Greetings fellow Earthlings! The eclipse on August 21, 2017 was the first eclipse to pass over the entire continental United States in more than a century, and millions of people donned their safety glasses to witness the event. Because I live in Oregon, the path of totality was less than 50 miles from my home, so off I went, iPhone in hand. “Leave taking pictures of it to the professionals,” my wise father advised, which I did, except that I didn’t. I have a small GoSky spotting scope with an attachment for my iPhone so with a little planning, I made a very easy setup that included a tripod and some solar mylar, courtesy of the Oregon Tourism Board’s glasses that they had distributed for the event. After all, our great state was the first to get a glimpse of this celestial event, so why not make sure everyone can watch? Thank you, Travel Oregon! Unbelievably enough, the weather was perfect for viewing in the Willamette Valley. It was a spectacular sight to see the moon block out the sun for a total of 1 minute. I, along with the small crowd that had gathered at Linfield College, was stunned at the beauty of it.
Below are a few photographs of my simple but effective setup, along with some images of the event. I hope you enjoy the photos as the next one that we’ll have a chance to see here in Oregon won’t happen until October 5, 2108. For more photos, follow me on Instagram! Thanks for visiting.
The GoSky spotting scope, iPhone, iPhone attachment plus mylar glasses to use as a filter over the camera lens, set up on a tripod.
I had to make up a dark cloth so I could see the screen in order to get the camera and scope in the proper position.
The action begins!
Totality!!!!
This phase is known as the “Diamond Ring” effect, as the glare from the surface of the moon looks like its namesake.
