The Super Moon Over Alexandria Louisiana - A Great Night at England Airpark


 Last weekend my darling wife and I decided to see if we could find a good place to watch the rise of the Blue Super Moon. Since the next time that our moon will be this close to Earth again won't be until 2034 we decided to pack up our camera gear and try to get some once in a lifetime images. I wanted to try and find someplace not too far from home so I decided to try the nearby England Airpark. I knew that there was a lot of open space near Heritage Park so that's where we began our stakeout.

We arrived at the park just after sundown and wandered around for a bit looking at the vintage fighter planes that are on display there. I decided to try and adjust my camera settings by taking a few shots around the park in the dark. I soon found myself trying to get a bit artsy by attempting to capture images that featured the stark contrast of light and dark. The park provides some great opportunities for this around the illuminated fountains that border the traffic circle.

I'm always amazed that more Alexandria residents don't take advantage of Heritage Park, it is truly one of the most beautiful places in Central Louisiana. I often take a morning walk around the planes and, like on this night, I rarely if ever see another soul around.

My wife kept checking her phone for updates on just when our celestial visitor was due to make its grand entrance. We had been wandering around for sometime before the normally oppressive heat and humidity started to make things uncomfortable. Luckily for us this has been an abnormally dry summer and on this night the moisture in the air was at a tolerable level for outdoor activity. We were beginning to wonder if we were ever going to see the Super Moon when she spotted some faint light beginning to illuminate the outline of a bank of clouds. 

Unfortunately for us the position of the moon would place its rise above the heavily illuminated area around the traffic circle and there would be little to no opportunity to take any quality photos. Thinking fast I decided that a quick trip to the nearby golf course should provide a dark enough location to able to view and photograph the Super Moon without any unnatural light sources. We parked at daycare center and walked some fifty yards onto the golf course, which a I predicted was pitch dark. 

The moon soon rose above the cloud bank and we were treated to the majesty of God's creation. I can't remember when I ever saw the moon so bright as it was on this night. I first tried to get some pictures with my standard Canon camera but with its 18mm to 55mm lens all I could capture was a large bright dot. Thankfully I anticipated this potential problem and packed my older Cannon PowerShot that has a 60x zoom lens. With that oldy but goodie in my hands I was able to zoom in and out and capture some pretty amazing detail. I was actually kinda awestruck when I got home and viewed my images noting that I used to see photos like mine in old magazines. What impressed me was the fact that I got them with my old Cannon without the aid of telescope.

Here are some my photos from our truly magical encounter with the Super Moon:


At 10:56 p.m. EDT, American astronaut Neil Armstrong, 240,000 miles from Earth, speaks these words to more than a billion people listening at home: “That’s one small step for man, - READ MORE

Louisiana Through My Lens - A Summer Sunset Over the Red River in Alexandria

It was actually a very pleasant evening on the Red River, which was a very welcome surprise. It has been an unusually dry summer here in central Louisiana and it has provided many opportunities to actually venture outside without the fear of turning into a giant ball of perspiration. - READ MORE

Sunrise Over England Air Force Base Heritage Park - Paying Tribute To Those Who Gave Their Lives For Our Freedom

This morning I decided to wake up before the rooster crows to capture the Memorial Day sunrise over England Air Force Base Heritage park here in Alexandria, Louisiana. The park features many of the jet fighters that were flown by the pilots of the famed 'Flying Tigers' - READ MORE

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