MRHooker2u Loc: Kingston, WA

This is in response to the gentleman from Illinois regarding the upcoming Solar Eclipse next Spring and not wanting to spend a fortune on a Solar Filter.
Being in the same boat for the recent Annular eclipse this past October, I created my own filter for my Tamron 600mm zoom lens. I purchased a 6"x6" solar filter sheet on Amazon from Thousand Oaks Optical for about $10. In addition to the filter sheet I purchased some plexiglass from Home Depot for a few bucks and cut to the match the diameter of my lens. I then cut some 3/8" foam core into a 3" wide strip and length to match the diameter of the lens (in this case 95mm). I backed this strip up with some duct tape and sliced it width wise at 1/4" spacing. I then pressed the plexiglass edge into the foam core 1/2" from the edge to form a groove and seat the plexiglass. Once done I shaped it around my lens and taped the ends together for a snug fit, just tight enough to slip on and off without it being too loose. In the end it costs less than $20 and works great. The photo of the sun was a hand held test photo. Tripod mounted would have made it more in focus and sharper.
Unfortunately, the day of the eclipse was a washout with heavy clouds and rain so I was unable to get a once-in-a-lifetime photo. That said, I might make it to Texas for the Spring '24 eclipse.
I had some wrinkling of the film when I first built the filter because I had cut the film diameter to match the plexiglass diameter. I had to disassemble everything, cut the diameter of the film slightly smaller than the diameter of the plexiglass and reassemble the filter.

rgrenaderphoto Loc: Hollywood, CA

Wha overpriced solar filters? A Thousand Oaks Optical 72 mm screw on solar filter is only $55, which is pretty inexpensive by photography filter standards.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Not with my baby blues.

donspears Loc: Joshua, TX

TEMU, worked great for the last eclipse. "SLR For Camera/micro Single UV Filters Cover Solar Film Camera Lens End Astronomical Solar Sunspots Film Photography" $10.99 and free shipping. 10 day shipping time.

JBRIII

Wrinkles for some films (Baader) are fine. Also, I made a lot of filters using rings of 1.5" thick solid insulation, put the film on the ring and then used thumb tacks and ring of foam board (1/4" ) to hold the film in place.

MT Shooter Loc: Montana

Solar film and a needlepoint ring work great for me, been using the same one for about 7 years now. Cost about $16 complete.

(Download)


(Download)


(Download)

wdross Loc: Castle Rock, Colorado

There will be more total eclipses although one will probably have to travel to them. I have been to Montana, Mexico, and Aruba for eclipses and used most of the same equipment. I guess some people are not "impressed " by eclipses and say "Seen one, seen them all". But my findings are they are all different and unique - and addictive! I hope to go to the up and coming eclipse in April. But a wedding right after the eclipse, that will demand my presence, may prevent my going to this eclipse.

The only real thing one absolutely has to do with older equipment is to check for sunlight leaks. No leaks, one is ready for the next eclipse. Leaks are a potential for eye or camera blindness and/or damage.

Dan' de Bourgogne

Clever, easy/simple, efficient, budget friendly!!! In this case, we say "the butter, yhe money of the butter and a smile from the dairy maid!" Well done.

markwilliam1

I shot on a tripod right when the Sun was getting dark. You Don’t Need any type of filters if you’re shooting right when the Sun is coming into the Eclipse. Unless you want to take pictures of the whole event Don’t worry about filters. I know because I did that. Lots of people will tell you different but they probably didn’t even try to take photos of the Eclipse…just reading others opinions. Good Luck

JBGLADSTONE Loc: Oregon

I too used Thousand Oaks sheet filter.
However, I sandwiched the filter between thin cardboard. The diameter was cut to my Tamron 70-300 sun shade. That way , I have the flexibility by simply remove the sun shade.

MRHooker2u Loc: Kingston, WA

When I created my original post, I mistakenly said lens rather than lens hood. The filter was constructed so it can easily be added to and removed from the lens hood.

sjb3

In 2017 I used a homemade solar filter for the camera I was using at the time, a Fuji Finepix S-1; filters for this particular make & model had a special-made bayonet sort of mount that was inserted and then clicked into place on the lens barrel; the filter was of course screwed into the mount. I just bought a mount and a clear glass 72mm filter, cut a bit of the aforementioned Black Polymer sheeting from Thousand Oaks Optical, and then sandwiched the cut piece between the clear glass and the Fuji mount. I was able to shoot still photos periodically during the eclipse, and at the moment of totality I was able to quickly twist off the solar filter and make exposures of the Sun's corona, twist-snapping it back into place when the Bailey's Bead came into view. For video, I used my little GoPro Hero 5 Black with a 5-stop (ND32) neutral density filter but no solar filter as such; the camera has such a wide angle that the Sun's light, intense as it was, was reduced enough that the GoPro's sensor functioned normally with no problems for the entire almost-three-hours it was on the tripod shooting what added up to slightly more than 1,800 individual photos, subsequently edited into a 43-seconds-long timelapse video. It wasn't real exciting to watch compared to most of the work made by other folks (especially on this forum), but it's my own work and shows a once-in-a-lifetime event from a unique personal perspective.