It was a jarring alarm at 3 am as I rose to get my gear together. I was headed out to Mount Tamalpais here in Mill Valley to get a good view of the setting full moon as it crossed paths with Earth’s shadow. I jumped in the cold truck and headed up the ridge as the eclipse was beginning to obscure our closest heavenly companion.
The resulting eclipse of the Flower Moon was stunning in the quiet early hours of the morning, and I was glad to be in one of the best areas on the planet to view it. As the Earth passed between the sun and moon, all 360 degrees of sunsets happening around the globe were refracted onto the surface of the moon, painting it a beautiful (and somewhat macabre) red.
To be completely honest, it wasn’t the most visible phenomena. A car pulled up while I was taking photos, and the two women hopped out full of enthusiasm and expectation only to be slightly let down. The colors were coming through clearly on the camera, and I was thankful to have the device with me to enjoy this astrological event.
Sony a6500 with Sigma 100-400mm f5-6.3 at 400mm
f6.3 1s exposure @ ISO 800