Photographing the Sun can be very dangerous if proper precautions are not taken. Taking photographs of the Sun when it is high in the sky requires specialised equipment. When the Sun is rising through sea mist, the mist acts as a large neutral density filter. Exposures in the region of 1/60 - 1/1000 second at 22, 100ASA depending on conditions are adequate. Do not use your built-in meter. Even using a 500mm lens, the Suns image covers less than 2% of the frame. While a 1% TTL spotmeter used with a1000mm lens might work, a 1 degree handheld spot meter will not. The Sun's angular diameter is only 0.5 degree and hence a 1 degree handheld spot meter covers four times the area of the Sun. If you want to preserve the sky colour, meter the sky near the sun then move the Sun back into the frame. In this case the sun will be overexposed.
At sunset in Australia, try using 1/1000 second at 32, 100ASA, looking into a slightly dusty western sky. Don't stare at the Sun's image when composing & focussing. Focus on something distant without the Sun in the frame and then compose quickly! In many other parts of the world, (Canada, USA, most of Europe & Asia) the air is so filthy that this rule does not apply. People from these places don't know what you are talking about when you tell them about this because they've never seen a really clear sky. In much of Australia, the sun is still much too bright to look at while it is setting. The only exceptions to this are when there are major bush fires and in some of the larger cities like Sydney & Melbourne. The sun looks very red and pale as it sets in most of these places as with much of Nth America. I find the best way to do this is to move the camera so the sun is just out of field, take an exposure reading, then go back. If you want a really saturated sky colour under expose on or occasionally even two stops. Over exposure give more pastel colours.
Sunspots & the Sun's disc can be photographed safely by using some optical systems like a pair of binoculars or small telescope to project an image onto a white card. Point a camera at the card, meter off the card and open up 1 stop. Take care that your binoculars or spotting scope do not contain plastic elements or you may experience meltdown. At no time should you look directly through the telescope
The Sun when high in the Sky is a very bright object. The correct exposure for the Sun is about 1/1 000 000 second at F16. It is very dangerous to look directly at the Sun with the naked eye, through binoculars, or through a camera. To view through a camera safely requires a neutral density material which reduces the intensity by ten thousand (10,000) to one hundred thousand times (100,000). The filter material must attenuate infra-red, visible and UV intensities equally to render a safe image. Kodak make a range of gelatine filters with such densities. These filters cut visible but not IR radiation. They may be used safely by using a safe - non - photographic filter to view then changing to a photographic filter with a calibrated density for the photograph. A number 14 welding goggle is a safe filter material as it is designed for attenuating IR & UV from arc welding discharge. The number 14 is difficult to find in Australia so a combination of a #13 & #10 may be used as a substitute. Filters cost $2.75 each at welding suppliers. BOC at Fyshwick keeps them in stock.
THE FILTERS ALWAYS GO IN FRONT OF THE LENS NOT BETWEEN YOUR EYE & THE CAMERA VIEWFINDER!! This is very important. Placing a filter behind the optical system exposes the filter to extreme heat which can crack or melt filter materials.
With any of these methods, I never view the Sun for more than a few seconds at any one time. Watch out for scratched filters!
I have a Kodak number 4 neutral density filter. The number four means ten to the power of four - ie 10 000 x light reduction not a 4x neutral density available at most camera stores. The ND4 filter will need to be ordered from Kodak directly. Camera shops will not generally stock these items. A welding supplier will have the green filters.
With my #4 ND filter, an exposure of 1/1000 second at 22 with 100 ASA film gives a "coloured sun"(yellow orange) and 1/500 second at 22 gives a whiter less saturated image with colour slide film.
If you ever have the opportunity to be in the path of a total eclipse of the Sun, do not miss it. It is truly one of the greatest spectacles nature has to offer.
When photographing a partial eclipse of the Sun, the exposures and techniques for safe viewing are exactly the same as those outlined in the section on Sunspots and the Sun. There is a myth that it is dangerous to look at the Sun during an eclipse. It is dangerous to look at the Sun anytime. An eclipse simply gives people an excuse to look at the Sun for extended periods resulting in eye damage.
During a Total Solar eclipse, the partial eclipse is not the most interesting thing to observe & photograph before the total phase. Many other things are occurring around you. Birds and animals think that twilight is coming, the area of the Earth under the Moons shadow is rapidly cooling causing a chilling and eerie wind to begin to blow. By turning away from the Sun, you can watch the partial phase with the aid of a hole in a piece of cardboard and simultaneously watch the shadow of the Moon approach from the west. For 10-15minutes before the totality, the shadow of the Moon slowly rises above the western horizon as a broad twilight blue band. As it nears the point of totality, the shadow moves at a frightening pace and the light seems to be being sucked from the landscape by a giant celestial vacuum cleaner. As the Moon covers the last little bit of the Sun, it seems to go very dark until your eyes adapt to the new light level. The diamond ring ( the last little ray of sunshine seen through valleys on the limb of the Moon ) and then small red flashes emanate from the dark edge of the Moon's disk. These are solar flares which are ejected from the Sun's surface out into space until they are pulled back in by the Sun's immense gravitational pull & are called Bailey's beads. Finally the Corona appears in all its glory. Giant glowing bands of ionised gas which follow the Sun's magnetic field lines millions of kilometres into space.
The Moon is a simple object to photograph. It is very bright being lit by Sunlight. When the Moon is visible during the day, make the exposure according to the ambient lighting.
To take a stunning photograph of the Moon, you need a few things
1. A long focal length. The size of the Moon on your film is shown in the table below. These image sizes also apply to photographs of the sun.
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2. A good high contrast film.
BLM (bracket like mad)
The exposures used are shown below. Bracket a several stops either side.
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Other photographic possibilities
Half Moon (first and last quarter)
Use two stops more than indicated by the table for full Moon.
Earthshine
Earthshine is the grey outline of the dark side of the Moon
that can be seen when there is a thin crescent Moon. You need
a fast lens here. Using a 200mm 4 an exposure time of 2 seconds
at f 4 with 200ASA film will give adequate exposure without
much Earth motion.
Lunar eclipse
When the Moon passes into the shadow of the Earth, a lunar
eclipse occurs.
Exposure on the partial phases varies so you'll have to BLM.
The following suggestions are for 400 ASA film at f11( an f4 telephoto lens with a 2x converter - no converter during totality)
For partial phases try using the full Moon exposure until the Moon is 1/2 covered and open up a couple of stops as the Moon is 3/4 immersed.
For totality try bracketing between 1/30 s f4 for a bright
copper red moon and 30 s for a really dark lunar eclipse (Grey
Moon) such as the one on 4th June, 1993.
The brightness of totality varies a lot from eclipse to eclipse
depending on how deeply the Moon is buried inside the Earths shadow
and how much light scattering dust lies around the edge of the
Earth to refract & scatter light onto the Moon.
Watch the length of exposure or the Moon will blur.
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Max exposure time (seconds) |
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| Webmaster : Joseph A. Cali Send all comments to Joe Cali at joe_cali@hotmail.com Last modified 1st July, 2000. |