The February full moon (named the Snow Moon – how appropriate) was due to rise on Friday night coinciding with Valentine’s Day. I was scheduled to work until 4pm and decided to throw my camera bag and tripod in the car so that I could try to get a shot of the moonrise before meeting my family for a romantic dinner at Gourmet Garden.
As I drove home, I noticed clouds building and hoped they wouldn’t block my view of the moonrise. Based on the projected path of the full moon, I decided to head straight to Crocker Park for what I thought would be a nice composition. When I arrived, I found the clouds had indeed built up a bit but now appeared as a hazy area. These are apparently called Altostratus clouds composed of ice crystals and water droplets. The high water content made for a great surface to reflect the colors of the setting sun and created this great scene that developed before my eyes.
Not only did I get some nice pink clouds near the horizon but the alto clouds washed the whole sky in a Valentine’s day pink sunset. The working boats in the harbor kept moving around but lined up perfectly as the sky hit its peak color. If you look carefully over Children’s Island, you can see anticrepuscular rays as well.
