Full moon rising behind Blanca Peak B
Full moon of March 20, 2019; a perigee moon ("super moon").
The Blanca Peak massif lies adjacent to the Sangre de Christo mountains in south-ce...
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Full moon of March 20, 2019; a perigee moon ("super moon").
The Blanca Peak massif lies adjacent to the Sangre de Christo mountains in south-central Colorado; it contains four "14-ers" [14,000+ feet peaks] and several other summits higher than 12,000-feet.
Viewed from the riparian corridor along the Rio Grande River.
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The Blanca Peak massif lies adjacent to the Sangre de Christo mountains in south-central Colorado; it contains four "14-ers" [14,000+ feet peaks] and several other summits higher than 12,000-feet.
Viewed from the riparian corridor along the Rio Grande River.
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
![March 1, 2018. This was my first effort to line up this shot using The Photographer's Ephemeris [Web app - thephotographersephemeris.com]. Appare](https://cdnpt01.viewbug.com/media/mediafiles/2018/03/05/77818511_widepreview400.webp)
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Behind The Lens
Location
This was taken in the San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado. The Blanca Peak massif forms part of the eastern escarpment of the Valley. This was taken from the riparian zone along the upper Rio Grande near Alamosa, CO, about 30 miles west of the massif. Choosing the camera location in a riparian zone provided shrubs and trees for a more interesting foreground.Time
This was during the "blue hour," when the full moon was rising over the eastern mountains shortly after the sun had set in the west.Lighting
For the last several years, I have assigned myself to photograph the rising full moon each month, preferable rising over some significant landscape features. This is what I consider to be nearly the ideal full moon rise: the sun is down, so the eastern sky is darkish-blue, and the moon will stand out as gold. But enough light remains to provide some detail on the landscape. This generally occurs about one day prior to the astronomical full moon. The lighting problem is that the exact time of sunset varies only a few minutes from day-to-day, but the time of moonrise is around an hour later every day. So getting a reasonable light balance between the full moon (which is in full sunlight) and the comparatively dark landscape is tricky. I usually set my camera for an exposure compensation of around -3 stops, and then bracket at 2-stop intervals.Equipment
I used a Pentax K-50 DSLR (cropped sensor) with a Sigma 70-300mm zoom set at 120mm (180mm effective, with the cropped sensor). I used my decades-old but still functional Slik U-212 tripod, with cable release. All light (such as it is) was natural.Inspiration
I have lived most of my life around the mountains of the western U.S., and mountains have always been inspirational to me. When the mountains are too snowed-in for much foot travel, the pristine nature of snow-capped peaks, and the way snow field reveal topography, are a source of wonder. I took a couple of astronomy courses in college, which combined with biology piqued my interest in the moon. [Biology: tides, impact on rodent predation, etc.] I retired to a location where I can watch the moon rising above the Sangre de Christo range of the Rockies, which led me to my self-assignment.Editing
As noted above, getting an acceptable balance of lighting on both the moon and the foreground is tough. I try to find among my bracketed shots one where the moon is not totally blown-out, but only 2 stops or so overexposed. Then I can reduce exposure of the "highlights" (only the moon) and also increase exposure on the landscape. If the moon is still too bright, I reduce luminance on the yellow (and maybe orange) channels, then reduce saturation to remove the over-saturation that reduced luminosity produces. In this shot, to increase the delineation between the mountains and the sky, I also used a brush on the snow-caps to increase exposure and whites, and clarity to show snow vs rocks.In my camera bag
Depending on weight and distance to be carried, either the Pentax K-50 [cropped sensor] or my Pentax K-1 ii [full-frame] or both. Usually an all-purpose zoom (28-135) is mounted on the camera. I carry a 50mm f/1.4 for shallow depth-of-field shots and a 100mm macro for flowers and other small subjects. I carry the long zoom only for possible wildlife and for moon shots. I always have a UV filter on my lenses, and only change it out for a polarizer; I don't use neutral density or other filters. I have a good but heavy wide-angle lens that I carry only if I'm expecting or planning arches, cliffs, etc., where it would be needed. Otherwise, just small necessities: extra batteries, lens cloths, cable release, flashlight & headlamp. I only carry my tripod (relatively heavy) for night shots or for long-distance wildlife shots.Feedback
To get this sort of shot - lining up the rising or setting moon with a specific landscape element - I find the Web App "The Photographer's Ephemeris" [TPE] invaluable [now also available for Android and IOS mobiles]. As noted above, the moon rising or setting time varies greatly from day to day. So does the point along the horizon at which the moon rises/sets. In addition, after it rises above the horizon it moves up at an angle, so by the time it gets to the altitude of the peak, more time has elapsed, and the moon has moved to the south. TPE has all the astronomical tables, maps, satellite images, topographic data, etc., necessary to line up your shot. All that stuff is basically math, which is why TPE can predict it. What IS NOT predictable is the WEATHER. I'd guess that 30% - 40% of my planned full moon shots have been called by weather. The clouds might be near you but low in the sky, or far away and high in the sky; either way, they can mask the moon. But even if storm or clouds is predicted, I usually go out anyway. I've gotten some great storm shots that way. As seen from Earth with the naked eye or a "normal 50mm lens," the moon is only about 0.5-degrees wide. That is, from the horizon to directly overhead is 90-degrees, so the moon is only 1/180th of that. To get the moon to represent a larger part of your shot, you must use a telephoto lens (as noted, this was shot at 180mm effective). BUT - that also magnifies your landscape. So if your landscape is of significant size, as in this shot, you have to shoot from a considerable distance away - 30 miles for this shot.
