Copyright © 2020 Deborah M. Zajac. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The end of March and through yesterday has been for me, a time of looking up to the night sky. Starting at the end of March I was looking up to see the Moon, Venus and the elusive star cluster called the Pleiades in conjunction. This was a practice shot because the night I was hoping to see Venus and the Pleiades closer together on April 3rd we had rain and snow so the sky was too cloudy to see them. That was a once-in-an-eight year event! I’m just glad I practiced so I saw this conjunction.
Nikon D810| Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G|f/2.8|2.8s|ISO 400| Lexar Digital Film| PS CC 21.0.3
Last night was the Supermoon. It appears just a bit larger than normal because the Moon comes the closest to Earth in its elliptic orbit called perigee.
We’ve been having light rain and snow and it was overcast all day but, we got lucky last night and the sky to the east was clear! I went down to the golf course with my next-door neighbor to photograph the Supermoon rise over the Pinenut Mountains.
Nikon D810| 24-120mm at 70mm|f/10|1/6s|ISO 250| Lexar Digital Film| PS CC 21.0.3
Then I switched cameras and made an image of just the Moon. Our moon looked more golden than pink, but the Belt of Venus wasn’t very deep in color around us either so…golden.
Fuji X-T3| Fujinon XF100-400mm LM OIS at 386mm| f/11| 1/100s| ISO 250| SunDisk Digital Film|PS CC 21.0.3
More things that are looking up is that we’ve had 8 people who had the Covid-19 virus move to the recovered side of life! There are still 17 active cases in our Quad county region. There have been no deaths yet. Knocking on wood that continues and that all move to the recovered column soon!
I hope you’re doing well and keeping busy.
I’ll leave you this thought today.
““Bad stuff does happen sometimes, always remember that but remember that you have to move on somehow. You just pick your head up and stare at something beautiful like the sky or the ocean and you move the hell on.”
― Suzanne’s Diary for Nicholas
more to come…
Circadianreflections Blog 
Was doing some stargazing myself earlier this week. Great pics, Deborah!
Thank you, Paul! What stars were you gazing at? Wondering if I need to turn around?😄 When I do I am rarely disappointed. This morning in the wee hours I was photographing the Milky Way and turned around and saw the Bug Dipper! I never tire of spotting it. It points the way to other stars too.
Saw the Big Dipper, yes! And … some others. I don’t know many others without consulting some sort of field guide or mapping app. 😛
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Gorgeous moon photos, Deborah. Enchanting. I like the quote you used in closing too. Hugs on the wing!
Wonderful photos, terrific quote too!
We could say the perigee was your gee (whiz) moment.
🤣🤣🤣 That’s good and witty!
Terrific post, Deborah. Your moon photos are exquisite and I liked the planet labelling as well. I liked that you didn’t let the sometimes-uncooperative weather deter you, and I really like the final quote. We are lucky to have these beautiful nighttime vistas–looking up to the skies is a great inspiration.
Thank you so much, Jet! Yes, we are lucky.
Excellent quote to end on. Our moon was low and big, but she wasn’t tinted the slightest. We all gawked at her anyway 🙂
That quote resonated with me for the last couple of weeks. I bet your Moon was stunning in her silver glory. 😀😀🌕
I love the moon! I was able to catch a glimpse of it once it rose above all the oak trees in my yard. Quite spectacular! Your captures show off its magical vibe. 🙂 I love the quote you shared. Stay well, Deborah!
Thank you so much, Amy! I’m glad you got to see the moon too. Last month is too cloudy so I didn’t see and feel lucky that one side of the sky cleared for it.
You and yours stay well too! 😀
Magical, Deborah.
Thank you so much, Melissa!
Beautiful shots, Deborah, and I love the quote! 🙂
Thank you so much, Donna!
Nice, nice shots and glad your county is holding its own regarding the virus. Stay safe and keep your camera(s) handy at all times. 🙂
Thank you so much, Judy! You stay well, and safe too!
Huge WOW on your photos, Deborah. We are all watching the numbers, closely, too. Many positives despite the heartache for those that have died and their families. Yes, staring at something beautiful and moving the hell on is great advice. Take care and stay well.
Thank you so much, Erica! I’m glad you enjoyed the images. I hope you and yours stay well and safe too!
What a perfect post for everyone. Look up, indeed. And that means seeing the beautiful moon and stars, and also seeing all the good and positives that are happening. Awesome, Deborah! Is that the Little Dipper above Venus? My eyes aren’t what they used to be. You photos are outstanding!!
I think you’re right about that being the little dipper, Jennie! Thank you so much for the lovely comment, and for spotting the Little Dipper!
My pleasure, Deborah!
I eally appreciate your posting these shots. We were under cloudy skies and heavy rain all the days around the conjunction. Last night, I was trying to snag a few photos of the moon, but I was only able to get it through some trees and I was unable to get my camera to focus on the moon. I like the shots I got, but I was hoping to get a clear view of the moon, but that would have required driving to a park and (probably) having to explain my presence there.
You got beautiful images of the view I had hoped for – thanks for sharing them.
Gorgeous! It was rainy and cloudy here so there was no Super Moon to be seen. Glad you got to see it.
It was cloudy to the west but clear on the east side of the valley thankfully. It was like looking at two different worlds. I am working on the western view’s image now.
Last month’s Supermoon I missed because it was cloudy and snowing. I thought I’d miss April’s too, but got lucky.
I’m glad you enjoyed the images. Stay well!
Very Nice ! Love the moon reflection in the water !
Thank you so much, Jamie! Were you able to see the moon? I imagine you stayed in or were at work?
You’re never far from my thoughts! Stay well. xx
Considering the weather challenges, good shots! The moon was glowing gold and clear in the East from my picture window last night but I decided not to rush to set up for a shot. Hope your neighbor stayed at least 6′ feet away from you on the golf course but recent articles suggest greater distances is safer (using a smoker as a guide, if you can smell the smoke you’re too close; I think they may have found a use for those vape things – you can see their exhaled vapor and try to stay away from it but the use is probably worse than any benefits). Stay safe!).
I’m waiting for breaks in the weather still. Warmer and sunnier days are coming though.
My neighbor and I have been in each others circle long before this started, but we’re keeping 6ft apart and more, and driving to hiking or birding places separately now. Thank you so much for caring I really appreciate that! 🥰 I read the same thing! That’s terrifying isn’t it!
Hopefully, it passes with warmer temperatures and we can do a meetup. It’s been ages since we’ve hung out!
Terrific shot of the moon. My favorite is the single
Oh, I’m glad you like that one, John! Thank you!
Glad to see you got out for the full moon. I shot from my property but I am not thrilled about where it came up, over a not so interesting ridge.
Thank you so much, Denise! I didn’t go far the golf course is in my community. I’m sure your ridge is beautiful! I hope you share your image.
That is good news Deborah. Stay well. The moon was beautiful here as well but I didn’t get any pink in my shots. Hugs!
Thank you so much, Cheryl! You stay well to my friend! xx
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