Pictures of a full moon

[GMNelson]

Let's say I want to take some pictures of a full moon. What would be the most appropriate settings for such an image? I have a Sony DSC-F717 and have set it to manual, played around with a few different settings, but have not achieved a very good shot - yet. Suggestions for shutter speed, ISO setting, apeture size, etc. would be greatly appreciated. Would it also be helpful to use a filter of some kind?

Gracias.

[meng-chieh]

Originally Posted by GMNelson

Let's say I want to take some pictures of a full moon. What would be the most appropriate settings for such an image? I have a Sony DSC-F717 and have set it to manual, played around with a few different settings, but have not achieved a very good shot - yet. Suggestions for shutter speed, ISO setting, apeture size, etc. would be greatly appreciated. Would it also be helpful to use a filter of some kind?

Gracias.

Moon pics are extremely hard to take considering the low- or virtually non-existent lighting available. However, if your camera has a bulb mode, I'd suggest using that. Furthermore, a remote shutter release control and a tripod are all considered a must during night pics. If a remote shutter release is not available to you, simply use the timer feature. Good luck!

[niknak]

I disagree with the last post - a full moon is actually a sunny landscape.

If you're just trying to get a clear picture of the moon then there is a fairly easy rule of thumb - the "Sunny 16" rule:

Shutter speed 1/ISO at f16. (I don't know the specifics of your model of camera but this rule works on my Fuji S7000).

Also if your camera has an auto-bracketing mode use that and set it to +/- 0.7 EV.

Juggle the shutter speed and aperture as necessary to stay within your camera's limits and check the pictures as you take them.

Focusing is another problem - if your camera supports it set the focus to infinity. If not, another trick is to leave the lens cap on and half-press the shutter button - the camera will try to focus but fail - most digital cameras will leave the lens focused at infinity. Set the focusing mode to manual before removing the lens cap.

Also a tripod is essential for the slow shutter speeds being used. A cable release is also essential if your camera supports it - if you can't use a cable release then use the camera's timer.

Lastly get out of town and the higher up you are the better (the air is cleaner and thinner).

Hope this helps.

[HawkeyeLonewolf]

This is with my Panasonic FZ20 using Shutter priority mode (hand held)

[wus]

IF

Originally Posted by niknak

a full moon is actually a sunny landscape.

I wonder why I should use a slow shutter speed? Don't normally need that for a sunny landscape shot ...

Actually I know (from experience) that I do need a tripod and long exposure time, but if you think about it ... it's true, the moon (at least its visible part) has sunshine at full blast, not attenuated by any atmosphere. Why do I need long exposure time and / or high sensitivity to shoot it then? Can anyone enlighten me, please?

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leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but pictures

[aeapen]

Attaching Moon taken at 32X Digital zoom with Canon S1 IS... Without any lens, tripod etc used. Just using Imange Stabilizer ON...

[Rhys]

Ok. This was taken at about a 60th as far as I can recall (my GF's PC doesn't have software to read exif data). It's handheld, IS on and was taken from Columbia, SC a few days ago.

[Treasuredude]

Here is a pic taken with my FZ3.



I think you'll have better results if you avoid the full moon. A half moon or smaller will have more shadow and bring out the crater details better.

[A95_sucka]

If these images were taken handheld, imagine how much sharper they would be with the use of a tripod or the camera otherwise steadied (props, balancing on a sloped surface, etc.)...

[Rhys]

Originally Posted by A95_sucka

If these images were taken handheld, imagine how much sharper they would be with the use of a tripod or the camera otherwise steadied (props, balancing on a sloped surface, etc.)...

Heh. The moon races across the sky at a heck of a lick. I did a tripod shot of the moon with slide film once. I reckoned on a 10 minute exposure to illuminate the landscape as well. The moon turned into a long cylinder because over the course of 10 minutes it had moved so far. It must have moved 3 times its width over those 10 minutes.

The moon is 3,476km in diameter and travels at a speed ranging between 0.968 km/s and 1.082 km/s. The average is 1.022km/s

This all means that by the time a 1/60th exposure is completed, the subject has moved (1.022km/s / 60 =) 17 meters. This is not condusive to sharp images.

In terms of the angle that the moon will move in 1/60th of a second, I suppose it is minimal unless one uses a long-range lens. I once viewed the moon through an astronomical telescope and it moved so fast it was hard to keep up with - especially since the telescope was calibrated for steller motion and not lunar.

For more moon information, please view this webpage Lunar data