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revid

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I have a nikon d7000 and a nikkor 55-300mm vr lens and wanted to take a shot of a full moon,especially now because its the brightest .I tried a few different settings but not getting the results i want.Can someone suggest some settings like either ap or shutter priority and the settings that go with it or anything else.I could never get a good night shot.thanks
 
It's called the "looney 11 rule." Start with an aperture of f/11 and set the shutter speed to 1/ISO.

So...f/11, ISO 100, shutter speed of 1/100. With the long focal length required to zoom in you are going to need a tripod at this shutter speed. If you are trying to handhold a shot of the moon, then increase your ISO...

ex. f/11, ISO 800, shutter speed of 1/800

With a partial moon you will need to adjust aperture and shutter speeds a bit, but the "looney 11 rule" is almost always a good starting point. You can google the "looney 11 rule" for more in depth explanations.

I hope this helps!

--
-Scott
 
Try M mode using the previous suggested settings for starters, then adjust more or less shutter speed for a desired effect......for the least vibration, also use a tripod, mirror lockup and time delay or remote release.

Remember you're shooting a bright object so regular night time settings for street scenes do not apply. This is why many moon shots taken by beginners are overblown..........
--
Regards,
Hank

 
thanks guys will give it a try.I forgot to mention that I used the tripod and a remote too.Will give it a try tonite.
 
revid said:
I have a nikon d7000 and a nikkor 55-300mm vr lens and wanted to take a shot of a full moon,especially now because its the brightest .I tried a few different settings but not getting the results i want.Can someone suggest some settings like either ap or shutter priority and the settings that go with it or anything else.I could never get a good night shot.thanks
Click to expand...
If you think about it the moon is simply a bright sunlit rock and a full moon is equivalent to a midday shot! Don't let the rest of the night sky fool your metering.
 


shot this last nite with my d7000, 300mm,ISO500.1/160-F16 on a tripod with remote.

I dont know much about the numbers ,just kept trying different settings and this was one of the better shots.
 
Can't you just spot meter and do what what the camera says instead of use a rule of thumb thing? I was wondering why you were using such small apertures? Surely you're lens is sharper below F/11 and you need to use as fast a shutter speed as possible.

I was wondering, where was this picture taken from? The big crater on the lower right is on the lower left here in North America. Or so I thought? :( I'm confused...

Jose
 
José S said:
Can't you just spot meter and do what what the camera says instead of use a rule of thumb thing? I was wondering why you were using such small apertures? Surely you're lens is sharper below F/11 and you need to use as fast a shutter speed as possible.

I was wondering, where was this picture taken from? The big crater on the lower right is on the lower left here in North America. Or so I thought? :( I'm confused...

Jose
Click to expand...
which picture your talking about, if it's mine is was taken from L.I. N.Y.
 
mine was taken east coast of canada.How do I change to spot metering?Why would you use spot as opposed to what ever else there is.Btw I have a nikon d7000.
 
Spot metering depends on the angle of view of your spot. Most camera spot meters are not true spot meter, as in a 1 degree spot meter. they are usually on the order of 3 degrees or so and the moon only presents about 1/2 of a degree image size when full, so you will still be metering quite a bit of black sky. You use the f/11 rule as a start and you can then adjust your exposure appropriately....if you elect to shoot at say f/5.6, then increase your shutter speed by two stops.

--
John Glover
WSSA #141PX
 
The true angle over which spot metering is active depends on the focal length of the lens being used. When you are talking about the angle in the sky taken up by the moon, you are talking about an entirely different thing than the angle of view seen in the camera. For example, if you are shooting through a long telephoto, the moon might take up most of the field of view and it would be difficult to miss the target using spot metering.
 
Yep, you're right, must have put my fingers in gear before I engaged my brain.............or it's that danged Supermoon! :)

--
John Glover
WSSA #141PX
 
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