The biggest and brightest supermoon of 2016 is just hours away. If you want to immortalize this memorable moment, NASA professor Bill Ingalls will share some tips with you.
A supermoon is a phenomenon when the full moon is at perigee in its 27-day orbit around the Earth. The November 14 supermoon will appear 14% larger than usual and will be the closest full moon to Earth in 68 years.
Bill Ingalls, a NASA astrophysicist for over 20 years, shared some tips to help “hunt” the Super Moon in a recent statement.
1. Preserve the landscape
Make sure the photo doesn’t just include the Moon, but also an outdoor scene, whether it’s a building or an object on the ground. Otherwise, Ingalls said, the photo would be nothing special. This also means that you should also photograph the Moon when it is close to the horizon, because then the Moon will appear larger than usual.
The supermoon rises above the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC in this 2011 photo by Bill Ingalls.
2. Study the site carefully
Use all the tools you can to get the perfect shot, including Google Maps or a compass to locate where you can best see the Moon and the landscape. It also means learning to read maps and determining where the Moon is above the horizon based on where you are. If possible, go somewhere away from city lights to minimize light pollution. And do not forget that the time, the location must be very precise.
3. Be creative
Even if you are not near a big landmark or cannot capture a particular scene, you can still make the photo memorable. Ingalls said he traveled to Shenandoah National Park in 2009 to photograph Comet Lulin and was initially concerned about his photo because he was not wearing a telescope like other photographers. Instead, Ingalls used a red flashlight to illuminate the forest when he photographed the Moon with a long focal length lens between the branches. In the end, National Geographic chose it as one of the 10 best astrophotography of the year.
4. Bring a human image
The November 14 supermoon is a great opportunity to introduce kids to astronomy. In Vietnam, the Moon peaked in the full moon phase at 8:52 p.m. on Nov. 14, 2016. If possible, involve children in your Moon shot, Ingalls says. “There are a lot of great pictures of people holding the moon in their hands or something. You can be creative that way.
Supermoon over Auckland, New Zealand in August 2014 – Simon Runting/REX.
5. Use the DSLR technique
The next thing to remember is that natural light white balance is the best way to capture the Moon, according to Ingalls. After all, the Moon reflects light from the Sun. If you are going to use a long focal length lens, “remember that the Moon is a moving object. There has to be a balance between getting the exposure right and remembering that the shutter speed has to be much faster.
6. Use a smartphone
Without an SLR, Ingalls says you can still get some interesting panoramas. It suggests that you can go to an urban area with a lighted foreground. Once there, “Tap the screen, hold your finger on the object (in this case, the Moon) to lock focus. Then slide your finger up and down to adjust the brightness.
ISS silhouette on the Moon – Kris Smith, according to APOD.
Hanh Tran – bUp – A
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