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Photo Forum / Digital Photography / DSLR Cameras / March 2006Photographing the Sun with a D70s
In a few days, I will be photographing a solar eclipse's progress taking successive shots of the sun being partially eclipsed before and after totality. The filter is removed from the camera while the sun is totally eclipsed. For practice, I've been photographing the full day sun with various manual settings using a Nikon D70s, CPU(D) lens, and a Black Mylar filter. I did get a few proper shots with the sun totally orange without any orange rays extruding from the sun, but most of the shots of the sun are blown out white with a thin yellow glow at the edge of the sun. Does anyone have any advice as to what shutter speed, aperture, and ISO would be best to use when the sun is partially eclipsed? I'm running out of time to experiment, and an overcast of clouds can show up at home in the USA, or in Libya. Robert Bracket it to Hell, and use the lowest ISO you can. Try this website: http://www.mreclipse.com/Totality/TotalityCh12-1.html The sun is still the same brightness even if part of it is covered up. BTW; Look through the black mylar (highly unsafe) at your peril. The only suitable materials are: Astronomical mylar filters available from various sources, the best being Baader Solar Film, http://www.baader-planetarium.de/zubehoer/zubsonne/astrsolar.htm#asolar chrome or stainless coated glass filters from companies like Thousand Oaks Optical or no#14 welder's glass, though that materials is optically useless for photography. > Bracket it to Hell, and use the lowest ISO you can. > Try this website: [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > Oaks Optical or no#14 welder's glass, though that materials is > optically useless for photography. RichA, Thanks for the info! The filter I have been using is a 67mm black mylar screw on filter from a local company named "Hands On Filters" that sells glass filters mostly for telescopes. I'll check out "Thousand Oaks Solar Film" for a stainless coated glass filter. May be they can ship it express. I have glass welder goggles that I have used for other eclipses that worked quite well for viewing, but as you say they were not any good for a camera filter. Robert > The filter I have been using is a 67mm black mylar screw on filter from a > local company named "Hands On Filters" that sells glass filters mostly for > telescopes. I'll check out "Thousand Oaks Solar Film" for a stainless > coated glass filter. May be they can ship it express. Once I used an exposed and developed black&white film as a filter - I think the following photo was taken using this setup http://www.meduna.org/albums/Nature/slides/24_zatmenie_en.html Of course, this was no DSLR and I am no pro (actually the camera was on a mini-tripod in my sleeping room :D) - for making a 67mm one would need an x-ray film or something like that. > I have glass welder goggles that I have used for other eclipses that worked > quite well for viewing, but as you say they were not any good for a camera > filter. Yup. Regards  SignatureStano >> Bracket it to Hell, and use the lowest ISO you can. >> Try this website: [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > >Robert If they're selling it is a solar filter material then I assume it safe, no company would risk the lawsuits otherwise. Thousand Oaks and Astro-Physics (USA) both sell material specifically for photography that is lighter than the visual stuff, so you can't view through it, but even the normal density material will allow exposure times of 1/250th of a second or better so there is no need to shoot without the filter except at totality or near totality and ONLY when the eclipse is complete and not annular (an annular eclipse is where the Moon only covers the center of the Sun leaving an exposed ring, this is where the Moon is closer to Earth). -Rich > In a few days, I will be photographing a solar eclipse's progress taking > successive shots of the sun being partially eclipsed before and after > totality. The filter is removed from the camera while the sun is totally > eclipsed. <...> > Does anyone have any advice as to what shutter speed, aperture, and ISO > would be best to use when the sun is partially eclipsed? I'm running out of > time to experiment, and an overcast of clouds can show up at home in the > USA, or in Libya. > > Robert Hi Robert. FYI, some of my solar stuff: Total eclipse, slr+ colour transparency film: http://faxmentis.org/html/science35.html Partial eclipse, digital P&S: http://faxmentis.org/html/eclipse03a.html Transit of Mercury, slr + 100ASA print film: http://faxmentis.org/html/science36.html Transit of Venus, both slr + colour transparency film and Sony Mavica: http://faxmentis.org/html/transit3.html Filters used: 1000 Oaks - silver colour image Baader mylar film - orange image. I wouldn't consider using any filter not *specifically* designed for solar use. You can't see UV. Exposure: TTL meter works fine, but bracket like crazy. Sunspots (if present) should be dead-easy to capture. Index to lots more astro stuff: http://faxmentis.org/html/science.html#index ...and to stay on topic for the group: Many of the shots linked to in the above index were taken with a Pentax *1stDS. I'm busting to try out my Nikon D50 on some similar astro targets. -- Jeff R. >I wouldn't consider using any filter not *specifically* designed for solar >use. You can't see UV. Neutral density doesn't block IR very well, either. Signature<>>< ><<> ><<> <>>< ><<> <>>< <>>< ><<> John P Sheehy <JPS@no.komm> ><<> <>>< <>>< ><<> <>>< ><<> ><<> <>>< In addition to the rest of the info people have supplied, the D70 series has a bug which creates a blown-out band that stretches to the edge of the frame if you shoot directly into the sun at shutter speeds above 1/1000 sec. Keep the speed under 1/1000 and you'll struggle with controlling the light but you won't get that band... -=-Joe > In a few days, I will be photographing a solar eclipse's progress taking > successive shots of the sun being partially eclipsed before and after [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > Robert Well, today at noon I made several shots of the full sun with a clear sky with good results. The pro camera man going on the eclipse tour said I finally got it right. The sun in the photo was a nice round circle filled with an orange color about an inch in diameter. The background sky all black. The camera settings of the shots were as follows: Camera D70s Black Mylar Filter ISO = 200 Shutter Speed 1000 Aperture 4.5 Full Zoom in on the sun Manual focus Time of day 12:45 PM Tomorrow we leave for Libya, and will be shooting the partial eclipse views of the sun using the same settings. When the sun is totally eclipsed, the filter will be removed and different camera settings used. Robert > In addition to the rest of the info people have supplied, the D70 > series has a bug which creates a blown-out band that stretches to the [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] >> >> Robert > Well, today at noon I made several shots of the full sun with a clear sky > with good results. The pro camera man going on the eclipse tour said I [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > > Robert What settings will you use during totality? > What settings will you use during totality? The dynamic range in the corona from the bright inner ring to the delicate outer filaments is far beyond the capabilities of any camera. You should go systematically through as many exposure settings as you have time for. No one exposure can catch all the detail. > In a few days, I will be photographing a solar eclipse's progress taking > successive shots of the sun being partially eclipsed before and after [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > > Robert Here's one tip: The only total solar eclipse I shot I almost missed. When it finally went total I was just looking at it with my mouth hanging open until my friend got my attention and I started shooting. So, aside from the technical aspect, keep your wits. Another cool effect is to see the crescent shaped circles of light that filter down through trees. You might have a second P&S camera handy to snatch some of those, it's really strange and unusual to see. |
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