Something Different From The Solar Eclipse

Like millions of others, June and I took a couple days and traveled to watch and hopefully photograph the total solar eclipse on August 20. By now you've seen dozens of photos from that day and they all pretty much look the same. Here's my story and some different photos from Total Solar Eclipse Day.

I planned for a couple months leading up to the eclipse day.   I picked my location and booked one of the last hotel rooms in Townsend Tennessee months before.  I wanted to be close so we could get there early to claim our spot.  I ordered eclipse

Eclipse Glasses for $20 Each

glasses and a solar filter for my camera.  I even wrote a 10-page document with details on times, locations, angles of the sun, camera settings, diagrams, etc.  I consulted with Kent Ervin, one of the best photographers I know, comparing plans, etc. I was ready.

The Tree

June and I spent the day before Eclipse Day in the Smokies, including some time under "The Tree" in Cades Cove where I planned on making my photos.

On the big day, we got up and left our hotel around 6 AM, more than seven hours before the start of the eclipse.  At 6:30, two miles from the entrance to Cades Cove we found ourselves in a line of cars with license plate from all over the east.

6:30 AM

We were there in line for almost 2 hours. I don't know but wouldn't be surprised if that line of cars went all the way back to Townsend. Everyone was excited and in a good mood. We met some nice people and I got to photograph a cool mushroom while we waited.

7:20 AM

Cable Mill Area by June

The Park Service finally opened the gate a little after 8 AM and we were soon in The Cove slowly following a line of cars around the loop.  As planned we took Hyatt Lane across to the other side to get to our spot and set up.

I really had no idea how many people would want to watch or photograph from our spot.  We saw very few cars go by while we waited.  Where were all the cars?  Knowing that we would be waiting for most of a day I brought our bikes.  I rode to the Cable Mill for a bathroom break and found the cars.  It was a difficult ride because the cars were moving too slow for me to ride my bike and much of the time I was standing still waiting on the line of cars or walking my bike.

360 Degree Pano of Our Spot by June

Turns out few people made it past the mill.  There were hundreds of cars and thousands of people at the Cable Mill area. Other than another photographer and a young couple we had the Oak tree to ourselves.

That old Oak is the most photographed tree in the park.  Try Googling "The Tree Cades Cove" and you will see hundreds of photos.  Like all photographers who visit the park, I've also photographed The Tree many times but never gotten up under it.  We were there for the shade and hopefully to include part of The Tree in eclipse photos.  What we found was a wealth of photos waiting to be made.  These are some of my "bonus shots" I found while waiting under The Tree.

There were many song birds among the branches of the Oak tree and in the grasses of the recently mowed field.  We were there for several hours, giving me many opportunities to photograph them.

Goldfinch

Eastern Kingbird

Bluebird

Song Sparrow

Indian Paintbrush and Coneflower

The birds were in their subdued summer colors.  The flower and grasses, however, were in their glory.

Dew on Grass

Queen Anne's Lace

Goldenrod

The one thing I couldn't plan was the weather, but by the time the eclipse started we had mostly clear blue skies with only a few clouds.  However, not all my photography plans worked out.  I gave up on the shot with the tree and the sun and put that camera up.  I did take close up photos of the sun every 10 minutes to use to create a composite of the different phases.

Sunspots

My Composite

All my planning didn't prepare me for the actual totality event.  When it happened, it got dark very fast and I got excited.  I needed to change camera settings and it was dark enough that I had a hard time seeing the dials on my camera.  The exposures weren't working out anything like I planned and I didn't realize until it was over that in the excitement of the two minutes of totality I forgot to remove the solar filter from my lens!  I didn't get the cool totality shots that everyone else got, but I am happy with what I did get.

Although the totality only lasted 2 minutes where we were, it was worth everything we put into it. I'm planning to go to the next one on April 8, 2024.  Less than 7 years away!  I wonder if I will find a spot with birds, flowers, and an old Oak tree...

Go Wide!

The college football season is rapidly approaching the end of the regular season and the beginning of the bowls.   Going wide is something we'll hear when talking about football wideouts and wide receivers. Maybe we'll hear it this Saturday in the Florida - Florida State game, but I'm afraid the passing will favor the Seminoles this year.

We can also go wide in photography.   A wide angle lens is typically in the 24mm - 36mm range with ultra-wide having shorter focal lengths and standard or normal lenses having longer focal lengths.  The are called wide angle because the angle of view through the lens takes in so much more.  A 28mm lens has a 75 degree angle of view, while a 135 mm has only an 18 degree view.

The typical way to use a wide angle is to capture a big wide landscape scene.

Shaker Village

Reel Foot Lake 

Both the Shaker Villiage and Reel Foot Lake photos were taken at 17mm.   They take in a lot of the scene from the far left to the far right.   This is a perfect use for a wide angle lens, but not the only use.

When you place objects close to a wide angle lens their size is magnified relative to objects that are further away, like in this photo of the Cable Mill in Cades Cove.

Cable Mill @ 24mm

What if you turned your camera and took a portrait (taller) orientation shot?   Same effect - things that are close appear much bigger.

22mm

In the photo to the left the white flower is the obvious subject.  It is bright and big, demanding attention.   The purple flowers in the background are hardly noticeable, but they do add some depth to the photo.

I've found this is a fun way to get close up shots but include the environment around the subject in the photo.   Wide angle lenses also tend to have a much deeper depth of field, making it easier to keep the close subject and far background in focus.

21mm

17mm

I've used this technique with flowers to draw people's attention to the flower.  You can use the same technique on other subjects, but beware.  If you use a wide angle lens to photograph a person up close you can get a photo with a large nose or ears.  Not too flattering.

Next time you're out try turning your camera into the portrait orientation and going wide!

Everybody Needs Beauty... The Calendar Chronicles for April

Its April 6 and I'm just now getting around to blogging about the calendar photo for April.   Spring has become a busy time and is about the get busier for June and I. I think the photo for April is appropriate for busy times.

When I am busy and don't take time to slow down I miss out on what God has given me to enjoy in His creation.  Busyness also robes me in other ways.

"the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful." - Mark 4:19

John Muir had it right.   We all need "places to play in and pray in where nature may heal and cheer and give strength to the body and soul alike."  We need to take time to slow down, turn off the pursuit of wealth and other things and spend time in His word and His presence.  

This all sound great, but it can be difficult to accomplish when those other things are screaming for attention.  One sure fire way to get away is to go somewhere that does not have internet service, wifi, or cell phone service.  If I can't read my email, check facebook, listen to voice mails, or check in at work then the power of those things to be distractions is greatly diminished.  

One of the best places to do this is Cades Cove in The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  The subject of this photo is the Cable Mill in Cades Cove.   Everyone who has been to the cove has taken pictures of this mill and I have a pretty good collection of them myself.  The challenge for me the day I took this one was to come up with an image that is different from all my others and maybe even different from the million and one others out there on the internet.  

The fact that it was raining made this photo possible.   The cloudy rainy conditions provided nice soft even light with no harsh shadows to deal with.  Normally on a spring day there would have been many people exploring inside and outside the mill.  On this day the rain kept them away and allowed me to compose this photo to include the bridge, see inside the mill and capture the Dogwood flowers.

During the next three plus busy weeks take a moment and think about what Muir had to say.  Slow down

"Adopt the pace of nature:  her secret is patience."  -Ralph Waldo Emerson