Reuss Griffiths Loc: Ravenna, Ohio

I was at the 2017 eclipse for totality near Nashville TN. I was surprised by several things that I did not expect, e.g., the sky was not completely dark; there was a 360 degree sunset during the eclipse. Most people, including me, post pictures of totality. I posted some that shows some of the other wonderful things that occur during the eclipse so those of you not fortunate enough to get to totality might get a feel for the truly spiritual nature of a total eclipse.

I'm making the following comment to see if others who witnessed totality experience the same thing. I divide the experience into four phases. The first phase can be as long as year to month to weeks. It's the planning phase. Do I want to go to a totality zone, what will the weather be like, where can I go to get the best view, what equipment to bring, how can I practice for the adventure to come, what will the traffic be like and how to avoid it. etc. etc.. The second phase is the day of the eclipse prior to totality. Will the weather change, hoping for better or will good weather get cloudy, do I have all my stuff ready to go, where can I set up to be the easiest to take pictures, what about all those pin point camera partial eclipse images, how can I get pictures of them, offering advice to others around you, getting advice from others around you, all the while the excitement builds as T time approaches. Then you notice the saturation disappear from green and red objects, and the light levels begin to wane. All of these things are part of the excitement of phase 2. Then suddenly, God throws a switch and there it is, totality. People do either two things, grow silent or starting cheering, I think most are quiet and in awe. It's a spiritual experience rarely experienced. You have a hard time looking away from the sun and the moon. You notice the corona filaments even if it's somewhat cloudy. This time you could see pink prominences on the edge of the moon with the unaided naked eye. You're in a zone that's different form any other experience. You don't notice time passing. Then all of a sudden, the sun breaks out across the edge of the moon. And your last thought is that didn't last long enough. The last phase is after totality. It's over, and you know it. Very fiew people actually watch the entire reverse process. You pack up your gear, put away your chairs, clean up and think about how am I going to get out of here. Only thoughts might be when to I download and process images. But it's just over.

Three prominences visible, brightest at 6:30, dimest at 6:00 and a moderate one at 4:00. Most prominent was triangular shaped in my image and other posters. Not sure why. Prominences in my 2017 pictures were M shaped.

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Totality eclipse and shadow edge looking to the SE

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Ground view looking SE near end of totality. Shadow has moved substantially.

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24Megapixseal Loc: Kansas

GREAT wide angle shots.... Seriously, there's NEVER enough time to capture everything there is to capture...

Luckily my first total eclipse in 2017, I wasn't "into" photography like I am now that I'm retired.... And I simply "took it all in" without a camera....

This one, I tried hard to spend a total of about 20-30 seconds of the whole 1 minute 57 secs of totality pushing a camera shutter button.... Because it's something that is so rare, you need to be "soaking in" , as much as possible, the "EXPERIENCE" ....

I'm enjoying your efforts tho, of those wide angle shots.... GREAT JOB!

And great post!

Cany143 Loc: SE Utah

What you wrote is better than what you shot, Reuss. Which is NOT to say that what you shot was in the least bit shabby, 'cuz it's anything but.

Seen some eclipses and some comets and some assorted celestial events over time, and whoppie-do. The anticipation, the witnessing thereof, and the ptfoggerifticantizations about --i.e., the actualization-- of each (as you well described) is what 99.9% of it is really about.

Much else is more a matter of geekitude-ism. Or maybe less than that.

Kudos.

Reuss Griffiths Loc: Ravenna, Ohio

Thanks for checking it out and commenting. Glad you liked it. I realized after experiencing the 2017 eclipse what the whole experience was about and wanted to make sure that i included things that people don't normally include in eclipse coverage.

Reuss Griffiths Loc: Ravenna, Ohio

Good to hear from you again Jim. I realized on the morning of the eclipse that it eclipse experience is a journey not a goal and there was a lot more to savor than just staring at totality. For me it was a family event with my three daughters, their husbands and some grandkids and a couple of in-laws all ending up sitting in a driveway on patio furniture. My oldest daughter came in from Texas. We had a great time getting all set up prior to totality, looking for pin-hole camera effects projected on the ground and other stuff. Afterward, others in my family saw it the same way and I thought I'd put some feelers out to see if others enjoyed the journey too, Glad you enjoyed what I wrote as well as my images. It's always a warm fuzzy when others like your stuff.

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

Reuss Griffiths Loc: Ravenna, Ohio

Thanks for commenting John. I saw your post and the second photo with the diamond ring shows the same prominences as most other posters. The one that is most unusual is the triangular shaped one. I noticed that on my image the triangle one was at the 6:30 position while yours was at the 6:00 position. I also noted in others that it was shifted annularly. I have no idea why that should be. Do you?

You did a fine job with those images, much sharper than mine.

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

You're so right about it being a spiritual experience. And it's so short!!!

Reuss Griffiths Loc: Ravenna, Ohio

No other way to describe it in simple terms. And short almost goes without saying. Thanks for looking in Kathy.