Sandroots Loc: Glen Allen, VA

Went out tonight for the first time to try to shoot some night photos. My Canon SL1 was set on manual, shutter was 1/25, aperture was f/4.5, ISO was 400, white balance was AWB. I got the full moon in my viewfinder and pressed the shutter but no response. Could not get the shutter to activate. What was I doing wrong? Thanks, Sandroots

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

My guess is your focus was not locked on.
Most cameras are set up to shoot either over or under exposure but not if the focus has not confirmed!
SS

BassmanBruce Loc: Middle of the Mitten

My guess, You were overexsposed to the point the camera could not focus. Try 1/100th for shutter, f8, iso 100 and use af, then adjust shutter speed to get desired exposure. Tripod and delayed shutter can help.
Be carefull, when you you get your first successful night shot you may be pulled into an addictive new world of shooting and buying spendy lenses.
Edit: The last sentence was completely tongue in cheek. (well, mostly!)

IBM

I would make a few shots in all auto , then a couple more in max f stop , then f8 , f11 tell your in the ball park , , look at what you got and adjust fstop , shutter speed leave whit balance on auto, I would also say it locked up because your focus was off ,it was a bright moon last
So I think you had plenty WB 400 , but maybe not , try one at 600 or 800 just to make sure

Sandroots Loc: Glen Allen, VA

Thank you all for these great thoughts. Now I've got to wait 12 hours to try them out. Sandroots

big-guy Loc: Peterborough Ontario Canada

If you are shooting the moon then you really need to follow the sunny 16 rule. Just because you are in the dark does not mean the moon is. The illumination on the moon is the same as being in the desert at high noon regardless of the illumination where you are standing.

Sunny 16 Rule states that your shutter speed is equivalent to your ISO (ISO=100 then shutter speed =1/00) and set the aperture to f16 when the sky is clear and sun is shining brightly at mid day. As more clouds appear close the aperture or in the case of a half moon close the aperture to f8 or 11.

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

I have the same camera, and I believe Bruce is correct here.

paulrph1 Loc: Washington, Utah

Remember when shooting the moon, the moon itself is daylight. It is only the surrounding area that is dark but the surface of the moon is daylight.

inbigd

You also may want to try manual focus. I have the SL1 and have got decent moon pictures using manual focus, f9/10 iso 100, 1/100-1/200.

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

The moon reflects sun like it's daylight. Start with the daylight rule, 1/ISO at f16 and manual focus on the moon. Use live view and zoom it up to focus if your camera allows this.

Sandroots Loc: Glen Allen, VA

More good recommendations. Thanks, Sandroots

PEANUT MAN Loc: Florida

WOULD AUTO(P) WORK WITH MY NIKON-100?

fetzler Loc: North West PA

If you want to shoot detail in the moon use the sunny 16 rule. Manual exposure and focus. Color temperature of the moon and moon light is about 4100K.
If you want moonlight landscapes start with ISO 6400 for 1 sec (full moon) and adjust accordingly from there. After finding the exposure reduce ISO. ISO 640 will require 10 times as long an exposure. ISO 160 4 time more. You will need a flashlight(s) to focus on important objects.

windshoppe Loc: Arizona

A rather handy rule of thumb for shooting the moon is a variation on the "sunny 16" rule sometimes referred to as the "Luny 11" rule: f/11 & shutter speed the reciprocal of the ISO. So if ISO is 400 shutter speed is 1/400. This is only a starting point but will get you in the ballpark and you can fine tune from there based on results.

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

It sounds like you took a stab in the dark as to what manual settings to use. As someone else pointed out, you are overexposed using those settings. You might not know this, but as you look at the LCD or through the viewfinder, there is a meter. If you don't see the meter, press the info button to toggle through what is displayed on your LCD (if that is how you use your camera). Now that you are looking at your meter, you can adjust one or any of the three adjustments in camera to get a centered meter for a neutral exposure. Adjust your f/stop to a larger number to stop down or make a smaller aperture to cut the light.

And someone else pointed out to take the sunny 16 rule and start there because the moon is actually reflecting the sun. So you are in essence taking a picture of a sunny object. One other thing to consider, check you focus settings. There is a setting on all newer Canon cameras that give the camera focus priority or shutter priority concerning focus lock. If set to focus priority, and you don't have a perfect focus, the shutter will not trip. If you set it to Release instead of Focus, then it will fire even if the focus is off a little bit especially if using AI Servo focusing.

Some advice to newbies:
Always upload jpg images
Check the box the says Store Originals so we can see the EXIF
Use the Quote Reply button when replying back to someone, that way they know what you are commenting back about.

Welcome to the Hog.

Oh, and ignore some of the more gruff comments here. You sometimes need some thick skin when people make rude comments.