Last week, sunset was at 6:00 PM. Today, it was closer to 5:00 PM. Too bad we couldn’t just fall back 30 minutes. A 5:30 PM sunset would be perfect. By the time I was able to set-up this evening, the sun was well below the horizon. However, the moon was just rising, so I headed for the closest body of water hoping for some reflections.

To the naked eye, the details of the moon and the surrounding landscape are clear. But, if you expose for the moon, the landscape will be black. And, if you expose for the landscape, the moon will be blown out with no recoverable details. Even with a graduated filter, I couldn’t expose both properly in one shot.

The solution is to take two photos: one exposing for the moon and one for the background. Before, I had always attempted to use HDR software to automatically blend the multiple exposures, but I never received any promising results. Today, it suddenly dawned on me to blend the two photos manually. In the bottom layer, I have the photo exposed for the background. In the top layer, I have the photo exposed for the moon. I delete the blown out moon (with a content aware fill) from the bottom layer, which leaves me with a background with no moon. In the top layer, I set the blend mode to screen so that the moon and landscape are both properly exposed.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 24mm f/1.4G ED, ISO 100, f/8, 6.0s

I headed to Stanford University on a cold and wet Saturday morning. It had rained on and off, and I was hoping for some glistening, reflective pavement. Not sure if the drainage was too good, or I headed out too late. By the time I set foot in the Quad, the tiles were mostly dry.

I really like the PC-E lens, but if I haven’t used it a quite some time, it takes a moment to re-orient myself because the controls are different. For example, spinning the dial to change the aperture has no effect. I had to remember to use the aperture ring instead.

Nikon D800, PC-E Nikkor 24mm f/3.5ED, ISO 100, 24mm, f/8.0, 1/400s

Next week, the sunsets will come an hour earlier. This will be a prime chance to take some sunset photos after work. A few weeks later, it’ll be pitch black when I step out in the evening. Maybe I will return to photographing the moon then.

I wasn’t even sure how to take a photo of a solar eclipse. I just did some research online and made sure not to look directly at the sun, which wasn’t that difficult since the sun was blindingly bright.

If the solar eclipse was not being reported on the Internet, I would have missed it entirely since it was bright as day outside, at least in California where it happened in the middle of the afternoon.

A 10-stop ND filter helped cut down on the light, though a solar filter is the correct tool to use. I should buy one now since you can’t just pick up a solar filter the morning of an event.

Nikon D800, Nikkor AF-S 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 100, 300mm, f/16, 1/4,000s

I love Autumn. Besides tree leaves exploding into rich yellows, oranges and reds, Autumn also brings an earlier sunset. I can see the sunset and still be home in time for dinner.

Two gorgeous sunsets from Shoreline Park but the placement of the biking/hiking route is amiss. In the top photo, it’s a bit too far left, and almost seems like a distraction. It catches your eye but leads you nowhere. In the bottom photo, the bike trail is more dominant. If it headed straight into the sunset, that would have been ideal. Instead, the trail flows right, while the sunset is on the left, leaving a feeling of dissonance.

Hopefully, I can re-work this again next week. Don’t be so focused on exposure that you get the composition wrong.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm, ISO 100, f/9.0, 1/400s

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm, ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/160s

I was walking around Shoreline Park at sunset, and there were clouds of all shapes and sizes filling the sky. But, the sun was firmly entrenched behind a bank of clouds that rendered everything a dull gray. Then, the sun descended just a bit, escaped from the grasp of the clouds, and the sky exploded in colors.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm, 116mm, ISO 100, f/18, 10s

Sometimes, you’re so focused on finding the correct exposure for the main subject that you forget about other possibilities—like silhouettes.

Nikon D7000, AF-S DX Nikkor 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR II, ISO 400, 170mm, f/16, 1/800s

Today was a clear, sunny day. A clear, boring, sunny day completely devoid of the drama that full-bodied clouds deliver.

So, I tracked a turkey vulture that flew overhead.

Nikon D800, Nikkor AF-S 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 200, 300mm, f/5.6, 1,600s

We enjoyed our first storm of the season. Hopefully, it will be the first of many during this upcoming winter. California needs every single drop of rain it can get. Last week, I was quite excited to see all the clouds filling the sky.

If the clouds are properly exposed, the small helicopter will be severely underexposed. Needed some post-processing to correct that.

Nikon D800, Nikkor AF-S 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 100, 300mm, f/8.0, 1/1,250s

I’ve been searching for the right location to take the photo below. At street level, there were too many human elements obstructing the view—buildings, cell towers, telephone lines, power lines, etc. I tried the 101 overpass, but I couldn’t get the view I wanted. Serendipitously, I walked along my long route, which passed Crittenden hill. When I climbed up, I was greeted with this unencumbered view. I exposed for the clouds, so the foreground had to be adjusted with graduated filter in Lightroom. A physical graduated filter would have worked as well, I guess.

Nikon D800, Nikkor AF-S 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 100, 58mm, f/8.0, 1/1,250s

Nikon D800, Nikkor AF-S 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 100, 300mm, f/8.0, 1/800s