Moon

[seanlim]

Hi guys...got another noob qn. here
erm may i know the setting which you all use to take the moon?
i read somewhere that
use 1/40s F 11-18 and lowest iso
but my moon turns "white" with a sharp outline
if i increase my aperture,the detail of the moon shows yet all that surrounds it is black..
so i would like to know what settings could be used to achieve crisp detail and nice surroundings(clouds)..time abt 11.00pm:dunno:

 

[Clockunder]

I don't think you can get the moon properly exposed with the clouds properly exposed at the same time. This is because the dynamic tonal range of the scene is simply too wide to be captured.

 

[Clockunder]

For your reference : http://www.weather-photography.com/techniques.php?cat=miscellaneous&page=doubleexp

Exposure
Typically, you will need exposure times for the landscape at between 1 and 4 minutes, f/2.8, using 100 ISO film. The exposure times for this differ so widely that I can't possibly give a correct value; it depends a.o. on lunar altitude, cloudiness, light pollution, lunar phase, time of year and day (night), albedo of landscape, etc. So, use your camera's exposure meter, and expose 1/2 to 1 stop longer than indicated to account for the film reciprocity error. Make sure you also bracket your exposures (one stop less and another with one stop more, to experiment).

It is better to choose a higher aperture such as f/5.6 and f/8 combined with a longer exposure time, so your photo will be sharper and show less vignetting.

For the moon, the exposure differs too, and this is even more difficult to determine because of the various phases of the moon. The brightness of the moon is not just the percentage of disk illuminated! Due to the dry-heiligenschein effect and retro-reflective minerals on the lunar surface, the full moon is much more bright than one would think based on phase angle. So, I'm giving you a formula to determine the proper exposure to within 1/2 stop or so. This formula worked well for me.
t = F2 / (K * ISO)
where:

• t is the shutter speed in seconds
• K is a constant: 20for crescent moon 40for first/last quarter moon 100for gibbous moon 200for full moon
• F is the focal ratio (e.g. F=16 for f/16)
• ISO is your film speed, e.g. 100.

So, say you are using a 1000mm lens on f/11 with 100 speed film for the moon, and the moon is gibbous. Then t = 112 / (100*100) or t = 121/10000 sec, or about 1/80 sec

 

[seanlim]

woa...thanks good site..
anw i got another 3 qns.
first,"
take a photo (the first frame of the series);
retension the rewind lever, so that the film is tightly rolled, and hold on to it so it doesn't roll back;
while holding the rewind lever, push in the winder-unlock pin (this is used to unlock the film winding cylinder when you want to rewind the film);
While holding the rewind lever and pressing the rewind unlock pin simultaneously, wind the film as you normally would. However, you will notice that the film does not transport to the next frame, since you have the transport mechanism unlocked. "
this is film so what to do if digital? PS?
next now my kit only have a max of 55mm..so the moon is really small-cropping = serious loss of quality-jagged edges
may i know what zoom could i get a big nice moon?
lastly,my Dslr only have a max exposure of 30s....how?...30s and 4 mins quite big diff lei....:what:

 

[Clockunder]

woa...thanks good site..
anw i got another 3 qns.
first,"
take a photo (the first frame of the series);
retension the rewind lever, so that the film is tightly rolled, and hold on to it so it doesn't roll back;
while holding the rewind lever, push in the winder-unlock pin (this is used to unlock the film winding cylinder when you want to rewind the film);
While holding the rewind lever and pressing the rewind unlock pin simultaneously, wind the film as you normally would. However, you will notice that the film does not transport to the next frame, since you have the transport mechanism unlocked. "
this is film so what to do if digital? PS?
next now my kit only have a max of 55mm..so the moon is really small-cropping = serious loss of quality-jagged edges
may i know what zoom could i get a big nice moon?
lastly,my Dslr only have a max exposure of 30s....how?...30s and 4 mins quite big diff lei....:what:

I've previously searched on how to shoot the moon and found many answers to similar questions.

Try to goggle for "moon exposure" and you'll get your answers.

I'm still a newbie too. Brief answers :.

Yes, use Photoshop to combine the moon and other scene.

You really need long zoom to take photos with the moon filling most of the frame. 55mm kit lens is definitely not enough.

I think your DSLR should have a bulb mode which enables you to expose more than 30 secs. Use a remote for long exposure.

See this : http://dpfwiw.com/moon.htm

 

[JediForce4ever]

woa...thanks good site..
anw i got another 3 qns.
first,"
take a photo (the first frame of the series);
retension the rewind lever, so that the film is tightly rolled, and hold on to it so it doesn't roll back;
while holding the rewind lever, push in the winder-unlock pin (this is used to unlock the film winding cylinder when you want to rewind the film);
While holding the rewind lever and pressing the rewind unlock pin simultaneously, wind the film as you normally would. However, you will notice that the film does not transport to the next frame, since you have the transport mechanism unlocked. "
this is film so what to do if digital? PS?
next now my kit only have a max of 55mm..so the moon is really small-cropping = serious loss of quality-jagged edges
may i know what zoom could i get a big nice moon?
lastly,my Dslr only have a max exposure of 30s....how?...30s and 4 mins quite big diff lei....:what:

you want nice big moon, can go to Singapore Science Centre and go borrow their big telescope.:thumbsup:

 

[Heartshape]

Bro, the answer is quite simple actually. Instead of shooting the moon near midnight, shoot it in the late evenings when the sky is still a medium dark blue. Because the brightness of the sky and moon is not too far apart, not only will you have a more proportionately balanced exposure, your shot will looked coloured instead of B&W.

About the long shutter speed of 4 mins. The B setting on your shutter allows you to hold the shutter open like forever. 4 mins ah. Sup sup water la.

 

[animian2002]

I know you guys are talking about how to use SLR to shoot the moon and i can't help but wonder, does that mean other than SLR,there is no way the normal digital camera can shoot a nice picture of the moon. :dunno:

So i took my Canon A620 and went out to take the moon just now and this is what i got

:embrass:

and Indeed i can't take a good picture of the moon. :cry:

 

[Horsba85]

i think you'll need around 400mm, however, i know of some guy who filled the entire frame with the moon using a 2x teleconverter as well as a 800mm lens. as for shooting the moon, shouldn't it be similar to shooting the sun, as the image of the moon is due to the reflection from the sun?

 

[Clockunder]

This is the size of the moon relative to my 4:3 frame on my Nikon Coolpix 5700's 2/3" size (8.8mm x 6.6mm) CCD sensor. The DSLR's sensor frame is much bigger at 25.1mm x 16.7mm (APS size) and so the moon would appear much smaller in the frame if shot at the same focal length as the 5700.

Actual focal length was 72mm and magnified by 4x digital zoom (to have the image large in the frame).
35mm equivalent focal length = 285mm
35mm equivalent focal length taking into account 4x digital zoom = 1140mm

Taking into account the 1.4x-1.6x crop factor in DSLR, then you would need 712mm-814mm zoom to have a similar size on the frame (not taking into account the difference in aspect ratio 3:2 vs 4:3).

In black and white :

ImageDescription -
Make - NIKON
Model - E5700
Orientation - Top left
XResolution - 300
YResolution - 300
ResolutionUnit - Inch
Software - E5700v1.1
DateTime - 2005:09:19 04:50:52
YCbCrPositioning - Co-Sited
ExifOffset - 284
ExposureTime - 1/125 seconds
FNumber - 7.40
ExposureProgram - Manual control
ISOSpeedRatings - 100
ExifVersion - 0220
DateTimeOriginal - 2005:09:19 04:50:52
DateTimeDigitized - 2005:09:19 04:50:52
ComponentsConfiguration - YCbCr
CompressedBitsPerPixel - 3 (bits/pixel)
ExposureBiasValue - 0.00
MaxApertureValue - F 2.83
MeteringMode - Spot
LightSource - Auto
Flash - Not fired, compulsory flash mode
FocalLength - 284.80 mm
UserComment -
FlashPixVersion - 0100
ColorSpace - sRGB
ExifImageWidth - 2560
ExifImageHeight - 1920
InteroperabilityOffset - 1026
FileSource - DSC - Digital still camera
SceneType - A directly photographed image
CustomRendered - Normal process
ExposureMode - Manual
WhiteBalance - Auto
DigitalZoomRatio - 4.00 x
FocalLengthIn35mmFilm - 280 mm
SceneCaptureType - Standard
GainControl - None
Contrast - Normal
Saturation - High
Sharpness - Hard
SubjectDistanceRange - Unknown

Maker Note (Vendor): -
Data version - 2 (512)
ISO Setting - 0
Color Mode - COLOR
Image Quality - FINE
White Balance - AUTO
Image Sharpening - HIGH
Focus Mode - AF-S
Flash Setting -
Unknown - 8.83
ISO Selection - MANUAL
Image Adjustment - NORMAL
Auxiliary Lens - OFF
Manual Focus Distance - 1.00/0.00
Digital Zoom - 4.00 x
AF Focus Position - Center
Scene Mode -
Saturation Adjustment - 1
Noise Reduction - OFF

 

[rebbot]

Is this what you are trying to acheive but to expose the clouds, you did have do multiple exposures and combine them.

A quick one using spot metering.

 

[Clockunder]

Is this what you are trying to acheive but to expose the clouds, you did have do multiple exposures and combine them.

A quick one using spot metering.

What camera and lens did you use to capture such great details of the moon?

 

[CYRN]

If you want to shoot the moon with the clouds without multiple exposure... you gotta shoot early just as the sun rises or set. You'll get blue sky tho.

 

[rebbot]

What camera and lens did you use to capture such great details of the moon?

If I am not wrong, I used the S3 Pro and it was shot at 400mm. :think:

 

[schon]

I know you guys are talking about how to use SLR to shoot the moon and i can't help but wonder, does that mean other than SLR,there is no way the normal digital camera can shoot a nice picture of the moon. :dunno:

So i took my Canon A620 and went out to take the moon just now and this is what i got

:embrass:

and Indeed i can't take a good picture of the moon. :cry:

you can.

switch spot metering on, meter off the moon and show us what you get.

 

[Clockunder]

you can.

switch spot metering on, meter off the moon and show us what you get.

I think the building and clouds will become almost pitch dark if the moon is properly exposed.

 

[Clockunder]

If I am not wrong, I used the S3 Pro and it was shot at 400mm. :think:

I doubt 400mm can capture so much details. Looks like much longer zoom because someone in another thread used stacked teleconverters 1.4x + 2x + 300mm lens also couldn't capture so much details. :think:

http://forums.clubsnap.org/showthread.php?t=165753

 

[rebbot]

I doubt 400mm can capture so much details. Looks like much longer zoom because someone in another thread used stacked teleconverters 1.4x + 2x + 300mm lens also couldn't capture so much details. :think:

http://forums.clubsnap.org/showthread.php?t=165753

well it is. I just checked the exif info. PM me if you wanna have a go at the lens.

Cheers!

 

[schon]

I think the building and clouds will become almost pitch dark if the moon is properly exposed.

it will.

he wants a picture of the moon, doesn't he?

if he desires both, first meter off the buildings like the one above, snap a shot, then meter off the moon, and snap another. lastly, combine them together in ps as a composite photo.

 

[gooseberry]

A simple to remember rule for taking photos of the moon is the 11, 8, 5.6 rule. For a proper exposure of a full moon is f/11 at one over the ISO setting. For pictures of a half moon, use the same shutter speed at f/8, and for a quarter moon, use the same shutter speed at f/5.6.