nikonshooter Loc: Spartanburg, South Carolina

I am a little ahead of myself but preparation is the key to successful outcomes.....certainly one of the keys. The biggest observational event in astronomy in a long time happens August 21st, 2017. The Moon will pass in front of the sun and for approximately 2 minutes nighttime will happen in the middle of the day. This will be the first total eclipse in 38 year but for us, this is the first to cross both the Atlantic and Pacific coast since World War 1. The path of the eclipse will stretch from Charleston SC to Portland Oregon. But the place to be will be Nashville Tennessee where close to 3 minutes of night will occur. My guess - between now and then, you will be able to buy "eclipse glasses" the throw away kind at every store on the planet. Soooooo if the rapture doesn't preclude it.......one spooky 2 plus minutes of solar theatrics is coming soon!

Columbia SC, about 45 minutes from our doorstep is the place to be (in center of path for totatlity) for total darkness in our area. My guess our photo guild and astronomy club will be scouting dark sites for a "night before star party" followed by the big day.

This is the Total Eclipse website

http://www.greatamericaneclipse.com/

(Download)

Albuqshutterbug Loc: Albuquerque NM

Ed,
I am planning on heading North to an early contact point near Eugene Oregon. I think my friend that lives there and I will likely head over to where Craig and GT are planning on camping out.
I did well in 2012 with the Annular eclipse that came through the center of Albuquerque and hope to do as well in 2017.
Time will tell.

SonnyE Loc: Communist California, USA

A Year away... (14 1/2 months)
Humm, Maybe we can go visit the wife's Mom and Dad outside of Nashville again. ?
But maybe not. That humidity is a killer to us desert lizards.

nikonshooter Loc: Spartanburg, South Carolina

Ah...yes, the humidity! We live in a summer sauna! But on a positive note, we don't dry off after showers, it's a waste of time so our towels last longer and we have more time for other good stuff. While you dry, we play :}

CraigFair Loc: Santa Maria, CA.

Thank you very much Ed it looks like I'll get a 7th mag event here in So Cal.
Craig

mikenolan Loc: Lincoln Nebraska

We're in the path of the total eclipse but not in the center of the path, and I'm really looking forward to it. What filters and other accessories should I have available?

nikonshooter Loc: Spartanburg, South Carolina

If you are going to be using a DLSR and camera tripod (which is all that's needed) If I were taking pics of the sun ...I use a 10 stop neutral density (ND) filter. They make a variable ND filter that goes from 2 to 10 stops...you rotate the filter to dial in the desired amount of light. I own one. The problem with these is there are two elements of glass and you can get some unwanted artifacts - halos - if light enters the camera from certain angles. For that reason I just use a fixed filter. A 10 stop reduces the light so much it is useless for anything other than the sun. If you go with a 5 stop - you will be taking 1/2000 and faster exposures which is ok but you will not be able to look at the sun through your cameras viewfinder (DSLR)..will need live view. You have to prefocus on infinity as your camera cannot focus with a 5 or greater filter. If you go with a 5, you can use it for other things.....long exposures in daytime to show smooth - silky - water flows in "water falls" photos....or smooth clouds and a loads of other things.

ND filters can provide a lot of daytime long exposure fun.

mikenolan Loc: Lincoln Nebraska

Thanks, nikonshooter, that helps a lot.