Moon musings. - Friday 5-3-2021
Many people ask me why I usually have a compass about my person, and is it because I need it to get home after a heavy session up the pub. Well, there are several reasons, but here is the most obvious.
I saw a photo once of a Tower on a Hill, similar to Glastonbury Tor. Nothing special about that you might say, except this was in silhouette, with a very large full moon passing behind it. This composition is exactly what I have aspired to achieve, but never have.
Much of that is about me, because to get a shot like that, you have to prepare, and prepare heavily.
Location, location, location:
First, the location. I have not come across a suitable location yet, that is within 50
miles of where I live.
That’s not to say there isn’t one, but you have to have the filing cabinet open in your
brain as you travel
around in your day to day business to recognise a scene and think “That might just
look OK with a moon
behind it”.
It has to be something that will create the foreground interest, even in
silhouette. Could be architecture, or a tree, preferably deciduous in
winter
Secondly, you have to be able to see it from a mile or a mile and a half
away. That’s because you want to zoom in to the moon with the longest focal
length at your disposal.
So generally, you need a hilly or a mountainous area, or
somewhere that is flat for miles around.
So, you have found your foreground
subject, possibly on a trip to the supermarket, and thought, “that would
look good with the moon behind it”.
Well, now you need a compass, because you
need to know where the moon is going to rise (or set), and if
you saw it during the day and it was north or south of your viewpoint, you are going to
have to find another
place to take your photo, as basically your subject needs to be east of your viewpoint
for moonrise or west
for moonset.
Research and Technology:
You are going to need to know the phases of the moon, the azimuth, how high it will
be at any particular
time, the compass direction of rise and set. Add to this, the time it rises and sets, and
the time of sunrise
and sunset, depending on the type of shot you want. If you want your foreground to
be visible rather than
silhouette, the moon needs to rise at twilight at least.
Then don’t forget the weather forecast. No point getting set up if its pouring with rain,
really windy, heavy
cloud etc.
Luckily, we have smartphone apps and the internet to provide all this
information, so having
found the location, and verified that conditions will be perfect for the planned
photograph the only remaining
aspect is get there and take it.
Preparation and Expedition:
Prepare all your gear and check it is all in order. Spare memory cards and batteries,
remote release (or
timer at a pinch), tripod, flask of tea and a chair. If your not hiking, take everything you
have.
Get there hours early. Give yourself time to set up and relax, check all the gear and
settings, find the right
spot etc. That’s where the chair and tea come in. Get it all prepared, then sit down
and relax waiting for the
main event.
A friend once told me “Fail to Prepare, Prepare to Fail”
A short
while after I had my first
draft of this article, I saw somebody had taken the photo I might have taken using the
aforementioned
preparation.
Tony Howell posted this photo and has kindly allowed me to use it in
this article
Tony is a professional
photographer and has a
fantastic portfolio on his website. See the original photo here