chrisg-optical Loc: New York, NY

Set your focus ring to 250,000 miles give or take....or the "moon" setting....really it's "infinity" all the way!
This is one example where manual modes work better - manual focus, manual exposure using the "luney 11" rule (f/11, shutter 1/ISO) with some bracket testing for optimal exposure without washout. Also best to shoot in RAW if you can.

wkocken Loc: McGregor, MN

I am writing this on Monday morning, so it's to late for anyone to learn how to do this. I didn't get any fully eclipsed shots last night.. A few thoughts.
1. It's very hard to do when it is -15F degrees. That's my excuse, and I'm sticking to it.
2. The fully exposed moon was very high overhead which adds to the issues of finding it and focusing
3. Focus is super super critical. Go into manual focus with live view and magnify 5 or 10 times. You will also see how steady your tripod is.
4. Use a manual release, or 2 second delay. I should have done motor locking, too.
5. The fully eclipsed moon is very dark. It is hard to find in the viewfinder or on the live view screen especially when it is 15 below and you're looking high overhead. You can zoom out to find it, then zoom in and then you'll want to refocus. By then your neck hurts and your fingers are frozen.
6. You will have to experiment with exposure settings. F stop, ISO and shutter speed all come into play.
7. Maybe I'll have better luck next time. There will not be a good total Lunar eclipse for North America for a while. Here is a website shooting when and where. https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/list.html

greymule Loc: Colorado

Thanks everyone for your kind assistance. Toughest "assigment" I ever gave myself. First try. Almost embarrassed to post my results, but I will to get some suggestions on how to do better next? time.

carl hervol Loc: jacksonville florida

This is why I have a tripod that will reach 72 in .

JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

With a camera with a pull out LCD screen, I could have focused if the camera was only 6" off the ground. I say "could have" since the clouds only opened one hole for just a couple minutes and then closed right up again after the eclipse was unwinding after totality was gone. At least I got to see that. No chance for this eclipse.

kenski

Used the same lens and had the same problem with 60" tripod and camera cantilevered over back end too low even with center post fully extended . Tried kneeling but it was close to 0* so that wasn't fun . I have found with my Tamron 150-600 G1 in manual mode focuses almost past infinity and has to be backed off just a hair . Got a few good early shots of earths shadow but then clouded up and was past my bed time . Solved the height problem today picked up a [pro]master tripod today with more height than I'll ever need . Good luck happy shooting

bwana Loc: Bergen, Alberta, Canada

I'd just use autofocus (and did). The Moon is a very bright object!

bwa

b roll wanabee

The moon is not an easy subject.
Probably a mirrorless would be easier.
At over 600mm the moon will move through your frame in about 1 minute.

Underexposed 3 stops and pray.

JimH123 Loc: Morgan Hill, CA

Yes, with a mirrorless, it is a lot easier. The LCD is a WYSIWYG display. (What you see is what you get)

All that is necessary to do is to adjust the settings until the LCD shows exactly what you want.

Jeep for Larry Loc: Grapevine, Texas

My process was Nikon D750 on tripod with Nikon 200-500mm at 500mm, AutoFocus set to Manual, use live view on tilt screen and zoom all the way into the moon it covers the whole screen and you only see half the moon. the Live Preview on a D750 shows the actual exposure in the live view (WYSIWYG), so adjust the ISO=100, Shutter=1/200 and F8 to start and adjust Shutter up/down till appropriately exposed. Get the focus sharp (it wiggles all over but you can really nail it with the preview exposure and zoom in live view. Then let the whole tripod/lens settle down (takes about 3-5 seconds) then use the remote shutter and take the photo. I don't think most Nikon DX cameras have the preview in live view. Also had to increase ISO at full eclipse and Shutter down to 1.6 seconds. Then photoshop them individually into one composite. Bag acts as extra weight on tripod and it was right in the front yard so Ring doorbell 'protected' it while I watched tv and only came out every 15mins to take the phases.

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hpucker99 Loc: Anchorage, Alaska

Great shots!

Brokenland

He said he's looking for expert help, guess that leaves me and about 99% of the hog members out. Next time don't be so critical on who you want to help you.

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

I would imagine that the focus would remain the same, the distance from the earth to the moon is somewhat constant as it is the earth's rotation that causes the moon to appear to move across our sky, even though the curvature of the earth may bring you closer to the moon as it rises higher into the sky think about DOF a lens will have when focused some 239,000 miles away. I shoot with a 500mm lens sometimes with a 1.4 extender attached and allow the autofocus to do its thing and usually shoot at an aperture of f/8, never felt my shots were out of focus.

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