Total Solar Eclipse April 8, 2024 in Ontario, Canada
Considering the rarity of this event, I feel incredibly fortunate to have been just a 30 minute drive away from the path of totality on Monday, April 8 when the total solar eclipse was due to occur. Although a solar eclipse is visible from somewhere on Earth's surface every 18 months or so, the frequency of its occurrence at any one particular location is considerably more rare. Not to mention the prerequisite of clear skies. The last solar eclipse visible from eastern Canada was over 50 years ago, and the next one won't occur until 2106!
In preparation for this day, I got some solar glasses and a 16.5 stop ND filter for my Nikon camera. The weather had been mixed in the days leading up, so it wasn't until late Monday morning that we were confident we'd have clear skies. When it was finally time, we jumped into the car and drove until we were in the totality path (apparently, even 99.5% coverage won't give you the full experience) and found a convenient and cozy spot to watch. We put on our solar glasses and took a first look up at the midday sun. It was glowing orange, with a "bite" taken out of it, as the moon had already positioned itself partly over the burning sun disk. Over the course of the next hour or so, we watched as more and more of the sun got covered up, until nothing but a tiny sliver of light remained - like a crescent moon at nighttime.
That's when day turned into twilight. As if the sun was "setting" in the middle of the day, the fields and forest around us lit up with golden hour hues. The sky turned orange-yellow above the horizon, and the chirping of birds began fading away. Then, suddenly, it was dark. It's hard to describe the eerie and exhilarating feeling during totality, when the world went was dim and quiet, even a little chilly, for a few brief moments. The sounds of nature faded away completely, save for the sounds of a light breeze. The world was asleep.
When totality arrived, we took off our glasses to observe the surrounding stillness and look up at the black disk in the sky, with faint white light beaming from behind it. It was no more than a minute or two before bright rays began emerging at one corner of the dark moon, and soon the sun came out again, bringing the surrounding scenery back to life.
What a phenomenal experience!
Moment of Totality
April 8, 2024 in Ontario, Canada
Knowing I could easily burn the camera sensor without the right equipment and settings, I was as nervous as I was excited to attempt capturing this experience on camera.
To be safe, I screwed on my 16.5 ND filter before leaving home. Once the camera was set up on the tripod, I brought the ISO down to 64, adjusted the shutter speed until the exposure was about right, and manually focused on the sun. With bracketing on, I was taking 3 shots at every phase with a +/-0.7 EV difference, to give myself the flexibility of choosing the most ideal exposure later. I ended up with a total of about 200 shots, from which I selected 7 to create the sequence in the first image.
For the brief few moments of totality, once I was confident the sun was completely hidden, I quickly removed the ND filter and (after adjusting the shutter speed to suit the new lighting conditions) captured several images in quick succession, bracketing the exposure as before. By stacking 3 images later in post-processing I was able to keep the detail of the red plasma visible in several places around the sun, while maintaining the brightness of the surrounding white glow! As soon as there was a hint of light beaming past the black disk of the moon, I put the filter back on and continued with the sequence of the partially eclipsed sun.
I have to say that getting out to experience this live was worth every bit and no photographs out there, including my own, do it justice. It'll probably be a while, but I sure hope to be able to witness this rare phenomenon again someday.
For my first time shooting it, I couldn't be happier with the results!