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A DIFFERENT KIND OF MOON SHOT

by Andy Long

There's something about a full moon that brings out a variety of emotions in people. The full moon is when the werewolf made its appearance. A full moon enhances romance for couples in love. It induces strange behavior, especially on a weekend night in bars. (I know firsthand, since I used to be a bouncer in a previous life.) It can result in good fishing, because the fish feed more. It has also been chronicled in music over the years.

Why the big attraction to a full moon? No one knows for sure, but whatever the reason may be, it's something you can count on happening every month. And, for a photographer, knowing exactly when something will happen helps in setting up interesting shots. A full moon suggests a whole new set of images, whether the image be of the moon by itself, the moon included in a landscape, or a huge moon with some kind of animal standing or flying in front of it. Just like the sun, the moon appears larger the closer it is to the horizon, which is when most photographs of the moon are taken.

One thing you'll find out when you want to focus primarily on getting images including a full moon is you won't get much sleep. First, you'll stay out late into the evening to get shots of the moon when it rises, and then you'll come out early in the morning to get more shots. If you're at a location that has interesting subjects on both the eastern and western horizons, you'll find yourself in the field well before sunrise to get images you couldn't get the night before.

Catching the moment before it happens...

The best night to get shots of the moon is actually the night before it's completely full. The viewer won't be able to notice the difference on film, and shooting a night early will provide some light in the sky. The night before a full moon, moonrise will occur about twenty to thirty minutes before sunset. On the night the moon is full, it won't rise until sunset. The reason it appears to be completely full is that it's 180° opposite of the sun. By shooting the night before, you can also choose between a variety of images. First, you can get pictures with the moon in the shot and light in the sky, or you can wait until the sun sets and the eastern sky becomes colorful and catch shots then. This can be followed by getting some shots with just the moon in the sky silhouetting interesting foreground subjects.

Another technique you can try is to use the light of the full moon on a clear night to illuminate a subject on the opposite horizon, creating shots with a dark sky above a moonlit landscape. To do this, you'll need a very long exposure, usually around fifteen to twenty seconds. These shots can be created anytime around a full moon, as long as you attempt them well after sunset so the western sky is dark.

Interesting Exposures

The subjects your shot includes determine where you'll make your exposure readings. If the moon is a secondary part of the image--i.e., small in the frame and there's still light in the sky-- then you need to expose for the sky, usually the colorful portion close to the horizon. If the moon is the primary light source and is prominent in the image, then take a reading just off to the side of the moon itself. I've found that when I do shots such as this, I get a reading of around 1/180 sec. at f/8. Adjust your times accordingly if you need a wider depth of field. Be careful not to have a really long exposure of the moon, sor it might show any movement and be an out-of-focus white blob. Shooting moon pictures is a good time to take the safe approach and bracket until you feel comfortable that you know what you'll get on film.

Another approach you can take with full moon shots is to take double exposures, so you have a very large moon behind another prominent subject such as a city skyline or landscape. Throw out all you've been taught or have read about doing double exposures when you're taking double exposures of the moon. Because you're not doing multiple shots of a single subject, your exposures will be quite different in your shot of the moon and your foreground shot. Take your shot of each considering the right exposure for the subject you want.

Another idea you can try is to shoot an entire roll of the moon in different positions in the frame, and then use that roll again to shoot landscapes with a blank sky. Later, you'll place the moon you already shot in the blank sky. A good suggestion for doing this is to shoot a set number of frames horizontally--with the moon in the left and right corners and in the middle--and then do the same using a vertical format. Take your shots of the moon at whatever reading you get off of the moon--usually from about 1/125 sec. to 1/250 seconds--and then when you go to take your next set of shots, take them at whatever reading you need to get a proper exposure of that subject. The hardest part of doing it this way is that you have to remember how much room to allow for the placement of the moon in the sky.

While most of the shots you want call for a clear sky, if you do encounter some clouds, you won't necessarily come away with no shots. If you find thin clouds in front of the moon and the moon right behind a nice subject, you can get an interesting halo effect surrounding your subject.

Some locations work better than others when you're trying to capture memorable full moon landscapes. Southern Utah, with all of its grand scenery, is a great place to go to incorporate the moon into dramatic landscapes. No matter where you go, do some scouting to find the best locations. Going out a couple of days before a full moon to find the best place to be when it's full will save you time when you do your shooting. Remember, the moon rises between twenty to thirty minutes later each day, so adjust your times from when you saw the moon in a certain position. Also, if you go back to the same place a month or two later, the moon will be in a different position, just as the sun will be as the seasons change.

Creating good full moon images is a challenge. Don't be disappointed the first time you look at your work and have to throw away a majority of your pictures. When you do get a truly great shot, you'll feel much better. Like everything else in photography, the more you practice, the better you'll get. And there's always next month.

Join Andy and his First Light Photography Tours. Check out his 1999 schedule by going to www.apogeephoto.com/firstlight.html