Eloquent Images by Gary Hart
Insight, information, and inspiration for the inquisitive nature photographer
Are you tired of eclipse photos yet?
Blood Moon, Death Valley, California
Sony a7RIII
Sony 100-400 GM
Sony 2x teleconverter
ISO 3200
f/11
2 seconds
Since everyone else seems to be doing it, I thought I’d join the party….
I always schedule my Death Valley workshop to coincide with the January (or early February) full Moon, so it was just a coincidence that North America’s first super (a full Moon that’s within 90 percent of its closest approach to Earth), blue (the second full moon of a given month), blood (a lunar eclipse: a full Moon that passes into the Earth’s shadow and is bathed in light stripped of all but its red wavelengths by Earth’s atmosphere) Moon in 150 years coincided with my workshop. But since we were already there….
I got my group up to Zabriskie Point at around 4:30, well into the eclipse but before totality. Unlike most group photo events I’ve experienced, this morning’s crowd at Zabriskie was a little subdued—I suspect due to the early hour. Compared to the solar eclipse I photographed last August, a lunar eclipse moves with the speed of a glacier. While it was underway, I was able to assist my workshop students, set up my own equipment, switch lenses and camera bodies, experiment with exposure, gawk at the spectacle, and still had plenty of time to chat, laugh, and marvel with the rest of my group.
Starting with my Sony a7RIII, Sony 100-400 f/4 GM, and Sony 2x teleconverter, I cranked my focal length all the way out to 800mm and started clicking. After a while I pulled out my Sony/Zeiss 24-70 f/4, putting it on the a7RIII and switching the telephoto setup to my a7RII. Since time wasn’t a concern, I only used one tripod, switching the two bodies back and forth as my needs dictated.
Throughout the eclipse the Moon was softened by a thin layer of cirrus clouds. This image is among my first of the morning, before the Moon reached a band of denser clouds close to the horizon. I ended up with more creative captures, but those will need to wait for another day.
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The Moon In All Shapes And Sizes
Eloquent Images by Gary Hart 
Not tired of them at all!!! 🙂 What great images you shared!
Thanks!
Hi Gary, I too am not tired of your moon images! I love them. Do keep they coming. Was wondering if you heard about the parking permits for Horsetail Falls this year. I’m heading up to Yosemite Sun, 2/11 for a couple of days. Can’t help but wonder how things will turn out. Oh well – Horsetail Falls is but one amazing reason to go to Yosemite. There are plenty more to see and photograph.
Thanks, Gail. It was great to see you in Yosemite last week. Plenty to shoot, even if Horsetail was dry.
Never!
Wonderful to see all your pics.
Thank you.