Solar Eclipse

I sang in a concert this afternoon, and we got home about 6:15 or 6:20 PM, which was very shortly before the eclipse peak. It was already darker than usual; the house was dark, which is very rare at that hour in May.  The eclipse maximum was visible in California at 6:33 PM.

Northern California wasn't in the small geographic path that saw the "ring of fire" in today's partial solar eclipse.  And unlike my friend Blake, I don't have a telescope with a solar filter, nor do I have welder's glasses.  I found an advertising postcard and poked a hole in it with a paper clip, to get a pinhole camera image on a flat surface that I could photograph with my telephoto lens.  When I went over to the neighbor's house, I borrowed some of the old film negatives they were using, 3 at a time, as a filter, but I thought my best pinhole images gave a clearer view than what I could see there, and of course I couldn't photograph through them.  Hm, note to self:  solar filter for camera??

I got two good shots in our upstairs bedroom, which was still getting direct sun; then I went over to the neighbor's house and got 3 more shots against their house wall, at very close to eclipse maximum.  Here are the first 2 shots, taken around 6:25:

Eclipse, about 6:17

Eclipse, about 6:20

And here are the later shots taken against the neighbor's wall, taken at 6:31, 6:32, and 6:33, respectively. 

Eclipse, against neighbor's wall

Eclipse, against neighbor's wall

Eclipse, against neighbor's wall

After that, the sun dropped below the trees on the canyon wall, so we all gave up and went in to dinner.  I still haven't seen a full solar eclipse.

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