Much Ado about the Moon: Photographic Journal of the Multi-Faceted Moon

Before we delve into my photographic fascination of the moon let me first regale you with the astounding, sometimes dumbfounding example of the Moon's "Lunar Lunacy Effect" that though not scientifically true, it about holds truer than true for me today.

Like an unexplained horror mystery, I was at countless times were either cut-off for no good reason, or I've witnessed erratic, shake-my-head, recklessly-stupid-kind-of-actions, from uncomfortably, a few many drivers on the road today. Where one almost resulted to a catastrophic accident involving a school bus and two cars. So many close calls that makes you question why there are so many lunatic douchebags-es who clearly have no business being out, are out there today - all at the same time! Then en route to home this afternoon, I happened to glance at the blue -  calm before the storm - sky,  and there, up on the horizon, the almost full moon was glaring at me like it was saying. "Yep. I'm the reason for all these lunatics on the road!" 

Strange but true. Here's that culprit today. It was the Day moon!

The Day Moon on Waxing Gibbous three days before total Full Moon on Sunday, January 24, 2016. 

Hello Moon, Goodnight Moon: How to Photograph the Moon

We got home relatively late Sunday night but what a sweet treat to see the clear, dark sky filled with stars which were glittering like diamonds! The North sky is so clear that you can make out several visible constellations! I never thought of the moon which was nowhere in sight and quickly dismissed the possibility of seeing it. Then I walked into my home office and this bright glow out through my window caught my eyes...

It was the moon! Half of the moon anyway. Just when I thought it was not visible that night.  It was peeking through the dark sky like it was Adele telling me, "Hello, it's me!" . Yes, I went there. It can't be helped. It was a lovely sight!  According to Moon Giant, the moon is on its first quarter phase. And due to the angle and rotation of the earth, the moon looked like it is upside down. However, it looks the opposite during the day when the moon, also called "Day moon" is visible during the day time - a scientific phenomenon that comes about due to the moon's Lunar cycle.

Photography: Wishing Upon A Perseid Meteor

Stars glowing in different colors / Photo +Maricris G 

"The Perseid meteor shower is one of the testament of how amazing the sky can be. To experience its beauty, all you need to do is look up."

I've never witnessed any type of meteor shower before. I wasn't even sure I would see one. But pure luck would have it, this night was my lucky night. The Perseid meteor shower is one of the testament of how amazing the sky can be. To experience it, all you need to do is look up.

Photography: Howling at the Blue Moon That was Never Blue

The once-in-a-Blue-Moon Moon 2015 / Photo +Maricris G 

This year was the year for the "once-in-a-blue-moon" moon to yet again make its rare appearance. Everyone who saw it will agree that it was spectacular seeing how big and bright it was. But, of course contrary to popular belief, it wasn't blue! Instead, it was bright yellow as it should be! It was also pretty close to the horizon, it almost seem like anyone can reach it.

Photography: Wishing Upon A Star

Saturday night was the first time I've seen the sky filled with stars. Though there was too much light pollution from the city lights below, and the sky not totally clear, there was enough clearing for an attempt to capture the rich display of huge stars for the taking.

Look closer. What you see is not a blurry vision of the stars but rather of stationary stars starting to create a "trail" or "light stream". This is due from the earth rotating and shooting in very low shutter speed and wide aperture. Like a movie in slow motion, each movement is captured. If you look on the right side of this photo, you'll see the flaming red streak across the sky. Can you guess what made that trail? (Answer at the bottom of this post)

The Fascinating Day Moon

I never thought in a million years that the moon would be visible during the day. I'm sure you didn't think that either. But as it appears, the moon does appear during the day and have become one of my favorite Astrophotography subjects. Like this day moon which I photographed yesterday above the blue skies and on a very sunny day! Day Moon occurs when the moon orbits closest around the sun. It is so close that it's reflecting more light from the sun making itself highly visible even during the day. Truly a magnificent sight to behold. Don't you agree?

Photo of the Day: Full Moon and Pixie dusts

I have been trying my hands on Astrophotography and took another shot at it when I saw the full moon last night. Though this is NOT my best shot since I took it from inside the comfort of my house (you would too. Boy! It's friggin' cold outside!), through a misty window and used a different mode. This time I chose TV to manipulate the shutter speed. Though it worked, it wasn't as good as my first one. Check my first moon here. The great thing about this shot is that I captured the minuscule particles in the space not visible to the naked eye. They look like pixie dusts which to most of us, they're stars when they're visible. To see what I'm talking about, you have to look pretty close on the black space just to the left of the moon to see the faded dots. If your eyes are good you'll see the constellation shaped like a kite (Bootes Star).

This photo is taken when the stars were visible, shining brightly and skies were clear. It was a great time to photograph the stars with the full moon as backdrop.

Astrophotography: Summer Solstice Moon

Today is the only time the largest the full moon will be visibly seen in the horizon for the entire year. Astronomers calls it Perigee or "Supermoon". And yesterday, first day of Summer, is the longest day of the year. I've been captivated with Astrophotography since I captured my first full moon in California in broad daylight! A phenomenon called Day Moon, and here I go again...

The Day in Photos: Moon and Jupiter Closer Two-gether #365Photoproject

Photographed at 6:00 PM
Jupiter on the lower left side of the moon visible on the East

The Moon and Jupiter conjunction took place tonight, thanks to @wxbrad for the heads up, I was able to capture this magnificent display. An occurrence that will not take place again until 2026.