Praying for clear sky for you because I want to see more of your wonderful images. I had no luck last time with my plain-jane setup while others had nice images with old disposable cameras with a welding filter.
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Can you give us mere mortals hints?

What about your nice Manfrotto tripod?

Tips, eh? Well… first, shoot on manual and use the camera’s histogram display to make sure you are not overexposing. There will be a single very stark peak, and it should be as far to the right of the display as you can get it without running against the edge.

Choose the smallest ƒ-stop your camera and lens can handle without exceeding its diffraction limit. You can look it up online, or, if you need to guess, guess ƒ/8. You have three more adjustments available to get the exposure correct: shutter speed, ISO, and exposure compensation.

The latter is just a knob that will adjust the other things, and you can use it to tweak the results as conditions change by keeping the histogram correct with it. It is calibrated in stops. 1 stop being 1/2 the light reaching the sensor. The resolution will be either 1/2 stops or 1/3 stops. This may be selectable in your camera settings, if so, choose 1/3 stops.

ISO (sensitivity) is one that you want to keep fixed, if possible. Try to keep it at your camera’s lowest—probably ISO100. Don’t go lower that 100 if there an “extended“ range, and if you can’t do 100, do the lowest you can. This influences noise, and for good detail you will want to keep the noise as low as possible.

This leaves shutter speed. Because there will be vibration, possible atmospherics, and motion of the sun/moon you want to keep this as high as you can. Depending on your filter, you might be able to keep it at 1/1000s, or higher, but don’t let it get below 1/500s. If you can’t satisfy the histogram at or above 1/500s then you can try stopping up the aperture.

Don’t get the aperature too large, try to stay at ƒ/5.6 or above. If you run out of string on the aperture, you can turn up the ISO but try not to get higher than ISO400. You can probably manage to do this.

Keep in mind that the light will change dramatically as the eclipse proceeds. One trick you can use is to set the camera for aperture priority (A, or \(\mathsf{A_V}\) for Canon) and use it as a light meter. Make note of what shutter speed the camera selects, and switch back to manual, using that value as a starting point.

If you are having trouble doing all this as things proceed, forget it and choose aperture priority mode, with a fixed ISO, and let the camera do its thing. Better to get something recorded than nothing.

You will also need to focus. The camera‘s autofocus is likely to have a lot of trouble with the very low contrast sun. Despite the great distance, the focus will not be correct at ”infinity”. Get a good focus, manually—check it in live view, on the LCD. Unless you have great confidence in the quality of your filter, do not use the optical viewfinder.

Once you have a solid focus, literally tape the focus ring (gaffer’s tape is the right stuff) and make sure the camera and/or lens are set to manual focus. This will not need to be changed if you don’t mess it up. Also, do not shoot JPEGs—shoot RAW. JPEGs have less dynamic range, and the camera will be making decisions about light and color.

You will need to process the RAW files afterwards, but there are a number of free ways to do that. Every camera manufacturer has some program to process the RAW files from their cameras. For example, Canon has Digital Photo Professional. If you can’t find one for your camera, there are F/OSS options, or programs that come with an OS (MacOS Photos app can do RAW, there must be a Windows equivalent).

One more thing: practice! Take some photos of the sun to see what it is like. You can check your focus using sun spots. You will not see them if you are not in focus, and they will get noticeably sharper when you have it dialed in.

I hope this helps. Good luck and have fun!

 

Nice Manfrotto tripod? Still have it. That photo was from 2017.

 

Ya'akov, thanks for sharing some great and helpful information. I may break out my Canon EOS 7D and I need to run out to Dodd Camera and just buy a filter. This rather than try to use a welding glass like I posted earlier. All I need is a clear sky.

Ron

 

So, just did some experimentation, better results—if not the best, yet.

Here is a shot with better focus and exposure. Most surface detail is "real", that is, what you see is actually there. This is particularly true of the white details around sunspots. We can't see any corona or ejecta, but for reference, see the second photo, from NASA about the same time (it is rotated about -90°, but it lines up exactly when rotated and scaled to match).

my photo


NASA's photo​

 

I'm in Monterrey. And although I'm not in the path of totality, at least I'll be able to witness a more than 95% occultation.

Who knows ... I might plan a quick trip close by just to enjoy this once in a lifetime experience ...

 

I'm in Monterrey. And although I'm not in the path of totality, at least I'll be able to witness a more than 95% occultation.

Who knows ... I might plan a quick trip close by just to enjoy this once in a lifetime experience ...

Yes, and your odds of clear skies are much better than mine. Enjoy!

Ron

 

 

I'm in Monterrey. And although I'm not in the path of totality, at least I'll be able to witness a more than 95% occultation.

Who knows ... I might plan a quick trip close by just to enjoy this once in a lifetime experience ...

Plan the trip but don't go to someplace popular. If you drive, get there early and plan to leave late.

2017
https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/e...ent-in-oregon-history-odot-says/277-457766325

PORTLAND, Ore. -- ODOT is staffing up and warning drivers to be prepared to be stuck in their cars for hours during the solar eclipse.
Oregon Department of Transportation spokesman Don Hamilton says the eclipse will cause "the biggest traffic event in Oregon history" on August 21.
ODOT is staffing up and warning drivers to be prepared to be stuck in your car for hours.

 

I'm in Monterrey. And although I'm not in the path of totality, at least I'll be able to witness a more than 95% occultation.

Who knows ... I might plan a quick trip close by just to enjoy this once in a lifetime experience ...

I highly recommend it. I've been watching eclipses since I was a kid but only recently had the chance to see a couple total eclipses, first the one in southern Illinois and then the annular eclipse in Texas. In the 2017 eclipse I learned there is an enormous difference between even 99% and 100% coverage. The difference was much more than I anticipated. Truly awesome. Everyone there vowed to take every opportunity to view more total eclipses.

The annular eclipse was fun. We watched it from the beach near Corpus Christie. But it was nothing compared to the total eclipse.

This eclipse in April is later in the day and ... in April. So we're concerned about visibility but we'll make the drive. It's worth it.

 

I anticipate that Niagara Falls and Buffalo NY will be jam packed.
I plan on being towards the shores of Lake Eire and try to avoid the major roads and highways.

If you happen to be driving anytime before or after the eclipse, lower the car visor and don't ever think of looking at the sun. Turn your night lights on.

 

That pinhole effect is pretty cool.

It really is. We discovered by accident that a colander makes a fun display of hundreds of little images, see below.
And you don't think of trees and leaves making images of the sun on the ground but they clearly do - thousands of crescents everywhere.

 

Here is my quick estimate of the size of the image of the sun in a pin-hole projection.
The ratio of the diameter of the sun to the distance of the sun from Earth is about 1:100.
The length of my pin-hole camera is about 650mm. Hence the size of the image of the sun is about 6.5mm.

 

My favorite was the #12 lens out of my old welding mask. Now it's the solar filter on the 4" Celestron refractor scope with a ~4X lens to watch the solar flares dance. Still kicking myself for not getting the 6" refractor...

 

Pinhole projectors are a great way to get photos. If you plan it you can use a clean, neutral white surface for the screen (like foam board) and mount the phone/camera in place, then use a remote release or short self timer.

It would be a really cool project to build a big camera obscura maybe in a tent so you could get a very large image of the eclipse inside.

 

Who knows ... I might plan a quick trip close by just to enjoy this once in a lifetime experience ...

I say go for it. Just leave yourself a wide margin of time and stay safe.

Ron

 

I say go for it. Just leave yourself a wide margin of time and stay safe.

Ron

I plan on getting to my viewing location at least two hours ahead.

 

I plan on getting to my viewing location at least two hours ahead.

At least a few hours. Many arrived at locations here at zero dark thirty to get a good spot and large numbers camped overnight.

 

https://www.newsweek.com/national-guard-deployed-us-solar-eclipse-april-2024-1881284
Oklahoma's National Guard is set to be deployed for the upcoming total solar eclipse, when as many as 100,000 people are expected to visit one county.

With the spectacle expected to draw crowds across the nation to areas in the eclipse's path, officials are already voicing concern about stretched public safety resources, while some schools plan to close for the day, citing student safety.

At least four states on the eclipse's trajectory have urged residents to stock up on groceries and gas ahead of its occurrence, as traffic is expected to overwhelm local roads. The Federal Highway Administration has also warned that increased traffic to remote areas could lead to unsafely parked vehicles and the potential for wildfires in areas with dry vegetation.

 

https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2024/safety/
Eye Safety During a Total Solar Eclipse

Not sure about eye protection, I'd wear a patch over one eye, so I'd at least have one left.

 

I plan on getting to my viewing location at least two hours ahead.

Like I told my sisters, Columbus is about a 2 hour ride with a single path up this way. That is I-71 and I suggested they get an early start as I figure I-71 will be heavy traffic all the way, possibly starting the night before.

Ron