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mental4astro
31-07-2018, 01:21 PM
Like many people, I too got up early to see this July's lunar eclipse. I also went to the extent of trying to work out where the Moon was to set, and seeing that there was a chance that it could be seen setting between the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney CBD, I planned my vantage point to be along the foreshore at Strickland House to have a gunbarrel view of the setting blood red Moon dip behind the city skyline, and have nothing else but the water in front of me.

However, I didn't take any astro specific gear to photograph it. There would be plenty of people doing this. Even where I set up there were a few photographers set up exactly for this purpose. Instead, I only took along a little Brinno time lapse camera & tripod for it, my 11X70 binos, and a sketch pad and oil pastels. I did also took a modest camera to capture some stills, but avoided telescopic imaging of the eclipse.

And I am really happy with what I came up with. I got to enjoy the eclipse, and my sketching made me keenly aware of the changing colouration of the Moon as it went on its journey through Earth's shadow. It also made me very blooming aware of how COLD it was :cold: :lol:

I first did a sketched time lapse of the event. I was able to capture the changing brilliance and hue of the Moon this way, the movement of the sky and water, and the vibrance of the city lights. Immediate and colourful. The spec above and to the left of the Moon is Mars, and the two dashed lines are planes that crossed through the view.

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As I waited between moments of sketching the different lunar appearances, I viewed the Moon through the binos, and was taken aback by the gorgeous colour, shade variations and odd appearance of familiar landmarks. I just had to lay down an oil pastel sketch of the Moon this way, along with the few stars that could only be seen when using binos or a scope.

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And here's that little time lapse of the setting eclipsed Moon, with Mars chasing it. As it turned out, the Moon set just to the left of Centrepoint Tower, but it was obscured by cloud along the western horizon. This point alone shows how many faked photos of the eclipse have been bandied about, worse still these fakes having been bought by major news outlets! :lol: A last gasp glimpse of the Moon can be seen around the 57 second mark just to the left of Centerpoint.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oz-KTGbeUzg&t=3s

I also managed some pics of the dawn skyline.

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Cheers,

Alex.

pluto
31-07-2018, 01:24 PM
That was me!!!
It was a great spot to watch it from :D

Great sketches too!

mental4astro
31-07-2018, 01:29 PM
HA! Just like two ships passing in the dark! :lol:

Thanks mate! It really was a lovely experience, eh.

Retrograde
31-07-2018, 02:55 PM
Nice work Alex. Great story, sketches and pics.

mental4astro
31-07-2018, 07:49 PM
Thanks, Pete, :)

There is always a story behind a piece. I like to share mine as much as the piece itself as it forms part of the story the piece is telling itself, and what I have got out of it too.

Alex.

LewisM
31-07-2018, 07:54 PM
Your drawing reminded me of the imaginary Easter Bunny my mother told me was on the moon - sweet memories.

mental4astro
01-08-2018, 11:03 AM
Lewis, now that you mention it, I can see that "bunny" :lol:

Lovely the way unexpected images can sometimes trigger the most precious of memories :lol: Scents for me are most powerful too. Fragrant summer gardenias transport me to my early childhood.

GUS.K
01-08-2018, 06:49 PM
Nice one Alex, thanks for sharing your experience.

PCH
02-08-2018, 09:30 AM
Hey Alex,

What a wonderful summary of your morning, - and great drawings too mate! Thanks for sharing them with us :)

mental4astro
02-08-2018, 10:01 AM
Thanks lads :)

Rkonrad
03-08-2018, 02:04 AM
Nice we in RSA has a similar view thanks for sharing

mental4astro
04-08-2018, 07:43 PM
Thanks Richard :)

I still get a warm, fuzzy feeling to know that we can see the same celestial events but ourselves are so far apart froom each other. A curious connection across the seas :thumbsup:

Alex.