Hi all,
This
particular lunar eclipse presented a unique opportunity – to see the eclipsed
Moon set behind the Sydney skyline.
It required
some investigating to work out the best vantage points. The angle of the line of sight window was a
small one, and the landscape of Sydney’s east is also very hilly, AND the
harbour also presents its own points and islands that can present obstacles. What I wanted was a vantage point that
allowed for a good view from the Harbour Bridge in the north and the city’s CBD
to the South,
I could
have the Moon set behind the gorgeous harbour bridge, but vantage points for
this were limited and would mean being too close to the city for the sort of
image I was after.
The area
between the Bridge and the CBD is rather empty so I preferred not to have the
Moon set here.
A vantage
point was needed that would have the Moon set behind the CBD, and with any
luck, it will set very close to Sydney’s tallest building, Centerpoint Tower.
So, at 4am
I found myself on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour in the grounds of Strickland
House. Stickland House is a beautiful
manor built more than 150 years ago, and has a gunbarrel view of the City down
the harbour. From here I had an uninterrupted view of the
City skyline. There was a risk that
predicted cloud cover could ruin the event, but this only made things more
interesting with an element of risk.
The
photographic camera I have is not designed for long exposure work, so my
intention was not to capture a textbook pretty photo of the blood red
Moon. But I brought it with me for the
odd chance that I could manage a photo of the eclipsed Moon, but more for
photographing the spectacular skyline at sunrise. My main tools for the event was a modest
Brinno time lapse camera, a sketch pad, oil pastels and binoculars. I’d be happy with a nice little time lapse
video, and a sketch of the event which would be a very different way to present
the lunar eclipse.
As the
eclipse progressed, I still hadn’t worked out what to do sketch wise. Then it hit me – I have a gorgeous skyline in
front of me, and why not a sketched time lapse too!? I had done a sketched time lapse of Comet
Lovejoy a few years back, so not a new concept to me. What made it even more appealing to me was
the changing appearance of the red illumination of the Moon as it progressed
through Earth’s shadow. The threatening
cloud sitting behind the skyline would also add to the complexity of the sketch
and add to the movement of the final piece.
I was not
alone at the foreshore vantage point I set up on. When I arrived a met three mates there who
are photographers. I set up next to Dan Chee from Delta Charlie Images ( https://www.facebook.com/DeltaCharlieImages/
). Dan’s welcoming nature made the cold
so much more bearable, and with his mates for a very jolly one too! Dan posted his spectacular images of the
eclipse on his Facebook page.
The time
lapse sketch also shows Mars which was just a little to the left and above the
Moon. This is why there are only three
apparitions of Mars despite there being four of the Moon. The two streaky lines are of a couple of
planes that crossed through the field.
Oil pastel on black paper
As I had to
wait for some time between each new position of the Moon in my time lapse
sketch, I passed some of this time by doing a quick oil pastel sketch of the
blood red Moon as viewed through my binoculars.
What made the apparition so
interesting was the difference of the density of the red across the Moon as it
transited through Earth’s shadow. It
gave a wonderful range of hues across the lunar surface, and this suited very
nicely the brisk sketching form in using oil pastels. Oil pastels are not a medium for very
detailed work. They are an excellent
medium for a fast Impressionist style of sketching.
Oil pastel on black paper
I’m also
pretty happy with the modest little time lapse video of the eclipsed Moon. Mars is also very easy to see. The Moon makes its last apparition around the
57 second mark at it comes in very close to Centrepoint Tower. And of course I forgot the camera was rolling
towards the end of the filming. Well, it
was very cold by the end and I wasn’t thinking too straight! LOL
I hope you
have enjoyed my little collection of images of this lunar eclipse. To finish off, I’ve included a couple of
photos I took of the skyline of my home city as the Sun began to rise.
Alex.
