A shot of the moon with an Olympus E-3 and a fancy telescope

*igowerf* · 01-29-2008, 05:42 PM

Not my picture:
Moon tonight with E-3 & new scope: Olympus SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review

I've attempted a few shots of the moon before with my K100D, but I don't have a lens or tripod that could get me that kind of shot. Moon threads seem to be pretty regular on these forums so I figured someone else might be interested in this very impressive shot.

*dkittle* · 01-29-2008, 06:13 PM

Not meaning to hijack your thread, but shooting the moon without a tripod is definitely possible. Below is a link to a hand-held shot done with a K10D, Sigma 600mm mirror lens and a Pentax 1.7x TC (equivalent to 1500mm all combined!!). You'll notice it's fairly clear and sharp - shot at 1/500th of a second.

I usually start with f11 or f16 and use shutter speed equal to my ISO for a full moon. This shot is ~f13 with the TC, ISO 560 and 1/500th shutter. For a half moon, you'll need to expose one stop faster that this, two faster for a quarter moon.

YAM (yet another moon) on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

*igowerf* · 01-29-2008, 06:39 PM

I've gotten some nice shots handheld too, but the sharpness and detail of Olyinaz's shot is amazing.

My attempt using an FA*400mm + 1.4x-S on my K100D:
K100D + Pentax 1.4x-S + FA* 400mm

*dkittle* · 01-29-2008, 06:50 PM

Oh, very nice detail on yours! I have a Sigma 135-400mm which would give me more detail than the mirror lens, but not near as much as your FA* or that telescope :-)

*m8o* · 01-29-2008, 07:31 PM

man is that shot totally increadible when you bring it into Lightroom, crank the Saturation, Vibrance and Clarity, and Auto White balance it. The real colors of the moon just pop! thanx for posting igowerf. I really really do have to get shooting some night/moon shots myself.

*igowerf* · 01-29-2008, 08:39 PM

Originally Posted by dkittle

Oh, very nice detail on yours! I have a Sigma 135-400mm which would give me more detail than the mirror lens, but not near as much as your FA* or that telescope :-)

You should give that Sigma a try! I've found that there's much more detail to be captured when the moon ISN'T full. During a non-full moon, light hits the moon at an angle and all of the valleys and ridges really pop out.