Whenever there's a rare full moon, ambitious photographers -- both amateur and professional -- figure out the best place to locate their tripods. They look up the moonrise timing, they calculate just when landmark buildings or bare trees will be silhouetted against the moon, they check weather reports, and they hope for luck with clouds. They know which of their cameras and lenses will get the best photos, and they work out the most effective settings to use. They take amazing photos many of which are featured in news reports the next day.
I'm not like this. I don't know an F-stop from a traffic stop (says my very expert husband the dedicated wildlife photographer). I do everything on the automatic setting. However, I do love looking at the moon. Yesterday evening, I shuffled outside in my house-shoes to have a look at the full moon -- the Halloween blue moon, which won't happen again until 2039. It was nice, though of course not really different from another full moon, it's the timing that's special. I remembered my iPhone, and took a few pathetic photos. Here's the best of the lot:
Also notable: at the time when I was outside, the street was completely quiet. Not a soul in sight. On any other year, Halloween night brings out dozens of trick-or-treaters. I would have seen large groups of costumed kids and adults, usually carrying flashlights or glow-sticks, rushing from house to house to get candy. Often there will also be a car or two dropping off kids in our neighborhood because we are the best! One or two neighbors on the block had lit-up candy chutes ready -- but I didn't see anyone there. We didn't turn our light on or have any candy ready at all -- other years we've given candy to 100-250 trick-or-treaters. Very sad!
Blog post © 2020 mae sander.
Beautiful
ReplyDeleteI'm with you, I use automatic settings and usually I use my phone as my camera. Pretty photos of the moon. I have one of the moon rising over the house and our fire in the photo too. We sat outside and enjoyed the firepit and dark skies.
ReplyDeleteIt was overcast all night last night and I couldn't get a photo of the moon. I was hoping the clouds would break, but no such luck. I have to appreciate your photo, instead.
ReplyDeleteLike you, there were no children out and about this year. Of course, since it snowed, the kids would have to bundle under their costumes, anyway.
What is sad is our zoo and botanical gardens both have fundraisers on Halloween, where families pay big bucks to visit the zoo and the botanical gardens after dark. Restaurants supply food and drink in which the zoo and botanical gardens get to keep a share and charge big bucks for space, too. UNICEF hasn't offered boxes this year, either. We often forget how many people and groups have been affected by this virus.
That's a beautiful shot of the moon!
ReplyDeleteI do what I can with my old cell phone's automatic settings.
ReplyDeleteYour photo is beautiful!
I like your moon. I have no luck with mon shots, whether automatic or playing with F stops.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad that the kids could not come out. My cousin had the same experience in New Jersey. Your photo is far from pathetic!
ReplyDeleteI like that pic - the moon is beautiful and the empty street really has something spooky.
ReplyDeleteHere it was cloudy, or... is still.
I was also hoping to get a photo of the moon, but alas it was overcast and the moon couldn't be seen at all!
ReplyDeleteI didn't even take a photo the day before the blue moon, when it was quite visible, as I was waiting for the right day :)
J'aime cette photo et comme vous je déplore les rues désertes que nous impose ce temps de pandémie. J'espère que cette semaine sera pour vous et pour le monde annonciatrice de bonne nouvelle.
ReplyDeleteWell Done for this shot - I never even saw it - too cloudy! As we live in apartment now we haven't had children at our door for quite while. In our old house we used to get the same children, slightly more grown up each year! Hugs, Chrisx
ReplyDelete