Total Solar Eclipse 2024
April 8th 2024 marks not only the first solar eclipse I ever witnessed, but it's also my birthday. When I found out that a total solar eclipse was going to fall on my birthday within a days drive I started making plans. Well trying to. lol. little did I know that every place that I would try to go to would be completely booked. Fortunately for me my cousin lived within the totality zone. So I called her up and asked if I could come visit for the weekend. For some reason I became obsessed with everything I could learn about a total solar eclipse.
After a lot of research, I came to the conclusion that I wanted to shoot the eclipse on two cameras to give myself some variety. So I got online and I ordered a lens from a rental company. come to find out every good lens was pretty much already rented out lol. I did get lucky enough to find a 150 to 500 mm lens from Tamron that could get the job done. I already owned two Sony a7iv’s and another lens that was capable of getting the shots that I wanted.
Sony a7iv w/ Tamron 150-500mm | Sony a7iv w/ Tamron 35-150mm
So, as the day approached for the eclipse, there was one huge concern that everyone was talking about. The weather was unfortunately going to be cloudy and overcast guys all day. But with our plans already said, there wasn't a whole lot of options for us. We were staying in Frankston, which is about 30 minutes south west of Tyler Texas. There were multiple directions in which we could go to still see the eclipse however, there was no way to know which way was going to be the right way. I ended up settling for Canton Texas, which is about an hour drive to the west of where I was staying. The place is called 2 acre lake. It's a nice lake side park and it was fortunately not overcrowded.
2 Acre Lake in Canton TX.
As I found myself setting up for my first ever eclipse, I was very hopeful because the skies were cloudy, but there was a lot of movement and the blue sky was coming through quite often. As the eclipse began, I was able to get shots of each portion of the eclipse through brakes in the clouds. I didn't expect to like these shots as much as the totality shot but these are still really cool to see. If you look close, you can actually see the sunspots.
As the totality got closer and closer, so did the clouds and right before the sun was fully eclipsed, the entire sky was filled with dark clouds. I felt like all hope was lost. The one shot that I wanted more than anything was the fully eclipsed totality shot. I wouldn't call it luck but for a split second (and I mean maybe 10 seconds total) the clouds thinned just enough for me to get a view of the sun. However, because I had no idea where it was, my camera was not perfectly positioned so I quickly maneuvered my camera as fast as I could, and tried to get the best shot, I possibly could. I won't say that it's perfect, but I got the shot and that's what matters.
Total Solar Eclipse 2024
As I mentioned, the images aren't technically "perfect" but nothing in life ever is. In all honesty the experience of seeing a total solar eclipse is like none other. I enjoyed it so much that I am hoping that I am able to go to Iceland or Spain in 2026 to see the next one thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the images.
