My poor attempt at shooting the moon :(

BalSanghera

BalSanghera

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Bal Sanghera
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Tried to take a shot of the moon today and well everything I read didnt seem to register :shrug:

Overexposed... Think im shooting too long. 1sec exposure. It should be like 1/200 at iso 400 and f/5.6?

DSC01531.jpg


Another problem I am having is setting my camera correctly in manual mode. I cant seem to control the shutter and appature the way I want. It seems really random at the moment.

This was a super quick attempt but if the skies are clear tomorrow I am going to keep trying until I get it right.

The shot is actually quite embarrassing but its clear I need help so feel free to put in your input.

Body: Sony A00
Lens: Minolta AF 75-300mm

EXIF data should be included.
 
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Yeah your right with the shutterspeed, it needs to be treated as a daylight object. So 1 sec is far too long.

Any more information on your problems in manual mode,?

Also if that's the full-frame its also out of focus, (out of focus moon fills the frame up nicely, then once you focus it it goes tiny!)
 
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The moon is a bouncing the sun light to earth, so treat it like the sun.

Sunny 16th rule:

ISO100, 1/16th second at f16
give it a go
 
Dave450 said:
The moon is a bouncing the sun light to earth, so treat it like the sun.

Sunny 16th rule:

ISO100, 1/16th second at f16
give it a go
Click to expand...

Dont you mean 1/100th ? Its sunny f16 rule rather than sunny 16th
 
Don't worry, this is what everyone gets the first time they try shooting the moon :LOL:

Manual mode should be much easier to control everything, are you trying to change too much at once? I'd start off setting the ISO, 400 should be fine and don't worry about changing it. Set the aperture to something like f/8, then just vary the shutter speed till you get something you like.

If you want to get the best possible results, use a remote release and mirror lockup too (y)

The good thing about shooting the moon is you have a pretty good idea of when you're next going to see it :)
 
Just had another go after looking at another thread and did:
Hand held. F/8, 1/200 sec, ISO-800, 300mm

DSC01536.jpg


:thumbsdown: I had to put the tripod away...
 
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Get back out there! :D

Drop the ISO, you don't need anything like 800, and you can see it's introducing a bit of noise.

Then drop the shutter speed. Try 1/200, but if it's too bright then go for 1/400, then 1/800 and so on. Then when you're nearly there you can make tiny little adjustments until it's spot on (y)

Chris
 
Your shutter speed is too fast Bal and narrow the aperture down to about f13-20. I think if you shoot too wide you lose detail around the edges.

I took this at 1/25th f14 a while ago. try something similar (y)
Oh and you really need to use a sturdy tripod..the moon is a long long way away :)

 
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Got work 2mw morning so going to call it a night for now and try tomorrow... Also it might help if im not hanging out the window lol
 
start at 1/320th @ F8 ISO 100, you don't need to crank the ISO any higher for the moon.

Leave aperture at F8 and just adjust the shutter speed, faster if its too bright, slower if too dull.
 
Thmaga said:
Dont you mean 1/100th ? Its sunny f16 rule rather than sunny 16th
Click to expand...

Yep thats what I meant. Been so long since I've had to write down the rule it came out so wrong. :bang: Thanks for the correction (y)
 
Keep the ISO at 100, the moon will really show up the noise, especially as you're gonna need to crop hard. Full moon at ISO100, f/5.6 will be about 1/200. Make sure you spot meter, as the camera will get very confused otherwise and the average exposure for all the dark with a spot of light will blow the moon completely. I normally aim to underexpose by about a stop even then.
 
Going to give this another try tonight if the skies are clear. Going to stick to ISO100 and begin with shutter speed of 1/320 @ f/8 and spot focus then carry on from there...

Yesterday was a bit of a mission as when I tried the first time I stuck the tripod out of my bedroom window on to flat roof and used remote shutter but problem was no live view and couldnt see the viewfinder lol

I think I will setup on my driveway I doubt the 8foot drop in height wont make much of a difference when shooting the moon lol
 
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Not in height, no, but the flat roof may be causing all sorts of problems with heat eddies that you can't see, but will affect the view of the sky as the camera sees it, so, the drive would be much better from that perspective.
 
I think everyone has posted up but when I tried the moon I started at F8 1/125th at ISO 100 and then just tweaked it a bit either way till I got the exposure right.

Experience obtained from making your mistakes is the best way to learn so you'll get it and we look forward to seeing your shots.
 
Im going to give it a proper go today, lastnight was bit rushed and if im honest it was just a excuse to get out of watching desperate housewives with the wifey lol
 
Graham00 said:
Your shutter speed is too fast Bal and narrow the aperture down to about f13-20. I think if you shoot too wide you lose detail around the edges.

I took this at 1/25th f14 a while ago. try something similar (y)
Oh and you really need to use a sturdy tripod..the moon is a long long way away :)

Click to expand...

That's bloody marvellous. :D
 
Why would you need to stop the lens down that far to get detail around the edges ? the moon is some 250 to 300,000 miles away...

I've not used the 55-250 on this for ages, but at f/5.6

IMG_9559.jpg
 
More to the point, diffraction softening cuts in at around f/8 anyway.
 
Bal, I've not read the entire thread but I see you've not posted a successful image image yet, so to keep it simple -

Set camera in P mode
Set a single central focus spot
Set spot metering
Iso auto or 100 -200
Place focus spot on moon and shoot.

Good luck, John
 
I got a half way decent shot of the moon in the other moon thread using the following -

Aperture: f/13.0
Exposure Time: 0.025 s (1/40)
ISO equiv: 100
Exposure Bias: none
Metering Mode: Spot
Exposure: aperture priority (semi-auto)
Exposure Mode: Auto Bracketing
White Balance: Manual
Flash Fired: No
Color Space: sRGB
 
Wow, a lot better than previous attempts!

For me a tiny bit underexposed now.. but a lot of that is personal, for me I'd rather it like the photo John (jgs001) posted.

Looking good though :)
 
Hi all
It seems when i asked about shooting the moon last week and posting my first photo, it seems like i have started something that just keeps growing. its great to see.
Just got a tripod so will be out tomorrow and posting a few new shots
Peter
 
jgs001 said:
Why would you need to stop the lens down that far to get detail around the edges ? the moon is some 250 to 300,000 miles away...

I've not used the 55-250 on this for ages, but at f/5.6

IMG_9559.jpg
Click to expand...

That's a great shot taken with the 450D and 55-250 lens, mine are rubbish by comparison taken with the same combo. :thumbsdown:

Do you use manual or auto focus? I also believe it is best to disengage the IS when using a tripod.

Alan.
________
DRUZE DICUSSION
 
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Alan, that was handheld, auto focus, spot metered on the moon, but you're right, disable IS when on a tripod.
 
How can i insert a photo straight from my Flickr ?
 
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AG, click on share this, click grab the HTML/BB code, click the radio button for BB code, cut and paste.
 
:LOL: that sounds like a very similar report card to the ones I used to get
 
I said I wasnt going to do another moon shot tonight but I looked out the window and couldnt help myself even though it was cloudy... Taken handheld and leaning out of the window so focus not great but im happy with this attempt. Will try again tomorrow.

Please post feedback. Exif should be there.

moon26.10.10.jpg


I wont lie, had to PS ever so slightly, just decreased the exposure a touch and increased the gamma a tad.
 
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Still looks a tad overexposed, as you are starting to lose a lot of the detail.

I'm not saying that this is a perfectly exposed shot, but it is quite a bit darker than yours, and I hope you'll agree that there is more to be seen as a result.

moon5.jpg



Generally I'm not a fan of taking shots of the full moon, preferring to take shots during other phases, where the shadows/highlights thrown up make for some interesting details.

173.jpg
 
Nice work Derek.

Mods - we seem to have 3 moon threads running at the moment. Any chance of mergeing them so the information does not get lost?
 
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