Photos of the Moon - May 2017

Moon Photos with Sky-Watcher Skymax-102 OTA | Moon Photos with Sky-Watcher Explorer 150PDS

On this page, I present photos of the moon that I took on May 2, 2017 when I used my Sky-Watcher Skymax-102 OTA with 16 mm UWA, 7 mm UWA, and 4 mm UWA eyepieces and on May 5, 2017 when I used my Sky-Watcher Explorer 150PDS with 16 mm UWA, 24 mm WA, and 10 mm WA eyepieces. On both occasions, I had to use the 1:50 method with the Ricoh GR camera. In contrast to the photos from April 2017, the photos have been post-processed.

Moon Photos with Sky-Watcher Skymax-102 OTA with the Camera Held to the Eyepiece

The following photos of the moon were taken at the beginning of May 2017 (May 2, it was nearly half moon). They were taken using the 1:50 method, that is, with the camera held to the eyepiece. In this case, I used my Ricoh GR (28 mm equivalent) at ISO 1600 and underexposed to avoid flare. I used a 16 mm, 7 mm, and a 4 mm UWA eyepiece.

May 2, 2017 - 16 mm UWA Eyepiece


16 mm UWA eyepiece (about 81 x) - 1800 pixels version		16 mm UWA eyepiece (about 81 x) - 1800 pixels version

16 mm UWA eyepiece (about 81 x) - 1800 pixels version		16 mm UWA eyepiece (about 81 x) - 1800 pixels version

May 2, 2017 - 7 mm UWA Eyepiece

This time, I find the photos taken with this eyepiece quite acceptable.


7 mm UWA eyepiece (about 186 x) - 1600 pixels - 3200 pixels		7 mm UWA eyepiece (about 186 x) - 1600 pixels - 3200 pixels

7 mm UWA eyepiece (about 186 x) - 1600 pixels - 3200 pixels		7 mm UWA eyepiece (about 186 x) - 1600 pixels - 3200 pixels

May 2, 2017 - 4 mm UWA Eyepiece

When taking the following photos, I ent beyond the maximum usable magnification just to explore what would happen. Correspondingly, the photos are not really sharp. I present them here anyway so that visitors can get an impression of the to be expected quality (also look at the large versions!).


4 mm UWA eyepiece (325* x) - 1600 pixels - 3200 pixels		4 mm UWA eyepiece (325* x) - 1600 pixels - 3200 pixels

*) Beyond the maximum usable magnification of about 200 x.

Moon Photos with Sky-Watcher Explorer 150PDS with the Camera Held to the Eyepiece

The following photos of the moon were taken at the beginning of May 2017 (May 5, it was shortly after half moon). They were taken using the 1:50 method, that is, with the camera held to the eyepiece. In this case, I used my Ricoh GR (28 mm equivalent) at ISO 1600 and underexposed to avoid flare. I used a 16 mm UWA eyepiece as well as a 24mm and a 10mm wide-angle eyepiece (the latter two were newly purchased, with the 24mm eyepiece in used, but good condition).

May 5, 2017 - 24 mm WA Eyepiece


24 mm WA eyepiece (about 31 x) - 1200 pixels		24 mm WA eyepiece (about 31 x)- 1200 pixels

24 mm WA eyepiece (about 31 x) - 1200 pixels		24 mm WA eyepiece (about 31 x) - 1200 pixels

May 5, 2017 - 16 mm UWA Eyepiece


16 mm UWA eyepiece (about 47 x) - 1800 pixels		16 mm UWA eyepiece (about 47 x) - 1800 pixels

May 5, 2017 - 10 mm WA Eyepiece


10 mm WA eyepiece (75 x) - 2400 pixels		10 mm WA eyepiece (75 x) - 2400 pixels

10 mm WA eyepiece (75 x) - 2700 pixels		10 mm WA eyepiece (75 x) - 2700 pixels

10 mm WA eyepiece (75 x) - 2700 pixels

Comparison of Different Focal Lengths of Eyepieces

To provide a certain impression of the different focal lengths of the eyepieces, I cut out a 600 x 600 pixel section from the 100% photos and put them together below for comparison. Since I only took two usable photos with the 16 mm eyepiece, I duplicated these photos.

In addition, I marked a crater in each serie, which can be seen on all sections, with a red arrow.

First Set

The indicated crater contains a white spot and another crater inside. There are also several craters in its rim or close to the rim.

24 mm	16 mm	10 mm

Second Set

The indicated crater looks a bit like an "8".

24 mm	16 mm	10 mm