The Sturgeon Full Moon

 The so called "sturgeon" full moon occurred on August 9th. I decided to trudge up into the local hills with my DSLR and 300mm lens and see what I could see. It turned out to be a beautiful evening, and well worth the effort. In case you were wondering, the sturgeon moon got it's name because it coincides with the time of year when sturgeon fish were most abundant and were being harvested in the Great Lakes and other major lakes. 

 

For moon photos, it's nice to have something interesting in the foreground. A photo of the moon in the sky is OK, but something in the foreground makes it even better. I'm always racking my brain for composition ideas. The moon rises in the east, and you can check websites for the exact compass heading in your area, so that will help you with composition. I had scouted the trail a few days before the full moon to pick out possible photo locations.

 

If memory serves, moonrise was at about 7:30pm. The mistake I made tonight was to be in position about 10-15 minutes ahead of the scheduled moonrise. Most often, there is haze on the horizon, so thinking you will see (and can photograph) the moon the moment it rises above the horizon is often incorrect. It's obscured by the haze, and probably won't be visible until about 15 minutes after the scheduled moonrise. That means I had about 1/2 hour to twiddle my thumbs on this particular evening, waiting to see the moon.

 

One final tip, and it's an important one. Usually the night before the full moon (called the "photographer's moon") is when you want to be out taking pictures. Moonrise is usually too late (well after sunset) on the actual full moon night, so you can't get good foreground shots because it's too dark. 

Something about old gnarled trees in front of a full moon appeals to me. The b&w version is below, which gives it an even creepier vibe.

 

A nice bonus is that sunset is happening about the same time the moon is rising, so it can be very productive for photographers.

 

Basque shepards roamed these hills with herds of sheep back in the 1800s.

 

 

Hiking back to my car in near darkness, I came across this huge gopher snake. Initially I thought it was a tree branch lying on the trail, but then the branch moved! This trail is heavily used by both hikers and bikers, and Mr. Snake was taking his sweet time crossing the trail. I was worried he might get run over by a biker (see all the bike tracks?) so I decided to hang around and direct traffic just in case. The snake safely made it to the other side of the trail and I went on my way.

 

Thanks for stopping by!!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.