Capturing an Elusive young Moon
May 4th 2009 04:54
This shot was taken 24 hours after new moon an earlier image would have better but we don’t have control on the clouds.
Finding and photographing a young moon is a challenge but also rewarding.
Trying to find the moon when it’s just starting to become visible is quite addictive.
The Moon when it’s just a few hours old is difficult to see but with a bit of time and patience anyone with a camera and tripod can catch a glimpse of a very then crescent Moon.
Armed with my digital camera and tripod I decided to give it a try. It’s not what you call an astronomical challenge but more of a photographic one.
You do not require fancy telescopes of expensive cameras to make this kind of shot.
A camera with manual override, an 80m- 200 mm lens is quite adequate although you will need a tripod and a camera capable of taking long exposures.
So why give it a try, there are many sites on the net that will give you new moon rise and set times depending on where you live.
The just after sunset try looking to the west the Moon will be just above the horizon. Set up your camera and start shooting 20 minutes after sunset.
Take one shot ever two minutes for around 40 minutes. Use a wide angel view of the horizon.
Open the lens to full aperture then click it back a 2 stops the speed or ISO will depend on your camera anywhere between 100 to 400 ISO is ok.
You will need to experiment with this setting depending on the time of day and the light conditions.
This shot was taken 24 hours after new moon an earlier image would have better but we don’t have control on the clouds. Next month I will try for a better image, weather permitting.
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