A few days ago our school held a Cross Country event at a nearby sporting and recreational complex. It is situated on a massive area of land. The students were able to participate in 6km and 3km events. I arrived about 8.30AM and noticed that the moon stood out in the clear blue sky in the west. I pointed my camera at the moon, allowed for autofocus and took a photograph. I used a Nikon D70 with a telephoto lens.

That night I duplicated the photo, adjusted the levels to provide some contrast and a deeper blue sky. I applied a little Unsharp Mask to make the moon appear a little more crisp. A cropped copy of the finished result is visible below. I have not enlarged the moon. The original image is available here. A cropped 800 x 600 copy is here. I was surprised that the camera and the telephoto lens could capture the moon so well without a tripod and longer exposure.

Note the mark in the upper right hand corner of the original? A speck of dust on the sensor which has eluded all efforts to remove it. I use a tool or two in Photoshop Elements to remove the dust artefact from the photograph if it is an issue. I do not think I shall buy a D-SLR again. The dust is a nightmare despite all my best efforts to keep the camera dust free when changing lenses.

Do not forget that 2009 is the International Year of Astronomy.