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Friday, October 01, 2010

Autumn full moon in Yellowstone Park

When it comes to the moon, I am very lunar. I feel the moons and I love them all. Is there anything prettier than a crescent moon with Venus as an accent? The right setting can make any of them exceptional, but for me I especially like it when a full moon falls at an equinox or Solstice.

When we knew we'd be in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone for the autumn equinox and a full moon, I knew where I'd want a photo. It would be above Slough Creek where I might also hear a wolf howl. How perfect would that be?

Just before first light, as we drove down through the Lamar Valley, from where we had camped the night before, we saw the buffalo in the dark. They were right alongside the road and it made a photo quite simple if not exactly state of the art. You have to be there to hear their grunting, the bulls butting heads, the calves calling to their mothers. Sound is so much a part of a buffalo herd that I should have brought the little video camera and might have if I had ever learned how to operate it properly. As it is, one camera is enough for me to figure out.

When we got down to where I had hoped for the best full moon shot, we walked out on a ridge overlooking the creek. There were wolves on the other side, a few hundred feet away. They were the main attractant for most of those on a higher ridge with their cameras at the ready. I was as thrilled by the wolf pack as they were; but at the moment, for me, it was all about that full moon and hopefully reflections in the water. I didn't have any control over the water being so still but I knew it would be what would make the shot.

I kept on with the moon shots, changing my angle, moving to where I could see the moon reflected best. How could any full moon photo in Yellowstone not be great! Add that it was also at the fall equinox, a time when the park would soon be closed to most tourists at least for awhile, where a seasonal change was coming for the animals, and it made it perfect.


Blogger's new system for putting photos on here is driving me nuts. Basically I can no longer use Mozilla to put up any photos even though I prefer writing the blogs using Mozilla. I hope they get it fixed as even using Explorer, it's not working right and makes blogs like these a lot more work than they used to be!

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

I would like to exchange links with your site rainydaythought.blogspot.com
Is this possible?

Rain Trueax said...

I don't know, anonymous. What is your site? My email is in my profile here; so you can email me such info if you want.

mandt said...

Exquisite moon view!

Darlene said...

Oh what beautiful photography. The moon shot reflected in the water is outstanding. I have never been able to see the craters on the moon in a photo I have taken and your shot is just remarkable. Thanks for sharing your trip.

Diane Widler Wenzel said...

These are among your best moon photos. They just WOW me.

OldLady Of The Hills said...

Oh these are BEAUTIFUL shots, Rain...I particularly LOVE the one with the Moon's reflecyion---A Double Wonder! And the look of the sku at the moment, too...Really Stunning!

Dick said...

Those are beautiful photos and it proves that often a photographer has to getup/be up at unusual times of day in order to get the best photos. Good job!

I haven't been coming around much and today discovered that the blogroll on my sidebar is empty for some reason, making it harder to get around. I guess I need to spend some time working on mine.

As to putting photos into the blog, I have always used Flickr to host my photos, then post the URL for the photo there in my blog. It gives me pretty good control over the size of the photos in the blog although it does make an extra step to go through.

Kay Dennison said...

Gorgeous shots!!! I am affected by the moon, too. It explains a lot about how I feel this week.

Taradharma said...

gorgeous shots, Rain. The reflection in the water is simply lovely, both for the reflection and overall composition. Stunning, really.

I was watching the Harvest moon through binoculars and stunned by the clarity of the craters. Also, to see the planet with it's moons even. Yellowstone is on my list of must sees. How fortunate you were there, and that you can share these beautiful images.

Thank you!

Joy Des Jardins said...

Gorgeous photos Rain. I love the one with the moon reflection in the water...almost like a painting. I've found that some of the most beautiful photos are of the moon and all its glory. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

I would like to exchange links with your site rainydaythought.blogspot.com
Is this possible?

Rain Trueax said...

what is your site? I asked that question earlier and no answer. It would depend on what your site was.

Anonymous said...

Such beautiful shots, rain. Quite spectacular!

Mike McLaren said...

A full moon floating in a lazy river... how beautiful is that. Glad you were there to see it!

Mary Lou said...

Odd, I use Mozilla, and I am having no problems. Uh well, it takes FOREVER but it does work!

Mary Lou said...

It is a spammer rAIN! DELETE him! That is why I went to comment moderation!

Rain Trueax said...

It's an odd spam if it's a spam as it doesn't give any site of its own. I have gotten it other places though. Mostly blogger now deletes the spams which I think is an excellent improvement. Once in awhile I go to moderation for awhile and that gets rid of the rest when I come back to not doing moderation. Moderation just takes longer.

Paul said...

I am a MOON person Rain ! Great shots !