that is. You can use Velvia, and the sunny f/16 rule will give you 1/60th of a second! My sharpest shots are usually between 1/250th and 1/500th of a second, so that should give you an idea of where to shot for.

You are also correct (give yourself 1000 points) in saying that the moon actually falls around the earth! An orbit is when an object actually falls around it's primary body. Astronauts first experience with weightlessness is usually described as a "falling sensation". That is because they are falling - around the earth.

You are wise beyond your years young Rickster.

[Speed]

Ok, gear used:

Canon DRebel
Canon 75-300 f4.5 IS USM lens
Cable release
Tripod
Photoshop to crop

The first one (sunset) I didn't use a tripod, it's handheld.

Here's another one I took as the (blue) moon was rising. It demonstrates how much the atmosphere softens and distorts the moon. But I love the colors, at least.

I don't have too many besides this one to post. They all start looking the same after awhile, y'know??

Thank you, thank you. I like seeing what gear others use.

Great moonrise shot! I'm with you - I love the colors!

This is a fabulous example of how much the atmosphere softens and distorts the moon. It also makes for a rather moody shot - a very good mood!

[Speed]

And not the final word!

If you haven't read this month's (October 2004) Outdoor Photographer, then pick it up. In it, there is an explanation about the different CCD sensors used in DSLR vs. Advanced Compact Digital cameras (specifically, the new 8 megapixel ones). The advanced compacts have a CCD sensor that's about 9mm across. The DSLR's have sensors that are about 24mm across. The main point of the column was the size difference in the sensors. But they also made the point that "the larger sensors are better at gathering light"!

To illustrate this, I took a series of shots last night. All shots were taken at 280mm (35mm equivalent) and f7.4 (the smallest f stop at that focal length.

The sunny f16 rules says that 1/250th of a second should be over-exposed by at least one stop. Hmmm. Maybe not.

First shot is 1/250th of a second (roughly sunny f16). Second shot is 1/125th of a second. Third shot is 1/60th of a second. Fourth shot is 1/30th of a second.


Brackett, brackett, brackett. Once you learn what works for your setup, then you can refine your exposers to a narrower range.