Photographer Zach Cooley ventured to Arches National Park in Utah at the end
of October, capturing a surreal sight: a full moon framed by the North Windows
Arch, resembling a giant eye in the sky. In brilliant single-exposure photos,
the captivating visual was almost too perfect to be real.
Cooley's incredible images required meticulous planning on his part. "Moon
photos like this involve some fairly extensive planning, and that was
certainly the case for this shot," he told My Modern Met. "I use multiple
specialized photography apps which allow me to see exactly where the moon will
appear at any given time and position (PlanIt!, The Photographer's Ephemeris
(TPE), and PhotoPills)."
Positioning himself in the exact right place at the right time was crucial.
"For precise alignment, you have to be standing in just the right spot, and a
few steps in the wrong direction could mean you miss the target." Cooley was
nervous as the moment approached; he wondered if he would be standing in the
correct spot. "I was never happier when it appeared in the right place, and I
knew I could achieve the planned shot."
Capturing Earth's satellite has long been a fascination for Cooley. "I have a
memory of when digital cameras were fairly new and my dad tried taking a photo
of the full moon straight above us. It didn't turn out at all," he recalls.
"He captured the same thing that many today do with cell phones—just a white
disc, lacking the details that we can see with our eyes."
Once Cooley began his photography practice, he made it a point to learn how to
take better pictures of the moon. "It's something we don't normally see in our
day-to-day lives," he says. "Watching a sunset or a sunrise is common for
many, but it's not often that we witness the moon at the moment it peeks above
the horizon, or as it sets and 'touches' the landscape." Through compelling
shots like the "eye" at Arches National Park, Cooley offers a powerful
reminder of how marvelous our moon is.
