The Moon: A Beginner’s Guide to Lunar Features and Photography

By James Harrop

“A must-have for anybody interested in lunar photography. If you are a beginner, this is the only lunar observing book you will ever need.” —BBC Sky at Night Magazine

This is a practical guide aimed at beginners interested in learning about the Moon and how to image our closest satellite neighbor. The book contains the complete photographic process including equipment, settings, capture techniques, stacking and image processing, each of which is vitally important to producing a good image. The information is laid out in a visual and easy-to-understand format so that even the dark art of image processing will not seem quite so daunting. There are many high-quality color photos of the Moon to help you learn about different lunar features and a list of 100 lunar targets identified as a challenge for you to find. All the targets have been captured by the author who provides a brief description of each feature and where it is located on the lunar surface. You will be surprised to discover the fine level of lunar detail which you can see from your back garden and once you start imaging, you will realize there is more to the Moon than meets the eye.

“Although this book uses the Moon as a starting point, the wisdom it imparts can be applied to many different areas of astrophotography, including how to use planetary imaging preprocessing for crystal-clear images. Whether you’ve never picked up a camera before or you’re looking to get a few tips and tricks, this book is a great addition to your photography library.” —How it Works

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Nov 23, 2020
• ISBN: 9781526760593

Book preview

1. Imaging the Moon

The Moon is the brightest object in the night sky and it gives plenty of opportunities for you to observe or capture an impressive view of this other world with a camera. It is often believed that the best time to image the Moon is during a full moon, but this is not the case as the brightness washes out the details of craters and other features. The full Moon is a good time to familiarise yourself with the location of the lunar ‘seas’ or maria, as these darker areas are still prominent and always a useful starting point to help you navigate around the lunar surface. Some of the younger Copernican craters emanate rays and shine brightly, these craters outshine the illumination of a full moon and can also be seen on the surface.

The phases of the Moon wax and wane over a 29.5-day cycle and during this period they produce outstanding opportunities to capture features as they present themselves over the cycle. Whether you want long range widescreen shots or detailed surface views, picking the right time is crucial. If you are high-resolution imaging, you will need to plan your imaging session by the phase and position of the Moon, as it is important to know the time when the Moon is due south and at the highest point in the sky. This will give you better-detailed shots of the surface as there is less atmosphere to penetrate. When using a DSLR camera for a more widescreen photo, the position in the sky needs to be considered to create the perfect image. You need to plan landmarks in the foreground for the lunar shot or nearby houses or trees may restrict your current viewing area. These are some of the reasons why it is useful to know the position of the Moon in the sky. One of the best ways to plan your session is to use a planetarium software program or phone app; these will show you the moonrise times, phase and position of the Moon in the sky at any given time to allow you to plan the session. There are many planetarium software programs available for different operating platforms, a popular one for the PC is Stellarium, and for mobile phones Sky Safari but as there are so many options it is worth trying different ones to find the right one for