Tag: Cathedral Rock

Moon and Planets in the Evening Sky

On Monday and Tuesday (28-29 October 2019) the thin crescent Moon passed near the planets Venus and Mercury in the evening twilight sky. A check of The Photographers Ephemeris indicated that I could set up at Little Horse trailhead near Sedona and capture the thin crescent as it slipped between the spires of Cathedral Rock. Venus and Mercury would also be visible.

Ah, if only is was as easy as that. I never was able to see the crescent Moon.

A very thin crescent Moon sets behind Cathedral Rock.
A very thin crescent Moon sets behind Cathedral Rock.

But, wait! A closer inspection of the images shows that I did capture the crescent Moon. It was only 1% illuminated in a bright twilight sky. If you look carefully at the image and above the two people, you can just barely see a very thin crescent in the gap.

Venus and Mercury set behind Cathedral Rock.
Venus and Mercury set behind Cathedral Rock.

The next evening the Moon was 4% illuminated and higher in the sky making it an easy target. Venus and Mercury were below and the star Antares was to the left. Fitting all four objects in the image was the goal and I was successful. The only issue was the strong winds which resulted in some camera movement during the image capture.

Moon, Venus, Mercury, and Antares in evening twilight.
Moon, Venus, Mercury, and Antares in evening twilight.

I used Stellarium to determine how the Moon, planets, and stars would look at that time of the evening. I also used the Ocular plugin to show the field of view (FOV) of various lenses and focal lengths so that I could know, in advance, which lens would capture the whole scene. Very helpful!

Moonrise and Cathedral Rock — August 2019

Here are two views of the Moon rising behind Cathedral Rock in Sedona. The first image shows the Moon ~95% illuminated and was taken from the meadows in Crescent Moon Picnic Area. I like how the Moon lies behind the dark pillar located in the gap between two sunlit pillars.

The second image was taken on the following night with the Moon ~98% illuminated and was captured from Pyramid Trail, a location about twice as far away as the first image. This doubling of distance results in the Moon appearing larger relative to Cathedral Rock—a nice illusion.

Moon rise behind Cathedral Rock (12 August 2019).
Moon rise behind Cathedral Rock (12 August 2019).
Moon rise behind Cathedral Rock (13 August 2019).
Moon rise behind Cathedral Rock (13 August 2019).

The Photographers Ephemeris was used to determine the timing and location to get the Moon rising in the gaps.

 

Two Moons

Here are two images that are about the Moon.

Moonrise behind Cathedral Rock.
Moonrise behind Cathedral Rock.

The first image shows the full Moon rising behind Cathedral Rock. The day before Full Moon is a preferred time to shoot this type of image since the setting sun still throws a bit of light on the rock. Didn’t work this time as there were clouds in the west blocking the sun. Last month it was the other way around: clouds blocked the Moon but the Sun cast beautiful light on the rocks. Still, I like the way the Moon is framed between the pillars of Cathedral Rock.

First Quarter Moon illuminates Grand Canyon.
First Quarter Moon illuminates Grand Canyon.

The second image does not show the Moon but rather the light it casts upon the Grand Canyon. The Sun had set and fading sunset colors were still visible low on the western horizon. The first-quarter Moon was throwing plenty of light into Grand Canyon and casting long shadows. This was a long exposure of 30 seconds (f/4, ISO 800, 50mm) so one of the trees in the foreground shows a bit of thrashing from the evening breezes at Timp Point on the west side of the Kaibab Plateau.

Moonrise and Cathedral Rock — June 2018

Another month and another moon rise behind Cathedral Rock. This was an easy setup with the location in Crescent Moon Picnic Area in Sedona. The day before the full moon resulted in this image taken from the meadows near the entrance to Crescent Moon. There were about a half-dozen “moon chasers” there to photograph the moon rise—and there were many others who just happened to be in the right place at the right time to enjoy the event.

Moonrise behind Cathedral Rock.
Moonrise behind Cathedral Rock.

The previous night (i.e., two nights before the full moon) presented another chance to capture the rising moon with Oak Creek in the foreground. This one was harder because a better position was more to the right (i.e., south) but there was nowhere to go because of trees and heavy brush. Still, I’m happy with the result.

Moon rise behind Cathedral Rock with Oak Creek.
Moon rise behind Cathedral Rock with Oak Creek.

Both nights I was testing a recently purchased lens (Nikon AF-P 70-300mm). So far, the results have been pretty good.

Bright Objects in the Night Sky — May 2018

The past two weeks have offered several opportunities for photographing the moon in the evening sky. Beginning on May 16, we had a crescent Moon with just 3.7% of the disk illuminated by the sun. During the months of May, June, and July, the thin crescent Moon lines up with the long axis of Upper Lake Mary. This results in nice reflections of the Moon on the waters of the lake—but only if there is little or no wind. The first two images were taken in the early evening with some reflections over portions of the lake. The image also shows the unlit part of the crescent Moon illuminated with Earthshine, also known as Da Vinci Glow. Yes, that Leonardo Da Vinci. Quite an amazing bit of scientific deduction on his part.

A thin crescent Moon above Lake Mary.
A thin crescent Moon above Lake Mary.
Crescent Moon with reflections on Lake Mary.
Crescent Moon with reflections on Lake Mary.

The following evening the Moon was located near the planet Venus. Capturing both of these objects and getting reflections in the water was a bit more difficult as they were higher in the sky.

Moon and Venus above Lake Mary.
Moon and Venus above Lake Mary.

Next up was the day-before-the-full-Moon in Sedona. Using The Photographers Ephemeris it’s not very difficult to determine at what time and in which location to find the Moon rising between the spires of Cathedral Rock. I’ve done this shot before but never get tired of traveling to Sedona to see it happen again. Not surprisingly, I often run into other photographers and friends with the same idea so it becomes a bit of a social gathering as well.

Moonrise above Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
Moonrise above Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
Moonrise above Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
Moonrise above Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
A couple watches the Moon rise from Cathedral Rock.
A couple watches the Moon rise from Cathedral Rock.

The first image shows the Moon having just risen into the left gap. The second image is a crop and closeup of the Moon. The third was taken several minutes later after adjusting my position a bit to capture the Moon in the middle gap. A couple can be seen in silhouette gazing at the rising Moon.

The International Space Station cross the sky.
The International Space Station cross the sky.
The ISS and OA-9 Cygnus move across the sky.
The ISS and OA-9 Cygnus move across the sky.

Finally, there was a transit of the International Space Station (ISS) and the resupply ship OA-9 Cygnus—both moving near the North Star. The transit is a 5-minute sequence of images while the star trails is a 30-minute sequence. The second image shows the bright ISS with the faint OA-9 Cygnus following behind. A day later, the OA-9 docked with the ISS.