Supermoon

Supermoon - 12 July 2014

Last night, our moon was a little closer to our home planet than usual. This phenomenon is commonly referred to as a 'supermoon' because the moon does appear ever so slightly larger in the night sky. 

Anyone who has tried to shoot a photo of the full moon realizes that this is a rough task. The moon doesn't really seem all that bright but it really is exceptionally bright especially a full moon. This is why far too many photos of the moon only depict an overexposed, bright white splotch in the sky when they try to capture an image of the moon. You really need to use a camera which allows manual control over your exposure to get this right. Contrary to popular belief, you actually need to set your exposure as though you are shooting on a sunny afternoon... yes... as though you are shooting on a sunny afternoon!

Another thing that most people don't understand, or realize, is that the full moon is the worst phase of the moon to try to capture a highly detailed or even a nice photo of the moon. When the moon is full, the sun is hitting it almost directly straight-on... which makes for very few shadows of details on the surface of the moon. If the light source (the sun) was off to the side, such as when the moon is waxing or waning, then you would see shadows of the mountain ranges and huge craters across the surface of the moon. I typically try to avoid wasting my time shooting photos of a full moon because they always seem to turn out flat and a bit mushy. 

All that being said, I went outside last night to see if I could catch a glimpse of the moon... Unfortunately, we had a typical Waterbury, Vermont night sky... full of clouds. Later in the evening my luck changed a little when there was a break in the clouds and the moon became visible. I managed to get a few very quick shots of the moon before more clouds obscured my view.

Maybe the weather will be a bit nicer and skies clearer for next month's supermoon...