First Moon Photo

I rented a 100mm 400mm lens this week and took this shot while on the beach
I posted it in another thread and was told it's off how would I improve this in future shots or in PP
Exif data is in photo
Thanks
John

I'm still in the learning phase of lunar photography, so keep your fingers crossed that the more knowledgeable will chime and and either confirm or correct me, but here goes.

First, is there a UV/protective filter on the lens? If so, take it off, and put it in the box for when you go to ship it out.

I'd lower the ISO some, maybe down to 200 or maybe even 100. You want to try and get to about f/8 - f/11. You shot this one at f/22, which can reduce IQ. I've never had an L lens, but most lenses will perform to their best in that range.

Keep you shutter speed up around where you have it, but no slower then 1/30th of a second.

Even at the higher shutter speeds, I use a tripod, a remote shutter, and sometimes mirror lockup. Those will reduce the chance of camera shake, which exponentially gets more noticeable with longer focal lengths.

Last thing I would do is report this in the Astronomical/Celestial section, and get advice from the gurus of the night sky.

According to the EXIF info it was f/20 which is still pretty small for aperture. Also, the exposure time is a bit fast and the ISO is quite high.

As Kirk mentioned opening the aperture and lowering the ISO will enable you to shoot this at a slower shutter speed. If you're shooting in Manual (which is not a bad idea for moon shots. You'll have to tinker with settings before you get it perfect. And if you're using a tripod, be prepared to move the angle a lot between snaps.

I'm hoping the sky clears up tonight so I can get a few decent shots of this meteor shower tonight...

Also, at 400mm it's probably best to try 1/400 second shot. I'm told (and I've tried it with my 400) that this will give you much crisper results. I know 1/400 is almost impossible at night but who knows, you might get lucky. Maybe all the way open at ISO 400 will get you close to this 1/400.

Good luck!

1/400 will be possible, as long as he exposes for the moon. Basically, the moon is reflected full sunlight, and quite bright. I have read to get shutter speed in the 1/125 - 1/250th is best.

Glad you reminded me about the meteor shower! I just have to figure out how far I need to go to get to a dark place (physically, not mentally).

KirkS518 wrote in post #14845169
(physically, not mentally).

Heh!

The moon is a giant light bulb so higher shutter speed is not an issue.....use these settings as a guide

1/160
F8
ISO 200

Depending on the brightness of the moon you may adjust your shutter speed or F stop. Use a tripod and a remote shutter release to get the sharpest image.