Full Blue Supermoon 2023

Full Blue Supermoon 2023The Full, blue, supermoon rises over Crested Butte Mountain on August 30, 2023.

Last August we were blessed with two full moons in the same month. The second one is called a "Blue Moon" and has been the subject of many poems, songs, stories, lies, and fables. And, at least a few photos.

I have a perfect view of the eastern sky from the deck on my condo so even though moonrise came close to conflicting with my bed/reading time, I decided to try a photo I had in my mind for a long time. I had a rough idea of where it would rise and I had two nights when the moon looked full. I set up my beast of a Really Right Stuff tripod and my beast of a telephoto lens, the Tamron 150-600 zoomed out to 600mm. Even though this set-up is extremely rigid and the lens features vibration reduction, any of my movements on my 44-year-old deck would create vibrations I did not want. Using an electronic cable release, I had to stand perfectly still to get the trees and the moon both sharp as a tack.

My first attempt seemed to have everything working as required but after viewing the images the next day, I discovered the ski patrol's radio tower was in the center of every picture. It looked like another tree through the viewfinder. At least I had one more night to attempt the photo!

The second night had the moonrise about 50 minutes later so, now, this project is really starting to eat into my bedtime. Fortunately, the moon rose a few hundred yards farther north and I got perfect trees in the foreground. One amazing thing about watching the moon rise through a long telephoto lens is how fast it moves. I only got about a dozen images before it had risen above the trees and into the night sky. This was my favorite image with the best balance between Supermoon and the forest below. And that's how "Full Blue Supermoon 2023" came to be captured as it rose over the forest on Crested Butte Mountain in Colorado.