The Moon's Fiery Glow: An Astrophotographer's Tale of Smoke and Celestial Beauty
Last night, while taking the dog out, I was met with a truly breathtaking sight: the moon, not its usual silvery self, but glowing a deep, fiery orange. It was a moment that demanded to be captured, so I rushed back inside to grab my camera.
What you see here is the result of dedicated effort, a stack of 10 individual shots meticulously processed to bring out the moon's unusual radiance. The conditions, while leading to this spectacular color, also presented a unique challenge.
The Gear and the Shot
My trusty OM-3 camera, paired with the M.Zuiko 100-400 v2 lens, was the tool of choice for this mission. The settings for this capture were:
- ISO: 2000
- Aperture: f/6.3
- Shutter Speed: 1/40
These settings were chosen to balance capturing enough light for the dimmer, smoky atmosphere while maintaining detail in the moon itself. Handheld shooting was employed, requiring a steady hand and a keen eye for composition.
The Processing Magic
Once the shots were in hand, the real work began in post-processing. The initial steps involved denoising in Adobe Lightroom to clean up any grain introduced by the higher ISO. A slight tone curve adjustment was then applied to enhance the contrast and bring out the subtle variations in the moon's color. Finally, the 10 individual frames were stacked in Photoshop to create the final, detailed image you see below.
This phenomenon, the moon appearing orange, is often attributed to atmospheric conditions, particularly the presence of smoke from wildfires or pollution. These particles scatter blue light more effectively, allowing the longer, redder wavelengths to dominate our view, giving the moon its temporary, ethereal glow.
It's a beautiful reminder of how our planet's atmosphere can dramatically influence our view of the cosmos, turning an ordinary night into an extraordinary visual experience.
