photo of the month
from randy kato



click the image for a larger view



Hi,

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that we just experienced a rare total eclipse of a super blood moon, made even more rare by being the final of a tetrad.

I'm sure by now you know all about what a tetrad is, what makes the moon super and why it's bloody. So what about this month's image?

This is the super blood moon just at the edge of totality.

I've shot other lunar eclipses before...check the archive for a previous shot. This experience was much more relaxed than that one.

On the East Coast, this eclipse happened during normal evening hours on a nice early fall night as opposed to pre-dawn in mid-winter like previous ones. Adding to the comfort factor was a sweet invitation to a friend's rooftop with drinks and dinner cooked on the grill.

I had a casual plan based on prior experience. One camera, one lens, one tripod. I centered the moon in my shots and intended to do some more creative cropping and zooming in for more detail afterwards. However, I really like this month's pic just the way it was shot.

It seems that every lunar eclipse is somehow accompanied by clouds (I wonder if it has anything to do with the high tide.) and this one was no exception. But it's the clouds that make this shot for me.

It evokes a feeling of otherworldly sorcery. As if a wizard's orb is levitating above a fiery cauldron.

Enjoy!
Randy




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