WOODS HOLE – When taking photos of a full moon, you need to be prepared with equipment (a good camera and a tripod–check), a good location for viewing (Juniper Point in Woods Hole–check) and some specialty knowledge about camera settings (nope).
So when we set out last night to take a photo of what they call the Buck Moon, a super moon set to rise the evening of Monday, July 3. We got into position along Little Harbor on Juniper Point in Woods Hole.
The tripod was set up. The camera was steady.
It was a cloudy night and we weren’t sure if we would see anything at all.
Then there was a beam of faint light on a cloud bank in the distance above the horizon. Could that be it? Within 10 minutes, that light transformed into a beautiful giant orange orb hanging low in the sky over Falmouth’s coast.
If we only we knew how to make our camera capture this extraordinary sight. But despite trying several settings, we could not get the shot. What we did get, we show you here: it looks like a watercolor of an abstracted seascape. Interesting? Yes. Pretty? Yes. Capturing the Buck Moon? No.
Then we headed up into Falmouth. We spotted the Buck Moon hovering over Main Street but we were still unable to capture it with the camera.
Then we drove to the Falmouth Art Center and from a spot in front of Man on Fire, the 10-foot sculpture near the art center sign, there was the super moon again, taunting us. We tried another shot. Interesting? Yes. Weird? Yes. Capturing the Buck Moon? No.
Note to self: Learn how to use your camera.
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