Get Detail in the Moon by Combining Images

To add a detailed shot of the moon to your landscape image, start (of course) by taking a detailed shot of the moon. If the moon is full (or mostly full) and clearly visible in your shot, you’ll shoot and expose for the landscape scene (on a tripod), and then shoot a second shot where you’ll expose for the moon, not worrying about the exposure of the landscape at all. Then, you’ll simply put the two images together in Photoshop. Well, even if you didn’t do that, it’s simple to put the images together. First, get the Elliptical Marquee tool (M) and click-and-drag a selection, nice and tight, around the moon. (Tip: Press-and-hold the Spacebar on your keyboard, while you’re dragging out the selection to reposition it as you drag it out. It makes this part so much easier—you’ll see why when you try it.) Now, press Command-C (PC: Ctrl-C) to Copy that selected moon, then switch to your landscape image and press Command-V (PC: Ctrl-V) to Paste the moon into your landscape image (it will appear on its own separate layer). Get the Move tool (V) and click-and-drag the moon where you want it to appear in your landscape. If you need to make it larger/smaller, press Command-T (PC: Ctrl-T), then click-and-drag a corner point outward/inward to make it larger/smaller, and then press Return (PC: Enter) to lock in your resize. Now it’s just a matter of making the moon blend in with the rest of the image by: (1) Changing the layer blend mode of the moon layer to either Overlay or Soft Light (but, you can scroll through the menu to see if any look better). And (2), lowering the Opacity a bit, so it doesn’t stand out so much. That’s all there is to it. Wanna know how I made part of it appear behind the clouds? I made a video for you, and you know where to find it. :)