20111210 Total Lunar Eclipse

With the excellent weather forecast, it's a must to go out.  Lunar eclipse does not require a dark sky but a darker sky will pay off since you can capture the (much dimmer) moon in front of the starry sky which is impossible except during lunar eclipse.  But life always means trade off, you have convenience and family, and better skies, and I chose the former option.

As planned, I went to a nearby playground to setup my gears.  It's around 10 minutes walk from my home and the view is proven since the last partial solar eclipse.  I went there first after having dinner with my family at around 8:20pm.

Then my wife and my kids arrived at around 9:00pm and then a couple of friends came a bit later.

Some snapshots taken during totality:

And finally an eclipse sequence, please click to enlarge: