The Ancient Call

Image Critiques Nightscape & Astro Critiques
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First Sighting

Critique Style Requested: Standard

The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.

Description

I was not going to post this crescent but on seeing Diana Miller’s post and her shout out to my crescent photos, I thought what the heck. The second photo was at 8:30 pm and when I first sighted it but the sky was fairly bland, the first, vertical photo, was at 8:44 pm and the sky started to darken and the color gradient became more apparent.

I go out each month to photograph the new crescent. The crescent moon is important in the Islamic world because each new crescent marks the beginning of a new month in the Islamic lunar calendar. Even though we have the means to calculate the exact position, orientation, and percent illumination of the moon, Islamic Jurisprudence still requires that the crescent be physically sighted, making the calendar a living calendar, that is, it is not a numerical artifact but a timekeeping system that involves those that rely on it to actualize it.

What is funny is that even though we can know where the moon is in the sky and all of its physical parameters, there is no way to calculate ahead of time if the crescent will be visible or not due to the variable nature of the atmosphere. For that reason, even though Muslim astronomers for the last 1446 years have tried to come up with a method of setting up a working calendar based on calculations it has never been successful.

This crescent marks the 12th month of the lunar year and is also the month of the Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca. The Hajj starts with the sighting of this crescent. The Hajj culminates on the 10th day of the month with the holiday of Sacrifice.

Lastly, I titled the vertical photo “The Ancient Call” as Muslims believe that the patriarch Abraham and his son Ismail built the Kaba, the cubic shaped building in Mecca, as the first house of worship of the One God, and after completing its construction Abraham made a prayer calling humanity to come worship, and this crescent to me signifies that call as it marks the time when pilgrims go there.

Specific Feedback

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Technical Details

Nikon D850, Nikon 400mm f/5.6 MF lens set at f8. The vertical photo was at a shutter of 1/13 sec at ISO 200, the horizontal photo was at 1/80 sec at ISO 100. The horizontal photo is about a 30% crop from the full frame. Processed in ACR and PS.

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Youssef, I’m glad you posted – both images are so lovely! You always get such nice clouds! And I’m glad to see the story of the importance of the crescent moon – I didn’t know the details. I will try wider lenses in the future as there is little interest in the telephoto view due to the thick atmosphere near the horizon and the accompanying fine-scale turbulence.

I first sighted it just before 9. (The time stamp is 7:56 but I leave the cameras on standard time.) I have been failing miserably at finding the first night’s crescent due to hills/trees to the west but this one was just high enough to be in view. It was really amazing to see it for real – it was a barely-visible eyelash floating in the sky!

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Yes it was an eyelash of a moon this month. It was about 1.6% illuminated. I’m glad you finally were able to see it and capture it in a photo.

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Oh, I love the sky in the horizontal one, with those clouds peeping in from the left, even though the blue/purple isn’t as dark. Both are lovely, though.

Thanks for the education on the Islamic calendar - it’s fascinating.

5

Youssef, I have always enjoyed your work and our times together in the Sierra! Your crescent moon images are always evocative of new beginnings.

I like both images for different reasons. The vertical is wonderful in its simplicity both in terms of color and the sliver of the moon. The horizontal adds the clouds giving the scene a nice sense of dynamism. Well done!
-P

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