Full moon part #3

**raynerj1** · 22 August 2008, 01:27 AM

I will second that... about moon shots not being easy.

The first shots (the large ones) are with a 1000mm cheap lens mounted to a Pentax K20D. The lens is why it took me many attempts over several years to get a decent shot. The lens is totally manual. I get no exposure info nor focus indication with this lens. It is all trial and error.

The small shot is with a 300mm autofocus lens. It is much easier to take shots with it, but the image is much, much smaller.

**Lilu** · 22 August 2008, 12:26 PM

Yes, John. There are very beautiful shots of the moon. Very.!! And so close!!! I like them.

**Rhanna** · 22 August 2008, 11:37 PM

John,

I took this one when the eclipse happened, I think in 07.
600mm lens (manual). As per usual with eclipses the clouds came in but they elapsed long enough to allow me to take a number of shots. I also had a few problems with my camera to add to the degree of difficulty.

Your shot is so amazing closes.
Rupert.

**raynerj1** · 23 August 2008, 03:06 AM

Thank you Lilu and Rupert...

Rupert,

That is a nice shot with a 600mm. Have you thought about getting a doubler? You can find them for not that much used. They are typically a manual use only item. I have one that I was going to try on my 1000mm but it makes the the moon too large to fit in the frame (1000mmX2x1.5=3000mm 35 mm equivalent). I have used it with half of my 1000mm (500mmX2X1.5=1500mm 35 mm equivalent), but the shot is about the same (quality wise) so I didn't use it this month.

I wanted to capture the eclipse but it was raining in this neck of the woods.

**Tao jones** · 23 August 2008, 12:35 PM

good one john, nice and sharp...I have never bothered to take a shot of the moon..it sounds difficult so I can't see me doing it...regrads tao

**spondoolix** · 23 August 2008, 12:42 PM

John,

I seem to have missed this thread earlier, but finding it has been a visual joy.
I am full of admiration for your persistence and the quality of the photographs.

**raynerj1** · 23 August 2008, 08:57 PM

Thanks Roger and TJB.

Roger,

Any shot is hard to get right unless you have tried to take them a few times. I would have to practice quiet a bit to capture a band in action like you can. The first couple shots would not be worth viewing.

I have taken quiet a few sunsets, and a moon shot is not much harder. The manual lens is the tricky part. Trying to get a good focus with only the viewfinder as a guide is tough. Lots of trial and error. Do you have a large telephoto?

**Tao jones** · 24 August 2008, 01:30 AM

Hi John my biggest lens is my 70-200mm. I have just done a search on the net for moon photography and came up with this link below. I think I will have a go at it next full moon, not like your shoot as I don't have the equipment but more in a landscape scene. I will keep you posted..thanks roger

http://www.danheller.com/moon.html

Roger,

Any shot is hard to get right unless you have tried to take them a few times. I would have to practice quiet a bit to capture a band in action like you can. The first couple shots would not be worth viewing.

I have taken quiet a few sunsets, and a moon shot is not much harder. The manual lens is the tricky part. Trying to get a good focus with only the viewfinder as a guide is tough. Lots of trial and error. Do you have a large telephoto?

**raynerj1** · 24 August 2008, 05:35 PM

Roger,

If you are going to try for a landscape sceeen I would suggest taking it around dusk. To catch the moon you need a pretty fast exposure, around 1/50 -1/120 second. if you want it darker just underexpose the shot.
My 1000mm fills about 3/4 frame. So your 200mm will probably grab about 1/8 to 1/4 frame. You can pick up a manual lens pretty cheap. I paid $100 for mine new. If you look around you could probably grab a used one for much less. Then you just need an adapter for your camera body (about $10).

It is much easier to use a tripod and a cable release if you have one. If you lens is long enough that you need to mount it to the tripod then try a cable release and timed exposure to minimise camera shake when the mirror flips up.

The moon is still up and I was thinking of trying a daylight moon shot just to see what I can get.

**Bob C.** · 08 September 2008, 05:26 PM

Nice moon shots John and a great thread as well.

The topic jogged the ol' memory a bit and I found the following moon shot I had taken a few years back and thought it may add to the topic.

It was hand held ( I remember seeing the bright moonlight shining through the window into my home which prompted me to run out to "grab a shot or two"). I had no setup but did rest the camera against my car as I crouched down. It was taken on a clear crisp Nov. evening in New England.

I used a spot exposure and the resulting shot, according to the EXIF file was:
ExposureTime - 1/320 seconds
FNumber - 4.00
ISOSpeedRatings - 100

The camera is an oldie but a goody 5 megapixel (shot at 3 megapixels) Sony DSC-717 which has a remarkable Carl Zeiss 38-190mm (35mm equivalent) zoom lens ( 5 X optical 10 X total zoom)

I did a "sharpen" of the cropped image in IrfanView which looked better and produced fewer artifacts then XXP surprisingly.

Bob C.