Chasing Eclipses

Do you know where you will be on April 8? I will be somewhere near Lake Placid, New York. Hopefully there will be a clear view of the sky! I’ll have my camera ready to take pictures of the total solar eclipse. A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and Earth, completely obscuring the sun’s light.

An event of this kind happens, on average, every 18 months somewhere on this planet. But on April 8, the next solar eclipse will be visible in North America, and totality—the time when the sun is completely covered by the moon—will last up to 4 minutes and 28 seconds. That’s twice as long as the 2017 solar eclipse!

It was in 2017 that I witnessed my first total solar eclipse. As an avid hiker and photographer, I traveled to Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming to backpack in the mountains and photograph the eclipse. On the day of the eclipse, I set up my camera on the side of a mountain and documented as the moon slowly passed in front of the sun. The experience was so magical, I was instantly hooked!

Like me, people from all over the world will be traveling to Mexico, the United States, and Canada to witness the phenomenon this month. Many of these eclipse chasers will also be photographing the event.

For photographers, this is a special opportunity to photograph the sun’s corona, the faint outermost layer that’s visible only during an eclipse. During the partial phase of the eclipse, you need a special solar filter on the camera’s lens to protect the camera from the sun’s powerful rays. Once the sun is completely covered by the moon during totality, it is safe to remove the filter. Although almost any camera can photograph the eclipse, many photographers will use a DSLR camera with a zoom lens and a tripod. You can see the setup I used in 2017 in Wyoming in the image below.

Even if you’re not a photographer, there are many other ways to experience a total eclipse. You will feel the drop in temperature as the sun is concealed by the moon, listen as birds go quiet, and watch as stars start to appear in the darkening sky.

Always be sure to wear ISO approved eclipse glasses when viewing the sun. They contain filters that will shield your eyes from the sun’s blinding rays. Looking directly at the sun without proper protection can damage your eyes. If you don’t have eclipse glasses, you can make your own pinhole viewer to observe it safely. (Use this skills sheet to make your own!) 

An estimated 44 million people will be in the path of totality, experiencing total darkness for two or more minutes as the total eclipse passes from Mexico to Canada. In many parts of the U.S. outside the darkest part of the shadow, viewers will see a partial eclipse. The moon will cover a portion of the sun’s disk, making the sun look like a crescent.

This will be the last total eclipse visible in North America for more than a decade. But if you also catch the eclipse chaser bug, the next total eclipse will be visible in Europe in 2026. See you there!