Nightfall

As the sun was setting last night, the weather gave us the best show we've seen thus far from the mountains.

Moonset over the Grand Tetons, May 2012

The moon didn't actually change phases as it set, but the exposures got so long the the earth's illumination of the dark portion was enough to fill the disk.

The last time I did star shots was in the Owens Valley in eastern California last fall. It involved standing out in the cold for hours and eating a sandwich for dinner in the dark, while wearing all of my clothing. Last night I set up on the deck outside our room and ran back in while the long exposures were cooking and while I was waiting for the sky to darken. The wife gets a +1 for selecting this room!