The key.

Stock Photography by Samantha Molett

I have people asking me almost daily, "What is the key to a successful photo?" I simply respond with patience. Now, if you know me at all, you know I have little to no patience at all for a lot of things (grocery store lines, traffic, the microwave to ding...). But for some reason I can sit for hours waiting for the right moment and the right circumstances for a perfect photo.

 (Ex. A)
Earth's personal satellite, The Moon.
Taken in San Diego, CA on MCAS Miramar (2018)
*Notice the craters on the bottom left which are just a
glimpse of what could be on the other side!

I have more recently started to branch out into more *astrophotography! It has truly become a vast part of my thoughts lately; I have been pondering what is really out in the great region above our beautiful planet! I started out just photographing the moon when I captured this photo (Ex. A). I stood outside of my home for close to 2.5 hours and just waited for the lighting to be just right and for the cloud cover to disappear and let me tell you now, IT. WAS. WORTH. IT. I became so excited that I started doing my research on "when the next full moon is." and "what planets are closest to the moon?". Before I knew it I was in the wormhole we call the internet, 3 hours deep in research and I realized that this is something I have to be apart of. I shoot with a Canon Rebel T6 Camera, so it's obviously nothing super fancy (I thought). But when I pointed my 300mm lens to the sky, thinking "this is going to be neat but I'm sure I won't capture anything, I was so shocked to see the definition of the very rotating mass above us. It was a moment full of emotions and speechlessness. I don't believe in my entire time of being a photographer I have ever truly felt the emotions I felt when I took my first "detailed" photo of the moon. I strive to capture that feeling in my photos and I hope that it gives you the tingles like it did for me...

(Ex. B)
The Full Moon on August 26, 2018
Photo taken in San Diego, CA on MCAS Miramar

I have another photo of the Full Moon (Ex. B) from August 26, 2018. I waited for two weeks to witness this through my lens and when I did it was mesmerizing! I have been on this earth for 8,931 days as of today and I had never before this moment paid attention to what was above me. A celestial body that lights our night sky. A solid mass that is sometimes more mysterious than our own planet due to the fact that we don't even know what is really on the other side, also known as "The Dark Side of the Moon"! When I look up at the night sky from now on, I am going to remember that this great, mysterious mass has weathered all things and yet it still sticks around to light our night sky.

What do these two photos have in common besides the obvious fact that they are both the same moon? Patience and understanding that it takes days, hours and sometimes in this case weeks to capture what you are trying so hard to portray. I have waited and I have endured the long hours on my feet and I have reaped the rewards and I have them here for you to enjoy as well.

Thank you so much for reading and taking the time out of your day to view my photos. I truly and sincerely hope you revel in the beauty of our most reliable companion, The Moon.

Samantha Molett
D&R Photography
See more of my photography here.


*the photography of stars and other celestial objects - https://www.dictionary.com/browse/astrophotography