As hunters, we all know how important it is to get to the woods "on-time." For most of us, that means being in your stand before daylight. Arriving in the woods late could, and in some cases probably already has, cost you a trophy buck.
But if you're one, like me, who considers a camera and tripod just as important as any firearm, entering the woods long before the sun peaks over the horizon is a two-fold decision that goes beyond hunting strategies.
The fact is, the moon itself, or the moonlit woods under a clear sky, present some of the most picturesque settings a photographer will ever find. However, photographing this striking setting with any clarity can be tricky. If you don't know what you're doing, there's a good chance your beautiful moon shot could turn into an overexposed blob on a black background.
Here are a few very important, very simple tips for capturing the best moonlight photos. Write them down in you're hunting or photography journal, that way you'll have them for quick reference when the time is right:
- Keep your exposure under 30 seconds when shooting the moon and/or nighttime sky. This will keep the stars from becoming streaky. On most occasions this will not be a problem, as a few second exposure will do, but it all depends on the amount of light available. If your exposure is too long and allows too much light in, your photo will end up bright looking like a daytime photo. Of course, this could be the effect that you are after. Here is an example of a nightime shot where the exposure is too long:
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- White Balance - Adjusting your white balance can help you adjust your overexposure by adding blue into your photo to give it a nightime feel. Shoot your photos in RAW, that way you can load them into Photoshop and adjust the White Balance there.
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- If you want to capture the moon full-frame, you'll need a lens of at least 300mm. However, be aware that even at 300mm, the moon will not fill much of the frame. Though, you can always crop and blow-up if you have a good DSLR. And because even the slightest camera shake will cause blurry photos due to the low light, you'll definitely need a tripod. I like to carry a small travel tripod with me to the stand. It's lightweight, compact and adjustable; comes in handy in situations like these. Here's an example of a moon shot at 300mm:
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- Auto focusing on the moon or your moonlit surroundings can be almost impossible. Fortunately, most moonlight scenes are at distances that allow focus at infinity. Infinity focus isn’t as easy as it sounds when the infinity point of your zoom lens changes with the focal length, but it enables a simple focus trick: Compose your shot on a tripod just like you want it. Then, without changing the focal length, remove the camera from the tripod and autofocus on the moon. When focus is locked, change to manual focus, return the camera to the tripod, and take your shot.
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- Need a starting point? Let's say you have a 300mm lens. For shooting a full moon, try this: start with ISO 100 (on a tripod), 1/125sec, and then bracket f/11, one stop on each side. If you're shooting moonlit surroundings instead of the moon itself, keep the moon to your back and adjust for a little less light. This way, everything will be front-lit. Expect to do some work during Raw processing or Levels or Curves tweaking in Photoshop.
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- Black and White Photos - Moonlight photography offers the perfect opportunity to play around with black and white photos. More often than not, I hate taking the color out of my shots in favor of black and white. However, because (unless it is twilight or you are overexposing to capture more color) moon photos are already colorless, you don't lose anything. In fact, playing around with B&W settings in your imaging program can really darken the blacks and enhance the glowing whites.
ToolsNow that you know some of the basics of moonlight photography, the only thing that stands in your way is setting up in the right spot, at the right time. These tools will help:
- Moon Exposure Calculator- If you want to do some research before hand, the Moon Exposure Calculator lets you input your environmental and camera settings, then produces a suggested shutter speed. You can get into this as much as you want really.
- Use the Arkansas Moon Calendar to determine when the moon will be in the phase you wish to shoot.
- Know your directions - The moon rises from the east and sets in the west, just as the sun. So in an early morning situation, you'll want to choose the stand or ground blind that offers a clear view of the west where the moon will be setting.
- Check the current Arkansas weather - Even if everything else is perfect, cloud cover can ruin an otherwise ideal moon setting. However, in certain situations, cloud cover can also enhance a nighttime moon shot, so don't totally rule it out even if the skies aren't clear.
