Watching the moon rise never fails to fill me with awe. In those few minutes before it creeps above the horizon, my heart is pounding with anticipation, turning to excitement as the first burnt orange slivver reveals itself, perhaps criss-crossed by a cloud bank or overlaid by the silhouette of distant tree.  The segment grows to a full disk before your eyes as the moon gains elevation, seeming oversized in the context of the landscape, and the deep orange eases into a pale yellow before transitioning to silver  once it clears the thick layer of atmosphere along the horizon.  There’s nothing that reminds you so clearly of the vast and perpetual celestial motions that continue regardless of the busyness of our daily lives; it’s a moment when time seems to pause and the world becomes simpler. 

The outer lighthouse at Dovercourt, near Harwich on the Essex coast, is one of a trio of lighthouses that guided ships around Landguard Point, the peninsular on the Orwell Estuary that protects both Felixstowe and Harwich harbours.  Long since decommissioned, the outer lighthouse is a beautiful wooden structure that sits on a steel frame that is submerged at all but low tide.  It’s a common subject for long exposure and minimalist photographers, with the sea smoothed out around the legs. 

My trip to Dovercourt for 2021’s Harvest moonrise was something of an adventure. I’d never visited the landmark before, but had studied it intensely on Google Earth and various websites.  I’d been working in the City of London all day and knew time would be tight for the drive out to Harwich. Much heavier traffic than I’d anticipated meant I arrived on location less than 10 minutes before moonrise.Thankfully the preparation I’d put in meant I knew exactly where I needed to set up to catch the moon at exactly the right height above the lighthouse, which by then was bathed in the beautiful soft light of blue hour.  The stunning, deep purple-grey band of the Belt of Venus - the shadow of the Earth projected into space - could be seen hugging the horizon and created a gorgeous backdrop to the lighthouse.  With 2 minutes to go, a cloud bank started to move across the sky, and two huge container ships manoeuvred into the shot, completely ruining the aesthetics; there was absolutely nothing I could do but sit and wait, and to my delight as the moon cleared the cloud bank, the ships motored into the port and I grabbed exactly the shot I’d come for. 

Watching a moonrise is one of the most relaxing things you can do. Capturing a moonrise alignment, at long focal lengths with so many factors outside of your control, is, in contrast, utterly exhilarating!