Perigee Moon

Last night the moon was about the closest it ever gets to Earth. Due to that fact it appeared to be about 14 percent larger than most other full moons. According to NASA, the moon on Saturday was less than one hour away from perigee, the absolute outside edge on one side of it's elliptical orbit around Earth. This occurrence happens only once every 18 years.

I did not make the pictures I wanted to make from this event. I had just rolled back into town from a high school state championship gymnastics meet and had less than an hour to scout a location and get set up. All I knew was to look in the eastern sky. I wanted to be outside of town and shoot Fort Wayne's modest skyline with the moonrise, but I could not find an adequate elevated location that faced the east and was not blocked by trees. So I went into town and got set up for a possible shot.

Once I saw the moon creep just above the horizon, I quickly deduced my location was a bust. the moon appeared huge and red, and I thought about staying to shoot it where I was. Instead, I decided to get in the car and buzz around, looking for another spot. The goal was to shoot something in the photo to give perspective to the size of the moon. I thought I would at least get a recognizable Fort Wayne building in there, so I set up for the old standby - the Allen County Courthouse. I've shot the courthouse against a full moon before and made a nice frame of it. I didn't want to duplicate that photo, but I was out of time and had to make a picture.

If nothing else, I suppose I've got 18 years to find a better location for the next time.