Moon Over Ipswich Bay

Early (I mean early) this morning I woke up again to the moon over Ipswich Bay. I grabbed my camera and took some long exposure (16 sec) photos. You will notice the moon twice in the these photos--this is due to the fact that the photos were taken through a double pane window. The distinct image of the moon is a reflection and many times dimmer than the direct image. Also, if you look at the enlarged image, you will see a lot of dots--these are most likely digital noise. This is a fairly old digital camera and probably not as well designed for long exposures and newer cameras are. The yellow hue of the cove is from a single spot light. This is pretty much the image of the cove that you actually see at night.

Not Just Sunsets

This side of Cape Ann is known for its sunsets, and they are pretty phenomenal. And the sunrises are pretty interesting--the sky to the west gets the same colors as that of the eastern sky just not the same intensity, and obviously without the sun. But there is something that few visitors get to see, really amazing moonsets. Many people see moonrises, the good full moonrises occur around the time of sunset, but full moonsets occur around sunrise. Of course the best ones happen before sunrise otherwise the sun washes out the moon. So unless you're up very early in the morning, say 4:30 or 5:00 AM, you dont really get to see really nice moonsets.

Moonsets pose a pretty good photographic challenge. A long lens helps, but the moon is very bright and the rest of the scene is still pretty dark. And since you only get about one a month, and it is wicked early in the morning (I just happen to wake up this morning to see it out the window), it is a pretty rare thing to photograph. When you do see one though, it is one of those "Oh, wow!" moments.

Sunsets Are Back

We site back a bit on Lanes Cove, so during the winter our sunsets are blocked by the small hill to the south. About this time of the year the sun is heading north and finally clears the hill. Right about now the sun sets around Hog Island in Ipswich. Soon it will be at the Crane Estate. Even though the wind is blowning 15-20 MPH and the temperature is 37F, the days are definitely getting longer as we head for spring.