A Brazilian photographer has finally managed to capture an incredible shot of Christ the Redeemer appearing to be holding the moon with both hands after three years of failed attempts.
Leonardo Sens snapped his much-anticipated photo on Sunday from Icaraí Beach in Rio de Janeiro’s Niterói Municipality, nearly 7 miles (11 kilometers) from where the iconic statue stands.
The viral photo shows the 98-foot monument atop Corcovado Mountain in Tijuca National Park with the moon directly overhead.
“In the end everything went well and I was able to register the long-awaited photo,” Sens told Brazilian news outlet G1.
After three years of trying, Brazilian photographer Leonardo Sens was finally able to capture his long-awaited shot of Christ the Redeemer “holding” the moon in Rio de Janeiro. The viral image was captured Sunday morning from the town of Niterói, nearly seven miles away from where the statue stands
Leonardo Sens had studied the moon’s position to make sure he could make his living
Sens, who has been photographing the Rio de Janeiro area since 2005, revealed that he had prepared for the astonishing photo by studying the moon’s position.
He explained that he already knew what time of year the moon would line up with the concrete and soapstone monument—by far the country’s top tourist attraction.
Sens used several applications to find “the times and the exact date” when the moon would be directly over Christ the Redeemer.
He told online news portal Itatiaia that he bought a new set of lenses two years ago in hopes of “taking closer pictures of the moon and sun.”
Brazilian photographer Leonardo Sens arrived early on Sunday at Icaraí Beach in Rio de Janeiro’s Niterói municipality to set up his tripod for the moment when the moon hovered over the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue
Sens recalled that a day earlier he almost shot the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer that seemed to hold the moon, but that he couldn’t get the shot he wanted because there were too many clouds around
The moon remains in the background just after Leonardo Sens took the viral photo of Christ the Redeemer from Rio de Janeiro that appears to be ‘holding’ it
Sens said he tried and failed to get the shot on Saturday when the moon was blocked by clouds.
But the conditions for his expected photo changed in an instant, and he moved sideways as the moon began to descend.
“I went early at the scheduled time. All I had to do was adjust the tripod and wait for the moon to line up,” Sens said.
The photo set has gained more than 137,000 likes on his Instagram account and impressed his followers.
“I’ve seen several pictures of the moon, but you managed to leave the perfect angle in a memorable way,” one follower wrote.
Another said, “I don’t even know what to say about these pictures… it’s incredible, exciting.”
