Moonrise in Sedona–August 2025

The nearly-full Moonrise in August presented another chance to capture the rising Moon behind Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona. The June and July events were thwarted by clouds in the east. This time, though, the clouds cleared in both the east (to see the Moon) and the west (to get sunlight on Cathedral Rock).

The nearly-full Moon rises behind Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
The nearly-full Moon rises behind Cathedral Rock in Sedona, Arizona.
The Moon lies between the spires and buttress of Cathedral Rock.
The Moon lies between the spires and buttress of Cathedral Rock.
The sequence of photographs at 3-second intervals was combined to produce this track of the rising Moon.
The sequence of photographs at 3-second intervals was combined to produce this track of the rising Moon.

As always, I used The Photographers Ephemeris to find the location in which to shoot the rising Moon. For this event, it required that I do a small bit of hiking along Pyramid Trail to line the Moon up with the gaps in Cathedral Rock.

Time-lapse of the Moonrise behind Cathedral Rock.

I shot photographs at 3-second intervals. A couple of times I stopped the shooting to change the exposure as the Sun set and the Cathedral Rock got darker. However, I had to also be mindful not to overexpose the Moon.

It was a fun evening except it was also hot.