fourpointedstar

I told my boss after the 2017 eclipse “slap me if I choose not to travel for the eclipse in 2024.” I chose Spenser, Indiana because it was a small town along the path of totality, and I wanted to avoid the crowds. I ended up shooting the eclipse from a grassy field outside of town along with maybe 50 other folks. The group shared Oreos and stories, and we generally enjoyed the warm, sunny weather.

As totality approached it was a very odd feeling; it was almost like dusk, but the colors in the sky were all wrong – an unnatural hue. Totality was more like a nice moonlit scene; the frogs in the pond didn’t understand what was going on and were discussing their confusion very loudly. But the humans were in awe of the scene; it’s an incredible experience.

Photographically, I had prepared myself to be content and happy no matter what – weather, camera malfunctions, etc. So, I am thrilled to have gotten this image during totality (and many other great images).

Anytime that I attend an event, there is always the question – “how many of my photos do OTHERS want to see from this event?” After all, I take way too many photos and seeing 38 images of the exact same car/plane/waterfall isn’t how most people want to spend their time.

So, as I was driving home after the Eclipse (confident that some of my photos were good), I wondered how I could share the Eclipse without 38 photos of a smaller and smaller wedges of yellow. How about a video? Just 2 minutes long.

Anyway, you should watch it. In fullscreen. On the biggest screen you can find. Obviously.

… a little note about my 2017 eclipse images…
Both of the above images were shot with the solar filter. Since it was overcast on and off during the entire eclipse, I switched between solar filter, ND8 filters, and using f/22 with a high shutter speed. I had both my D600 and my D7000, with my 80-200 f/2.8 and 70-300 f/4-5.6 with me. Although I’d only used the solar filter twice before, and despite my ignorance, the clouds, and my location far from totality, I’m quite happy with the images that I did capture.
Lastly – the D7000 is a crop frame, so it’s images appears much more zoomed in.