Tag: Canon 60D

September’s Harvest Moon

On Monday, September 8th, the final Super Moon of the year is supposed to happen. We have a pretty good chance of rain on Monday, but I am hoping that the skies stay clear so I can get a photo of the moon just rising over the corn fields. That is the perfect time to capture the Harvest Moon, especially when it is a Super Moon!

I have been working on my evening and night photography over the last year, and that perfect moon shot still eludes me. Part of the fun of digital photography is how quickly you can make adjustments and figure out what your settings should be just by looking at the feedback on your camera. In my haste to get out the door, I forgot to change the white balance from an indoor setting to the one I wanted. When I checked the first photo, it was blue. Had I taken a roll of film, I probably would have been pretty bummed if all my moon photos were the wrong color!

I was using my 55-250 zoom lens, which has a slower shutter speed than my other lenses. To get around that, I played with my settings a little until I got an exposure that was close to what I wanted. I would recommend using a tripod, unlike I did tonight. It will give you more options for settings to get the exposure you desire.

For this photo, I had the camera set in AV mode (Canon) and had the aperture at f/5.6 with a shutter speed of 1/320 sec. My ISO was at 400, since I was not using a tripod. To compensate for the bright moon, I dialed my exposure compensation down to -4.7. My zoom was all the way at 250mm, and I cropped the photo to get the moon to the size I wanted for the quote.  I cropped and added text in PicMonkey, which is my current favorite quick editing program (it’s all online, super easy to use, and most of it is free!).

I hope some of you will be able to get awesome shots of the September Super Moon!

September Supermoon

 

Photography Lesson – Learn From My Mistake!

I have been working on learning my Canon 60D since I received it for my birthday almost 2 years ago. I have asked photographer friends for advise, read blogs, and subscribed to a free online photography “school”. I know that I am improving, just by looking at some of my first ever photos from a DSLR camera.

Every once in awhile, I think I have it figured out…then I mess up big time, and am humbled once again. That’s what happened this weekend. I was getting ready for church, when a neighbor called to see if I was still at home. She let me know that two deer were in my front yard – a doe and her fawn.

I quickly peeked out my bedroom window, and saw them moving towards our apple tree. I ran into the kitchen, where I keep my camera, and snapped a couple of photos. I had my 17-50 mm lens on (my utility lens), and I wasn’t getting in close enough. I quick changed to my 55-250 mm lens, and snapped away. I looked at one photo and noticed that they were a little dark.

First photos were too dark
First photos were too dark

I quickly adjusted the ISO, and turned the dial to adjust the aperture. I continued to watch the deer move across the lawn, getting closer to the house. I kept shooting away after moving out to the living room where I have huge windows that are great for stealth photography. My heart jumped when the fawn got spooked and leaped into the air. I had gotten a great shot…so I thought. After they moved out of sight, I hurried over to the computer to download the photos. I wanted to cry.

A missed opportunity
A missed opportunity

What did I do wrong? I didn’t double check the creative modes that my camera was set on. I had forgotten to change the camera from manual mode, which I have set up for sunset photos. I typically change out of manual mode after I return to the house when I am done shooting a sunset so the camera is ready for whatever comes up. Taking the half second to look at the dial would have meant the difference between regret and really fun photos.

All was not lost. Fortunately, I was able to salvage some photos in Photoshop. To be honest, though, I hate editing photos. My goal is always to shoot well enough that editing is not necessary. Do you have any photography tips that you learned through mistakes? Leave them in the comments below!

Here is one I was able to salvage.

Doe and Fawn
Doe and Fawn