There was a full moon out on one of our last nights in Havana, Cuba. In rainy Juneau, full moons are not something I often think about because, more often than not, the clouds obscure the moon entirely.

Earlier on the trip, I’d discovered the thrill of digital open-shutter photography. I wandered the dark streets of Trinidad for more than an hour one night, refining my technique. 15 second exposures, garbage cans for tripods, that sort of thing… all with the instant feedback of an LCD screen.

By the end of the trip, I pretty much had it down. On one particular night in Havana, I found myself waiting on balcony, leaning out to see the active street life in both directions. I set up my camera on the railing and balanced it with whatever various knickknacks I could find in my many pockets (I hadn’t brought a tripod with me.) As I patiently waited for a few friends to finish getting ready to go to a baseball game, I had plenty of time to watch the full moon rise over the building across the street.

I had focusing trouble on the first few tries, but I eventually got this one just as some small puffs of clouds were passing overhead. The composition of this picture could be better, I know, (oh, for a wide angle lens!) but you take what you can get with a point-and-shoot.