Photographing the Solar Eclipse of 2024.04.08
Photographing a solar eclipse
using a 10 cent solar filter by the way...
On 2024.04.08 we drove south 3 hours to the north shore of Lake Erie to watch and photograph the total eclipse of the sun.
I decided the following equipment would be used:
Canon 7d body, which is a cropped frame camera, I used this older camera just in case sensor did get damaged.
Canon 300mm F2.8 L lens
Canon 2x teleconverter to give me 600mm (840 effective compared to full frame)
Gitzo Carbon tripod plus gimbal head I usually use with the 600mm f4
The solar filter
Now I needed a filter to reduce the light of the sun itself enough I could look at it through the viewfinder of a SLR, and not damage my eyes or the camera sensor/shutter. Back to old school, what I have done before decades ago.
I used some "Space Blanket" now known as Emergency Blanket. This is very thin, aluminized mylar film. The metal reflects all wavelengths, from IR to UV yet passes about 0.8% aka 7stops or 1/128 of the light per layer. Thus for 2 layers it would be 14 stops or about 1/16,000 of the light
Costs about $6 for 2 sq. Metres at the local hardware store
Add to list some cyanoacrylate glue, a bit of tape and cardboard from a pizza box or other corrugated material.
I cut a cardboard ring with an outside diameter to just fit inside the lens hood from the front. The hole in the centre was cut to 75mm to give focal stop of f4 reducing the lens opening by 1 stop giving me 15 stops of attenuation.
You can see the simple filter. I made two, one of a single layer of mylar, and one with two layers. I decided the 2 layer was best choice, but had the single as backup. Or could be stacked for major reduction of 22 stops
I used about $0.10 of material to make both filters
Simply spread some glue on cardboard surface, place mylar over cardboard stretching it flat. Put a weight on it and..
After a few minutes, repeat for second layer.
Added a bit of scotch tape to edges
The setup as used.
At this point, just waiting for the event. Sky had some cloud but it mostly disappeared just before the event.
Thank you Environment Canada for the weather.
Used our cooler pack to add bottom mass to tripod
This is T - 45 minutes to start of event. In this little parking area at a bird observation point, there were 63 vehicles, double parked, and some on the road. likely 150 people. All sorts of variations of cameras, telescope, a camera obscura using two tandem lens mounted on cardboard, held together with wooden dowels. (first lens was primary objective, second worked like an eyepiece, configured to do projection to the paper)
And the results.
These are just a few of the shots taken
About half way there.
You can just see a couple of sunspots on the surface. Largest is just about centre of the solar disk
2 Layer filter in place
1/400 sec at f11, iso=100
TOTALITY!
No filter, just removed lens hood.
1/800 sec. f6.3, iso=500
I liked this one as it shows the red solar prominences.
Shots that burned out these show the corona better, see photo at top which is 1.7 EV more
The Diamond Ring
The filter is still off for this last shot
1/4000 sec f6.3 iso=100
Sky is starting to brighten
I took few more shots, but they looked a lot like the lead up to event shots.
Mean while back on earth.
People left rather quickly just after totality. The show was over.
We finally packed up, decided to avoid traffic and go and find some local geocaches on the back roads near here. BTW there was one at this site.
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