Photographing a Harvest Moon

StoryBoutAGirl

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There is a beautiful harvest moon out tonight and I really would love to get a picture of it but my nighttime photography skills are really not that great. I have a Cannon Powershot S5IS. And I'm wondering what is the best settings to achieve a photo like this. I really want to catch the detail. I have played around in the manual setting which seems to get the best but still not quite good enough for me. I do not have a tripod but I can set it on something to take the picture. I have tried with and without the flash and I'm just not sure how to get the shot I want. Any ideas? I am not too familar with the settings. I am trying to familiarize myself but am not sure what I am doing.
 
a tripod would be the best thing to use as being night a long shutter speed would be required but if you have something to set it on make sure its very very sturdy and use the time function to minimize blur

:)
 
Im quite a newbie myself, but i think i can help. The main point i found out while photographing the moon is that it is REALLY bright. People always think you should use a long shutter speed just cuz its night but in fact you need a really quick shutter speed because of the moons high light intensity. Also a tripod would be good to use(sit it on something atleast).

Heres one of my photos i took just a couple days ago:

p9153586zr3.jpg


Settings:
Shutter Speed 1/1000
F5.6
150mm ( i then cropped it closer)
Iso 100

I dunno...hope that helps
 
Im quite a newbie myself, but i think i can help. The main point i found out while photographing the moon is that it is REALLY bright. People always think you should use a long shutter speed just cuz its night but in fact you need a really quick shutter speed because of the moons high light intensity. Also a tripod would be good to use(sit it on something atleast).



Settings:
Shutter Speed 1/1000
F5.6
150mm ( i then cropped it closer)
Iso 100

I dunno...hope that helps

Agreed. All in all, the moon is lit by the sun, so really you're taking a shot of something in sunlight. You should be able to get a handheld shot without a tripod. The example above was shot is a more than enough shutter speed to shoot handheld at that focal length. Although, you will not be able to get any other scene details in, they will of course, shadow.
 
I wrote an Article of Interest that covers this. Check that.
 
You should be able to get a handheld shot without a tripod.

Good point. i just thaught that a tripod would make sure that its extra sharp, but i guess using that quick of a shutter speed would not really matter.
 
Hah, cool - it looks like everyone had the same idea! But yeah, pulse is right, the moon is quite a bit brighter than you'd guess.

Anyways, I was trying out my new lens, and playing with aperature settings on that very same moon!

harvestmooncroppedph9.jpg


Settings:
Shutter Speed 1/90
F13
500mm ( cropped in post)
Iso 100

With my 30D, that 500mm comes out to a whopping 800mm! In any event - just go outside and shoot - the moon, after all, is out there all night long. You've got plenty of time to play around and get your settings just the way you like it.
 

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