Supermoon Redux

Last year, I set out to shoot the Supermoon but it was thwarted by the cloudy weather and I came home without any shots of it. This year, the Supermoon came by again and I decided to give it another go. However, irresponsible Indonesian farmers decided to use the ancient “Slash and burn” technique of clearing their plantations, sending thick smog and haze our way. Throughout the week, Singapore was shrouded in a thick layer of haze, with PSI levels peaking at a record high of 401 last Friday.

I thought I am gonna miss it again this year, but thanks to a change of wind conditions (albeit a temporary one), we had a reprieve of the haze this weekend. I therefore decided to give it another go. Hopefully, with some luck, I can come home with some good shots this time. And I got lucky.

This time round, I am shot with a Nikon 1 V1 and a Nikkor AF-S 70-200mm f/4G ED VR attached via the Nikon FT-1 adaptor. This combination gives me an effective focal length (in 35mm terms) of 540mm. It still isn’t quite “long” enough, so the shots you see are also slightly cropped.

The “appetiser” of the evening is a glorious sunset, one which Singaporeans have been deprived of in the last week due to the haze. I raced against time as I fumbled while setting up my equipment, the sun going down by the second. I managed to get a few shots before it disappeared.

Next, I patiently await the moonrise. After what seemed like eternality, YS and I caught a faint glimpse of a pinkish moon next to the Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort. Before long, it showed itself, pretty in pink.

I also played around with a vertical composition.

As the moon rises, I also explored other combinations. I noticed a sliver of light on one of the “petals” of the ArtScience Museum and decided to try taking a shot as well. By this time, the moon is no longer pink but is the more common yellow.

Eventually the moon rose to the height of the Skypark of the Marina Bay Sands, creating the perfect foreground. At this magnification, the silhouetted visitors to the Skypark looks dwarfed by the Supermoon, as you can see in the opening shot. Also by now, it appears to be slightly hazy/cloudy, producing a glow around the moon.

I also tried another composition, silhouetting the Skypark’s lamppost against the Supermoon.

With that, I finally have my Supermoon shots. I am grateful and thankful that the haze cleared for the weekend, even if it’s temporary. This would otherwise not have been possible.