It's good to be flexible when you're planning a photoshoot. Conditions change, you're not sure how to capture a proper exposure, unfavorable weather happens, equipment fails, and other circumstances pop up that derail your plans. Thankfully, on this evening, my equipment didn't fail, but the other 3 happened and I had to change my plans!
The evening started out with the intention of viewing and photographing the SpaceX rocket launch for the first time. We decided we would view it from the beach. The weather was perfect, besides it being a bit chilly and not being properly dressed for the cold temps (58 degrees is cold to us Floridians).
The skies were mostly clear and we were excited to see the launch at 7:04 PM. It would be dark by that time which would give us a great view of the light from the rocket.
We arrived at the beach around 6 PM to give us time to set up. We brought our beach blanket, a tripod, and the camera gear we’d need for a long exposure. I took several test shots and pointed my camera in the general direction of where the launch would be viewable. It was my first time attempting to photograph a rocket launch, so I really wasn’t too sure what camera settings to use. I had no idea how long it would be visible to us, but I used my best guess at settings and felt ready. I set the shutter speed to 10 seconds, ISO 2000, and aperture of f/4.5. My test shots looked good. I was ready!
We checked the SpaceX website after we were all set up and saw that it was still a go for that time! We were ready! Then, just about 15 minutes before launch time, the time was changed to 9:04 PM. We were cold and decided we were not going to stay for another 2 hours and figured we’d try to view it from closer to home where we could grab our warmer jackets.
But, just as our disappointment set in and we were about to pack up and go home, I saw a glow on the horizon. It was a dark orange glow and realized it was the moon about to rise! I redirected my camera towards the horizon and created several long exposures of the moon rising.
The full moon was the previous evening, but the moon on this night was still 99% full and it was just beautiful to watch it rise. The horizon was cloud covered but we could see the warm glow of the moonlight outlining the clouds. It was a spectacular sight!
While the camera's shutter is open, all moved is recorded. The long exposures blurred the moving clouds and water giving these photographs a soft look to them.
Exposure settings: manual mode, f/6.3, 25 seconds, ISO 2500
Exposure settings: manual mode, f/10, 15 seconds, ISO 800
Exposure settings: manual mode, f/6.3, 4 seconds, ISO 800
Notice the exposure settings in this photo above. The moon was higher above the clouds and provided more light and I was able to use a faster shutter speed. We were also getting ready to leave, so I wanted a faster shutter and also a larger aperture so I didn't have to wait so long for it to process in my camera!
It was getting colder and I kept saying we needed to go home, but it was so hard to leave. Each minute we were there as the moon rose higher in the sky, the sky was even more mesmerizing. But, I did have to call it and head home so we could set up the camera closer to home and attempt once again to photograph the launch.
The photo below is actually a composite of the 3 photographs I captured of the launch! As I said earlier, I wasn't sure what settings to use because I had never seen a launch previously and had no clue how long to set my shutter speed. The photos were stacked during post processing using Photoshop HDR merge. The gaps in the light from the rocket is the time in-between exposures. Next time I will use a 30 second exposure, or the Bulb setting, for my shutter speed.
Exposure settings for each photograph: manual mode, f/18, 10 seconds, ISO 1600
I learned a lot this evening and I'm more prepared now for the next time we get the opportunity to view another SpaceX launch!
If you are interested in learning more about photography and taking private lesson with me, please contact me!
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