What settings on a point & shoot digital camera would you use to take a pic of the moon tonight?

Question

I have a chance at taking a photo of the lunar eclipse tonight. What settings would be optimal on my Sony H2?

Answer 1

Take a spot meter reading and decide. The proper exposure WILL change throughout the eclipse.

Here's a picture of the moon that I just took tonight in my front yard. The settings were:

ISO - 100
Shutter Speed - 1/100 sec.
Focal length - 300 mm (450 mm equivalent)
Aperture - f/7.1

http://www.flickr.com/photos/samfeinstein/1254710884/

For a partial eclipse, you would probably need to use the same settings and about f/2.8-4.0. Of course, you can take the shot and check the LCD right away for a general idea about the exposure and make adjustments accordingly. The eclipse doesn't move so quickly that you wouldn't be able to do that.

Answer 2

Buy a dslr. If you want something to take to parties and the beach that'll fit in your pocket I understand the need for a P&S. I just played around with a Samsung NV15. It was awesome and had every single manual setting under the sun. IDK if that makes a huge difference because its not capable of what a DSLR can do but its a nice camera. Has a 5x optical zoom which is better than most which only have 3x. There are super zooms but the bodies are so big that you're better off with a DSLR, I read some reviews for the Samsung and the only complaints were about evil red eye (due to the distance of the flash from the lens) I didn't have any problems with my test. Colors were great too. The in camera slide show is awesome. It has a full manual setting so you can learn about the camera and how to prevent "wash out". Then maybe you'll love taking total control so much you'll out grow out of it and buy a DSLR. So yea, Samsung NV15 $180 includes a 2gig card at circuit city right now. Or buy a Leica if you want to spend $400. If I had $400 to buy P&S that's what I would get. But I don't so I would buy the Samsung. One other thing. If money is no object but you like the size of a point and shoot the smallest DSLR on the market - Olympus E420 about $600. Its nice small and beats any Point and Shoot at close to the same size. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

the settings don't matter as much as having a tripod.
If you have a tripod, keep the ISO to a minimum to reduce noise and use the timer so you don't have to touch the camera to take the shot.

as a composition tip, try and get something besides the moon in the shot. maybe a nearby tree or mountain ridge... That will show scale and make your photo more interesting.

good luck

david

Answer 4

For a P&S, set for night mode, and infinity focus.

I'm not familiar with your camera, and any manual settings that it has.

Dont use digital zoom, just as much optical zoom as it has.

good luck.