Sturgeon Moon Over Belle Tout Lighthouse

The August Sturgeon Moon rising over Belle Tout Lighthouse is something I'd envisioned for years, but bringing it to life required battling one of the fiercest challenges in coastal photography—wind. On the evening of August 12th, 2022, I positioned myself on Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain at 162 metres, knowing the exposed clifftop location would test every bit of my equipment and technique.

The wind was relentless that night, threatening to shake my camera during the long exposures needed to capture multiple phases of the Sturgeon Moon—named by Native American tribes for the large fish easily caught during this time of year. Belle Tout Lighthouse, built in 1828 and famously relocated 17 metres inland in 1999 to save it from cliff erosion, stood silhouetted against the darkening East Sussex sky. I used my telephoto lens at 600mm, compressing the scene to emphasize the moon's size relative to the lighthouse.

The technical challenge was significant. I needed multiple exposures as the Sturgeon Moon climbed higher in the sky, each frame taken from the exact same position on the clifftop. Strong winds at this height—where Belle Tout stands proudly overlooking the Seven Sisters—required me to create a makeshift windbreak around the tripod, using my body and bag to shield the camera from the coastal gusts blowing in from the English Channel. Each exposure risked camera shake, but patience and persistence paid off.

I later combined these separate frames into this composite image, showing three phases of the moon's journey above Belle Tout Lighthouse. The result captures not just the beauty of the Sturgeon Moon rising over this historic Sussex lighthouse, but the technical precision required to photograph celestial events in challenging conditions on one of England's most dramatic coastal locations.

When you look at this photograph, I want you to feel that determination—standing on the windswept clifftop of Beachy Head, battling the elements to capture the Sturgeon Moon rising above Belle Tout Lighthouse, where the South Downs meet the English Channel in spectacular fashion.