This Amazing Slow Moon Rise Is Not A Timelapse

Sometimes the best timelapse movies are not time lapse at all. This amazing moon rising footage was taken by photographer Mark Gee.

What seems to be a part of the ET bicycle sequence is really a shot of the moon taken with a Canon ID MkIV stacked with a 500mm f/4L lens and a 2x extender, giving the equivalent focal length of 1300mm. (this is about $14,429 worth of gear). The hill in the shot is 2.1km from the Mount Victoria Lookout in Wellington, New Zealand, and is practically across the other side of the city.

Here is how Mark describes the shot:

There were numerous factors I had to consider and get right to capture the footage. The weather, moon phases and  finding a suitable location where I could actually get the moon rising directly over the lookout. Finally it all came together – I found the perfect location, and the weather in Wellington was amazing! Luckily there were people watching the moon rise from the Mount Victoria Lookout. I didn’t know what to expect with the performance of everyone up there, but I couldn’t have directed it better myself, even though they had no idea I was filming them. I shot 8 minutes of footage between 9.14pm and 9.22pm and the finished edit shows about the first 3 minutes of that. #

[Full Moon Silhouettes via APOD | io9]