Top tips for photographing the supermoon

The Moon (file)
The Moon (file)

The closest, brightest and biggest full moon in more than 50 years is set to be visible in New Zealand on Tuesday night.

The so-called supermoon will appear to be 14 percent bigger and 30 percent brighter than the moon regularly does, and will be the closest full moon until 2024.

If you're keen try take some photos of Tuesday's lunar event, NASA photographer Bill Ingalls has revealed his top tips for capturing the best snap.

"It can be a local landmark, or anything to give your photo a sense of place," Mr Ingalls said.

This allows the moon's immense size to be seen in proportion to a fixture, while also capturing the moon when it is closest to the horizon - the point at which it appears largest.

If, like many, you don't have an expensive DSLR camera on-hand, Mr Ingalls said you can use your phone's camera to capture amazing panoramic photographs with ease.

"You're not going to get a giant moon in your shot, but you can do something more panoramic, including some foreground that's interesting. Think about being in an urban area where it's a little bit brighter."

"I think this would be a lot of fun to do with kids, if nothing else, to just have them witness it and talk about what's taking place," Mr Ingalls said.

"There are lots of great photos of people appearing to be holding the moon in their hand and that kind of thing. You can get really creative with it," he added.

Mr Ingalls goes to great lengths to scout out the perfect vantage point to juxtapose the moon with various Washington monuments.

"It means doing a lot of homework. I use Google Maps and other apps ... to plan where to get just the right angle at the right time."

New Zealand's landscapes and urban areas could prove to be perfect locations to take a great photograph. However, cloudy weather for much of the country on Tuesday looks like it may make your chances of seeing the lunar phenomenon much harder.

Newshub.