A disappointing shoot in terms of outcomes although the positive side is that I feel I learned from it:

1. Framing and focussing are so much more difficult in the dark (no surprises there I guess), pay more attention to getting it right.
2. Shots from a higher elevation seem to work better - more light bouncing off of the river, rather then being blocked out by the boat.
3. The obvious solution to getting a decent exposure would seem to be longer timings, but this only works if the water is dead still. I ended up with lots of shots where the background looked fine but the boat looked awful. Neet to rely more on ISO and wider aperture.
4. It is surprising just how quickly the moon moves across the sky when you want to capture an image of something in a thin beam of moonlight.
5. I need to learn how to despeckle. Though will this have the effect of blurring the edges?
6. Sods law says that as soon as the tripod is up, clouds will cover the moon. Nothing for this except to try again another day.

Absolutely gorgeous shot and good work!!!:)) nadoune · 2009-09-28: 19:50

this is amazing! love it! ????? · 2009-09-28: 21:24

It really is much more difficult to frame in the dark. I agree all the way. Nice result still. smbunation · 2009-09-28: 21:39

I have so learned all of those things too. Re; the noise, when you figure it out, let me know. Nice shot though. thebronzebow · 2009-09-28: 23:32

Beautiful shot, Jon.....what a great mood! I never have much luck with moon shots.....and putting it all together with lights, clouds, reflections, etc. would totally escape me I'm sure. This one is special... lookagain · 2009-09-28: 23:34

Well I think its purdy! especially as the boat is dead centre in the beam of light. Yes, its a bit 'noisy' but I actually like that. Also, thanks for the tips!!! LOL! sounds like fun... ;) ????? · 2009-09-29: 01:17

Yes, that is also my experience when my tripod is up, clouds will cover the moon... ;o( Ryana · 2009-09-29: 02:20

This is breathtaking! Love it!! jet28 · 2009-09-29: 03:17

Beautiful shot!!!! Now that the nights are drawing in...we will all be taking moon shots!!! Thanks for the tips.. LAZYWASP · 2009-09-29: 03:34

I like it Jon :-) Does 'sod's law' say anything about setting up the tripod whilst the moon is covered? ????? · 2009-09-29: 04:11

Really nice in the moonlight and framed between the signs. dontblink · 2009-09-29: 07:18

Well done with the learning process. I'm grateful you're taking the time to share your learning with the rest of us. In reverse order: No. 6: yup. Absolutely. No. 5: (may have already said this) despeckle each Red, Green and Blue channel separately. On average, despeckle twice as much the blue channel as the others, and yes, it will soften your image. No. 4: I'm not one for photoshopping / retouching, but moon shots justify the "lie". I'd be tempted to shoot the moon properly and, ahem, paste it over an otherwise good shot except for the naff moon. This is what the pros do, I say to myself as an excuse. No. 3: Narrow aperture will exacerbate your focusing issues. At present, the way I see it, you have two choices: move to a lake or upgrade the camera body to one with better high-ISO performance. Choice 2b (much cheaper, probably) is to invest in Noise Ninja or another good noise s/w. Bummer of a dilemma but then, if photography were easy, we probably wouldn't enjoy it. No 2: interesting. Perhaps the height also adds a sense of scale otherwise missing. No. 1: I'm lucky to have a FF camera that's famous for its high ISO performance and I *always* get it totally wrong. Some pros carry a high-power torch, use it to lock the focus and then set to manual. Again, thanks for taking the time to share what you've learnt. And I think the image you've posted is actually rather good... revenant · 2009-09-29: 10:28

well they points are not so bad as you say! :) Just my opinion! Nice shot! ^_^ But..hmm The moon, wouldnt be better with a Professional camera shot? onlyricky · 2009-09-29: 11:23

Thanks for sharing all this !! Regarding noise, there is much more visible noise in the upper part than in the lower part, if you edit in photoshop, selecting the upper part wtih the magic wand, then refine edge (to avoid halos), reduce exposure or use level or curves, that will reduce the noise, at least partly. Of course then you should use some decent noise reduction sw like revenant proposes. Anyhow, it's a nice picture ! jrregaldie · 2009-09-29: 11:41

Love it!!! nikito · 2009-09-29: 14:37

This is a great image. I have not tried. ????? · 2009-09-29: 18:14

Well Jarvo , that is a very nice capture per se'...don't worry about the motion blur the boat will give you because that is unavoidable.. actually the focus is for the entire scene since there is so much to show...wider aperture will give you a soft shallow depth back ground and a well shape moon...High ISO will is not the remedy...it will not really change the motion blur..you did the right at 47mm...just try next time at 16 on 3 minutes with a tripod and zoom out a little bit not to give details on the boat..the foreground and the moon shinning into the water are so romantic than the boat my friend... it did result very nice though Jarvo...good management of light... thank you so much for sharing... best regards , rob blackhawk1552 · 2009-09-29: 19:21

Good job. ????? · 2009-10-01: 02:06

Great attempt and I am soaking up the information fromn you and everyone. ????? · 2009-10-01: 19:51

Very interesting post again, thanks for the tips (and to Stéfan too)!! And i rather like the shot :-)) eternity65 · 2009-10-04: 05:33

Looks good to me. Lynda · 2009-10-28: 12:59

Tagged: moonlight moon bay thorpe southend thames river boat night