At dawn tomorrow, specifically at seven peninsular time, a lunar eclipse that although it will not be total, it will be relevant due to its long duration, almost three and a half hours, which make it the longest for more than 500 years. Therefore, it will be an excellent moment for those who practice astronomical photography; Of course, if not, if you have experience but would like to start, do not worry because here you have everything you need to know to immortalize the lunar eclipse.
As we say, it will be very long and visible from all over the country, although the first lucky ones will be the Galicians and those who live in the Western Canary Islands who will be able to enjoy the whole process from the seven in the morning (six o’clock in the Canary Islands). In the center of the peninsula the eclipse will be seen an hour later (and a bit advanced), and the maximum occultation of the moon, that is, when the eclipse will be most visible, will occur at Ten O’clock in the morning.
Therefore this it will be the best time to see it, although as we said it will be a partial eclipse so the moon will not be totally dark. Still, it is sure to be possible to obtain interesting photographs considering that in most parts of the country the skies are expected to be clear. In addition, contrary to what happens with solar eclipses, those of the Moon can be seen without any protection.
So we are going to see a little the necessary technique to see a phenomenon of this type. and capture it smoothly:
Whenever we talk about astrophotography our first advice is to stay away from light pollution; that is to say flee urban areas or find a place (parks, high places …) where there are no nearby sources of light. In this case, as most of the phenomenon will occur during the day, this advice is not so important, but it is still always recommended.
Also keep in mind that the moon may not occupy a large part of your frame, so you are interested in looking for a place that has other compositional elements. It’s about integrating the moon in a setting as attractive as possibleSo think of a place where there is a good view and where the sky can be enriched with interesting terrestrial elements (such as a castle, a mill, a lighthouse, people …).
Fundamental use tripod and remote release, both essential accessories because the basic technique of this type of photos is long exposure. You can also try without a tripod by following these tips, but try at least to place the camera or mobile on a stable surface and activate the timer shot.
So that the moon does not appear as a minimum circle in the sky you will need a telephoto lens. AND the more reach you have the better. For this reason the mobile is not the best tool for this task (although if you do not have something else you can always try) and a camera with interchangeable lenses to which we attach a good TV or one of those. bridge with a zoom long range.
In a situation like this, focus may be a problem, so it’s best to use manual focus because autofocus it can easily fail.
To prevent the Moon from being overexposed and without detail, try to use the spot metering mode by measuring the light on the satellite. Still, since the amount of light reflected by the Moon is usually more than meets the eye, you may also need to compensate for the exposure.
Also note that if the satellite is only going to be a small part of the composition you want the rest of the environment to be correctly exposed. To do this, it is best to make different measurements, in the different lighting areas of the scene, and make an average exposure. Or take several shots with different exposures (what is demon bracketing) to then be able to take an HDR image. In any case, it is best to do tests and take different shots to ensure the result.
And this is basically everything you need to know to capture the longest lunar eclipse of the century. As you can see, it is not particularly complicated and is available to almost anyone by following these steps. You just have to follow them and surely you can get some good photos of the eclipse.