Solar Eclipse Photography
Jan 18, 2017 11:43:39 #
After reading about the upcoming total solar eclipse that will occur in the USA on August 21, 2017, I have seen some mis-information posted on this forum about what filters to use while viewing and photographing the solar eclipse. Photographic neutral density filters and polarizing filters (regardless of how many are stacked together that render a photographic image) will NOT block the harmful invisible infrared rays from the sun that can cause permanent eye damage! Please refer to the NASA Eclipse website (https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov) and click on "Solar Eclipses" then click on "Safe Eclipse Viewing and Photography" and there you will find several excellent articles discussing this. The only safe way to directly view the solar eclipse is with a filter specifically designed for this purpose. Thousand Oaks Optical and others make threaded (screw on) camera filters designed specifically for that purpose and they are certified to be safe for directly viewing the sun.
Another post on this forum suggested that level 10 welding glass is safe to directly view the sun, however, in the reading that I have done, it appears that level 14 (or higher) welding glass is required. Additionally, I have read that the optical quality of level 14 welding glass is adequate for direct viewing of the sun, but is not good enough to provide good photographs of the sun.
Another post on this forum suggested that level 10 welding glass is safe to directly view the sun, however, in the reading that I have done, it appears that level 14 (or higher) welding glass is required. Additionally, I have read that the optical quality of level 14 welding glass is adequate for direct viewing of the sun, but is not good enough to provide good photographs of the sun.
Jan 19, 2017 09:16:49 #
During total eclipse, no filter is needed. You can look directly at it. During partial I had a 35mm slide which was not exposed to light then developed and it made a great filter. Best to bracket the total. Not to get it right, but each exposure is a distinct different capture. David
Jan 19, 2017 12:17:29 #
JayRay wrote:
After reading about the upcoming total solar eclip... (show quote)
I second getting a dedicated solar filter. I used one on a Celestron 8 inch telescope I borrowed and got some great shots of the solar eclipse. I do not like risking vision for anything as it is too valuable.
Jan 19, 2017 13:03:53 #
I have posted this before. I shot the July 1991 eclipse in Mexico with 2 different systems simultaneously. One with a 300mm + a 2X extender, the other with a C8 Celestron.
You will need the best tripod you can get your hands on. Use 2 of them with a cross bar mount if you can. Absolute stability is a must, along with remote triggers.
I highly suggest that you assemble all of the gear you plan to need/use. Take spare everything. Do not forget extra batteries, remotes etc. Now you practice full dress rehearsals.
Do a complete dry run setup with the gear you have assembled. This will show you what you have forgotten. Now repack it. The next day, do it all over again. And again if you feel the need.
You will have about 90 seconds of totality, according to your location. So what you have set up must be right the first time. You DO NOT get to come back tomorrow and do it over, you get one shot.
http://www.eclipse2017.org/2017/path_through_the_US.htm
You will need good solar filters to do this. They are not cheap. This company has been specializing in them for a long time. http://www.thousandoaksoptical.com/index.html
You need to be one with your gear. Get the shots and take time to enjoy this very unique experience.
You will need the best tripod you can get your hands on. Use 2 of them with a cross bar mount if you can. Absolute stability is a must, along with remote triggers.
I highly suggest that you assemble all of the gear you plan to need/use. Take spare everything. Do not forget extra batteries, remotes etc. Now you practice full dress rehearsals.
Do a complete dry run setup with the gear you have assembled. This will show you what you have forgotten. Now repack it. The next day, do it all over again. And again if you feel the need.
You will have about 90 seconds of totality, according to your location. So what you have set up must be right the first time. You DO NOT get to come back tomorrow and do it over, you get one shot.
http://www.eclipse2017.org/2017/path_through_the_US.htm
You will need good solar filters to do this. They are not cheap. This company has been specializing in them for a long time. http://www.thousandoaksoptical.com/index.html
You need to be one with your gear. Get the shots and take time to enjoy this very unique experience.
Jan 19, 2017 14:26:01 #
Los-Angeles-Shooter
Loc: Los Angeles
The FULL eclipse is safe for naked eye. Partial is not. And people who are half-assed about safety may wind up half-blind or worse. Eg. people who think a developed unexposed slide is adequate eye protection.
Jan 19, 2017 14:50:35 #
Los-Angeles-Shooter wrote:
The FULL eclipse is safe for naked eye. Partial is not. And people who are half-assed about safety may wind up half-blind or worse. Eg. people who think a developed unexposed slide is adequate eye protection.
To look at a partial eclipse put a pin hole in a heavy piece of paper and let the light coming through the hole shine on a white piece beneath it. Safe and fun for kids. We were too poor for anything fancy so my mother showed us this trick.
Jan 19, 2017 18:32:11 #
When I photographed the Venus transit several years ago I used a 200mm (plus a 1.4x adaptor) on my e-5 camera. I stacked a 10 stop ND filter with a 3 stop ND and a polarizer. It worked just fine in live view.
Feb 1, 2017 06:23:58 #
JayRay's posts about eclipse photography are both accurate and excellent.
1. Use ONLY a filter constructed for direct viewing of the sun.
2. NEVER attempt to stack non-solar filters; they simply don't do the job.
3. The Mylar solar filters are meant for solar photography. You can trust them.
4. An Annular Eclipse is "ring shaped." The moon doesn't completely cover the sun. You cannot look at an Annular Eclipse for more than a few moments without potentially damaging your eyesight. Don't do it. Use a solar filter.
5. An Annular Eclipse will not occur on August 21, 2017 A Total Eclipse will occur on that day. Do not confuse the two.
6. A Partial Eclipse WILL occur on August 21, 2017 as the moon begins to cover the sun, and after the moments of total eclipse or total coverage of the solar disk. Do not confuse Partial Eclipse with Annular Eclipse.
7. A Number 15 welding filter WILL block the sun for safe viewing, but remember, it's a filter meant for welding, not photography. The sun is 90 million miles from earth. At that distance the solar disk is too far to capture any great amount of detail, so unless you have an enormous telephoto lens, it won't make much difference in the magnificent images you capture. If you have anything more than a 50mm lens you will not be able to buy a welder's #15 filter large enough to completely cover your lens.
8. The maximum time of total coverage on August 21, 2017 will be under three minutes. The minimum time of total coverage is less than two minutes. It's only during total coverage you can safely look at the TOTAL ECLIPSE wth the naked eye without protection for more than a few seconds. DON'T DO IT.
9. As a navigator in the USAF I used the sun every day as one of my navigation aids for celestial navigation. Our sextants had No. 15 Solar filters in them. I NEVER looked at the sun without the solar filter in place. I never damaged my eyes using the sextant. Remember, when you look though the lens of your camera you are magnifying the image, and you are intensifying the light coming into the camera. While you may be able to look at the sun without protection with the naked eye, you are in grave danger of damaging your eyes if you look at it for more than a few seconds, and you are in greater danger if you look at it without a filter through a telescope or sextant OR A CAMERA.
10. Mylar solar filters are excellent. They work. They are cheap. There is plenty of time to buy one and to use it before the day of the eclipse on August 21. BUY ONE AND USE IT before August 21, 2017. Learn to use it and you will have success on August 21, 2017. If you don't practice before the day and the time of Total Eclipse you will be hard pressed to learn it during the eclipse and your chances of success will be greatly diminished.
11. DO NOT USE A DAMAGED MYLAR SOLAR FILTER. EVEN A PINHOLE IN A FILTER IS TOO MUCH.
Good luck. Having photographed both a Total Eclipse and Annular Eclipses, successfully, I can tell you both are awesome experiences, but the Total Eclipse beats the Annular Eclipse any day!
1. Use ONLY a filter constructed for direct viewing of the sun.
2. NEVER attempt to stack non-solar filters; they simply don't do the job.
3. The Mylar solar filters are meant for solar photography. You can trust them.
4. An Annular Eclipse is "ring shaped." The moon doesn't completely cover the sun. You cannot look at an Annular Eclipse for more than a few moments without potentially damaging your eyesight. Don't do it. Use a solar filter.
5. An Annular Eclipse will not occur on August 21, 2017 A Total Eclipse will occur on that day. Do not confuse the two.
6. A Partial Eclipse WILL occur on August 21, 2017 as the moon begins to cover the sun, and after the moments of total eclipse or total coverage of the solar disk. Do not confuse Partial Eclipse with Annular Eclipse.
7. A Number 15 welding filter WILL block the sun for safe viewing, but remember, it's a filter meant for welding, not photography. The sun is 90 million miles from earth. At that distance the solar disk is too far to capture any great amount of detail, so unless you have an enormous telephoto lens, it won't make much difference in the magnificent images you capture. If you have anything more than a 50mm lens you will not be able to buy a welder's #15 filter large enough to completely cover your lens.
8. The maximum time of total coverage on August 21, 2017 will be under three minutes. The minimum time of total coverage is less than two minutes. It's only during total coverage you can safely look at the TOTAL ECLIPSE wth the naked eye without protection for more than a few seconds. DON'T DO IT.
9. As a navigator in the USAF I used the sun every day as one of my navigation aids for celestial navigation. Our sextants had No. 15 Solar filters in them. I NEVER looked at the sun without the solar filter in place. I never damaged my eyes using the sextant. Remember, when you look though the lens of your camera you are magnifying the image, and you are intensifying the light coming into the camera. While you may be able to look at the sun without protection with the naked eye, you are in grave danger of damaging your eyes if you look at it for more than a few seconds, and you are in greater danger if you look at it without a filter through a telescope or sextant OR A CAMERA.
10. Mylar solar filters are excellent. They work. They are cheap. There is plenty of time to buy one and to use it before the day of the eclipse on August 21. BUY ONE AND USE IT before August 21, 2017. Learn to use it and you will have success on August 21, 2017. If you don't practice before the day and the time of Total Eclipse you will be hard pressed to learn it during the eclipse and your chances of success will be greatly diminished.
11. DO NOT USE A DAMAGED MYLAR SOLAR FILTER. EVEN A PINHOLE IN A FILTER IS TOO MUCH.
Good luck. Having photographed both a Total Eclipse and Annular Eclipses, successfully, I can tell you both are awesome experiences, but the Total Eclipse beats the Annular Eclipse any day!
Feb 1, 2017 06:30:10 #
Meives wrote:
During total eclipse, no filter is needed. You can look directly at it. During partial I had a 35mm slide which was not exposed to light then developed and it made a great filter. Best to bracket the total. Not to get it right, but each exposure is a distinct different capture. David
Misinformation. Will not block harmful radiation from damaging eyes if you look into your viewfinder. Use only welder's shade 14 or higher if directly viewing. If you have partial, you will need 18 stops attenuation, otherwise for the corona, no filter necessary, but bracketing would be helpful.
If you want to reply, then register here. Registration is free and your account is created instantly, so you can post right away.