Supermoon Over Mt. Whitney

The supermoon phenomenon occurs whatever the moon is simultaneously full and at its perigee, or its closest point to earth, during its monthly orbit. The supermoon in May, 2012, was one such case. I suspected it might be possible to create an image of it setting over Mt. Whitney, thus combining the largest full moon of the year with the tallest mountain in the continental United States. Here’s how this image became a reality.

The first step was to choose a shooting location based on the compass direction of the setting moon. Now in this image, I wanted the moon to clearly stand out as a dominant theme above the mountain. This required the use of a very long focal length lens, otherwise, while the moon would be visible within the composition, its size, and hence “supermoon” qualities would be diminished.

The precise shooting location was found by using the planning app The Photographer’s Ephemeris. It was simply determined to be the point of intersection between a conveniently located dirt road and Mount Whitney along a line with the correct moonset compass direction of 242°. The exact GPS coordinates of this point were noted for field navigation, since there was no cell coverage in the area.

Night_Photography_Supermoon

The next step was to estimate candidate exposure settings based on the anticipated light levels of the predawn twilight. Noting that sea-level moonset occurred an hour and fifteen minutes after sunrise on the best viewing day, the low ISO of 200 was chosen as a starting point.

To determine the aperture, I needed to consider the specific details of the lens system I was using. To make this image, the camera was fitted with a 1.7X teleconverter attached to a 4” telescope with a 400 mm focal length. This combination resulted in an effective focal length of 680 mm. Noting that the entrance diameter of the telescope was 4” ~ 100 mm, the aperture was calculated to be 680mm / 100 mm = f/6.8. This aperture was deemed perfectly suitable, since depth of field is not a consideration for such a large subject distance.

Based on experience, a shutter speed of 1/500 second was anticipated to produce a correct exposure for a predawn twilight scene, an ISO of 200, and an aperture of f/6.8. This should be satisfactory, since the moon shouldn’t move perceptibly in this short time interval.

Having identified its exact GPS coordinates, and preliminary exposure settings, the next step was simply to drive to the shooting location, confirm its location with my hand-held GPS device, set up the equipment and await moonset. Needless to say, my pulse was racing as I watched in awe as the enormous supermoon slowly descended in the west as sunrise approached, and quietly slipped precisely behind majestic Mt. Whitney!

Want to learn how you can make images like this one, as well as breathtaking Milky Way images, dazzling star trails and more? Come join us in our brand new Nightscape Photography class!

– BPSOP Instructor: Mike Shaw

Mike Teaches:

Star Trails and Night Photography

“I just wanted to thank you for another wonderful class. I have to confess that each week when I read the new assignment, my first reaction was mild panic and a deep certainty that I would not be able to produce anything worthwhile that fit within the parameters you had set. But before I knew it, the ideas started to flow, and I quickly became obsessed (no, that isn’t too strong a word!) with exploring the possibilities. I can honestly say that the photos I produced in response to your assignments are among my favorites. Thanks for bringing out a creative side I didn’t know I had!”

Barbara Geiger
Understanding Color

“Thank you so very much for this course! It’s allowed me to take the blinders off and present my images for what I want them to be without being a slave to the “reality” of the camera. I would also add that in conjunction with your printing course, this has been the most useful course I’ve ever taken. Your notes are more than comprehensive and your comments and critiques are direct, clear, and always directed to the improvement of the art.”

Bill
After the click

” I want to thank you for this class and for your patience and availability to answer all of my questions. I have learned very much through this class. I have used LR in the past, but mostly for editing images. I now have a better grasp in the organization of my images, an even better understanding of editing images, and an understanding of the value of presets. I still have a lot to learn, but this has put me on the road to be able to improve my photography. Again, thank you! ”

Dale Yates
Lightroom Quickstart

Classes Starting Soon!

Understanding Exposure and Your DSLR

Instructor: Bryan Peterson Duration: 6 Weeks Cost: US$169 Without que…

Wireless Flash Techniques for Outdoor & Nature Photographers

Instructor: Rick Burress Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 Learn Photoshop…

The Real Photoshop Course

Instructor: Charlie Borland Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 Are you a …

The Ultimate Guide to Adobe Bridge CC

Instructor: Rick Burress Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 The Anti-Catalo…

After the Click – Refining Your Vision in Lightroom & Camera Raw

Instructor: Mark English Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 Why do some ima…

Editing in Adobe Camera Raw

Instructor: Rick Burress Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 If you love pho…

Exploring Adobe Photoshop Lightroom & Lightroom for Mobile

Instructor: Holly Higbee-Jansen Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 In this …

Lightroom Quick Start

Instructor: Holly Higbee-Jansen Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 Do you w…

Mastering Apple Photos

Instructor: Jon Canfield Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 Mastering Apple…

Luminar Essentials

Instructor: Jon Canfield Duration: 4 Weeks Cost: US$129 Luminar is an …

The Art of Printing and Selling Your Art

Instructor: Mark English Duration: 2 Weeks Cost: US$76 The print is the…

The 50 Most Useful Tips in Photoshop CC and Photoshop Elements

Instructor: Roger Morin Duration: 2 Weeks Cost: US$76 This two-week cla…

50 MORE Photoshop Tips & Tricks

Instructor: Roger Morin Duration: 2 Weeks Cost: US$76 This two-week cla…
Translate »