Return to Delicate Arch

Here's one last image of Delicate Arch. In the sky above is the Moon and Jupiter (probably).

When setting up for this shot, I didn't have a lot of light. A long exposure would have exposed more of the foreground, but too long would cause the Moon and Jupiter to become elongated (due to the Earth's rotation). A shorter exposure might have lost Jupiter, but exposed the moon better. It’s a tricky exposure problem capture both the foreground and the bright objects.

In order to get a short shot, I pumped up the ISO on my camera, knowing that noise would be an issue. I really didn't want the noise, but, I couldn't think of another option. I was hoping that I could somehow mitigate the noise at home. In this case I decided to add more noise; I applied a crinkled paper texture to the photo. Sometimes, a little noise is annoying, while more is pleasing (hopefully).

You may note that moon has flares and is overexposed. I believe the flairs are due to the very small aperture is used to capture the scene. Overall, the moon looks more like the Sun than the Moon and lends a surrealistic feel to the image.

Be sure to visit Sky Watch Friday for other views of the sky from around the world.

Viewer's Choice

Sunset on the La Sal mountains behind the Delicate Arch in Arches National park.

This is very common image. While I was there, on a cold, breezy evening, there was at least 30 other photographers. I like to try to capture the cliche images at famous place and then try to find unusual subjects, or, familiar subjects seen in unusual ways.

This image is an HDR image taken a few minutes later, from a slightly different image.

Which one do you like better?

Something Blue

This was the view from my campsite in Arches National Park on my first morning there. I used my 200mm lens to isolate the silhouette of rock formations against the various shades of blue from the background. Occasionally, a blue morning is a great way to start the day.