Full moon rising over Start Point Lighthouse on 19th January 2011

grebeman

Old Codgers Group
At last the elements conspired in my favour, the sky had to be clear to the east at dusk and the lunar cycle had to be correct. Yesterday afternoon those things came together. On the last 2 suitable lunar cycles there has been complete cloud cover so the project couldn't good ahead then.

Last night was a full moon and by consulting online astronomical data for the altitude and azimuth of the moon I was able to determine where in relation to the lighthouse I should be in order for the moon to rise virtually behind the lighthouse. It is critical since with the lighthouse being built at the end of a long and very narrow point there is only one location that allows you to be in the correct position to photograph this event, namely my old favourite, Peartree Point, which has featured here before.

Below you can see the results. All photographs were taken on a Panasonic GF1 at iso 200, other data and timings appear below each photograph.

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16.54 hours, Voigtlander 15mm, f/4.5 @ f/11, 1/8 second.
This is some 14 minutes after moonrise, the light in the lighthouse has yet to be illuminated.

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17.04 hours Voigtlander 75mm, f/2.5 @ f/8, 1/10 second.
The light in the lighthouse is just striking.

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17.11 hours, Voigtlander 75mm, f/2.5 @ f/8, 1/25 second
The light is now sweeping the horizon with 3 flashes every 10 seconds and a range of about 25 miles.

Barrie
 
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