Looking for advise on filming the Solar Eclipse

[Mr. Salty]

My wife being a professional photographer has everything but the solar lens needed, but I do want to research more on the shadow approach and using paper as you mentioned. Thanks again to all, I hope everyone has a great seat for the event wherever you are!

You can buy sheets of solar film on Amazon and eBay for about $18 that can be cut to make filters for your camera lens. That's what I've done. There are versions that come with cardboard holders to fit over the end of various diameter lenses. Your wife will want to get some of this filter material.

 

[KiterTodd]

Don't record the sun, plenty will do that on the ground with better cameras.

Use our unique capability to record from above the shadow encompassing a beautiful landscape and then revealing it after. If you speed it up it'll be dramatic beautiful footage. [emoji106]

 

[Crayons]

All great points and in the end capturing the moment shouldn't be lost on tinkering with the mp, if I can find a location away from people I may send it up for the shadows.

Could be interesting but I wonder if it's really worth it. My 2 cents: I saw a total eclipse in Australia in 2002 and it was an astonishing experience. Almost spiritual. If I see another I wouldn't spend a moment fiddling about with my camera or Mavic. There will be that many pro shots and footage made of the event and all of it will likely eclipse (see what I did there?) yours. Spending your time worrying about shooting and flying would be a travesty. Also - I suspect you're unlikely to find a location free of crowds if it's accessible and on the centre-line and no-one wants to hear the demented bumble bee that is the Mavic during something that special. In my opinion.

 

[SGM]

Agree on everyone's points, all good ones, alot to consider. This will be a once in a lifetime for me and my children /Granddaughters . Whatever I do we have the luxury of having many out of the way quiet spots in our TN countryside to observe this awesome event right on the 0 line. Wife said I can do what I want but she's not missing it messing with her camera lol. I hope you all have the opportunity and great seats for this event!

 

[jginnever]

I agree that it seems a shame to be preoccupied during this amazing event. But I don't think it takes much effort to just hover the drone about 300 ft. in the air to record it. So that's what I'm going to do. Now the real question is do I face northwest when the totality starts and record the shadow coming? Or do I face southeast and watch the sun leaving? I've been pondering this for about a day.

 

[Will.i.am]

I agree that it seems a shame to be preoccupied during this amazing event. But I don't think it takes much effort to just hover the drone about 300 ft. in the air to record it. So that's what I'm going to do. Now the real question is do I face northwest when the totality starts and record the shadow coming? Or do I face southeast and watch the sun leaving? I've been pondering this for about a day.

Um, why don't you do both. Just yaw it around at eclipse midpoint.

 

[TheWolfen]

Don't record the sun, plenty will do that on the ground with better cameras.

Use our unique capability to record from above the shadow encompassing a beautiful landscape and then revealing it after. If you speed it up it'll be dramatic beautiful footage. [emoji106]

It's not about simply having a photo of the sun during eclipse, it's about creating and recording your own perspective of the eclipse.

I'm sure recording the shadow will be interesting. Just keep in mind it will be a line (you can't go high enough to get anything else) of shadow moving across the landscape at somewhere well above one thousand miles per hour (1100 mph at the equator). Speeding it up will likely be the opposite of what you'll need to do.

 

[jginnever]

Good points. Facing northwest, if I turn it around during the totality then I'll get the shadow coming and the shadow going. If I face the drone southeast then I'll get the sun going and the sun coming. And the speed of the shadow will probably make the whole argument mute. I'm suspecting that it will be more like a flash than something I can see moving. The one thing I remember from my only experience of a total eclipse is the 360 degree sunset. I really want to record that. So I'll probably do a slow 360 degree turn during the totality.

 

[BossBob]

Don't forget there are 2 levels of shadow. A false twilight as you approach totality when nature goes quiet followed by the darkness of totality and then the false dawn as you move out of totality. You probably won't get the sun in the frame as the gimbal won't go high enough.

 

[KiterTodd]

Don't forget there are 2 levels of shadow. A false twilight as you approach totality when nature goes quiet followed by the darkness of totality and then the false dawn as you move out of totality. You probably won't get the sun in the frame as the gimbal won't go high enough.

Exactly. It's not going to be like someone turned the light off instantly. You will have this shadow approaching (maybe you keep the speed normal for that) then you are eventually in darkness for a period of time (didn't research how long, you may speed this up) and then the "dawn" comes and things gradually get brighter.

I've seen shots of this from mountain tops before and it was very interesting . With the mavic, we can get up to 400' in a lot of unique areas and get some interesting footage to play with in post. And, best thing is you can just let it hover there while you enjoy the eclipse on your own. Just pick a vantage point, turn on video, watch the show, land the drone when it's all over.

YMMV, just a suggestion.

 

[Robbyg]

I have only seen it once in the 1970's and I remember many people where playing around with cameras so much that they really missed taking in the moment. If I am lucky enough to see one again i just want to take it all in and enjoy every second of it. For pictures I will go to the NASA website.

Rob

 

[Catchyphrase]

Yeah my wife and I turned our eclipse trip (we live in AZ) into a 16 day RV trip through Utah, Idaho (where we'll be for the eclipse), Wyoming and Colorado! We're renting an rv and I booked campgrounds well over a year in advance. Many of them started cranking their rates up too but I got a good one that didn't want to screw over everyone. I really appciated that.

I'm thinking of going Wyoming and Montana. May I ask where you rented an RV from? Do you need to stay at campgrounds or can you just park your RV in open areas?

 

[TheWolfen]

I'm thinking of going Wyoming and Montana. May I ask where you rented an RV from? Do you need to stay at campgrounds or can you just park your RV in open areas?

We rented from a private party. Cruise America is the big national rental company that we considered early on. There are also smaller rental companies around. Keep in mind that, at this point, staying in a developed campground is unlikely to be possible as all (at least in Idaho and Western Wyoming) booked up months ago. Even renting an RV might be a challenge, but I don't know for sure.

You can usually park and camp on public lands, like national forests, etc, but there are likely exceptions. Just check into the web site for any area you are considering first! These are likely to be your only hope at this point. BLM (Bureau of Land Management) lands might also be a possibility, but I don't know the rules on camping on them. It's worth checking into though.

I hope you can make it happen! Good luck!

 

[TheWolfen]

I'm thinking of going Wyoming and Montana. May I ask where you rented an RV from? Do you need to stay at campgrounds or can you just park your RV in open areas?

You might also check out rvshare.com - that's where you'll find a lot of private rentals. The friend we rented from directly rents his there too.

 

[MPProSerbT]

NewEnabling the 30degree angle up is an option but you HAVE TO CHANGE YOUR ANGLE - THINK BACKWARDS - Here are two+ better ideas -
1. Aim West to see the sunset begin and move 360 degrees around the horizon as totality hits - We will experience a 360 Sunset from All Directions.
2. If you are in the path of totality the shadow will be crispy and clear on the ground but you have to be at the peak of the 400ft height. Fix the camera position down or aim just about 10 degrees up from straight down facing the WEST so that you have the MP at the perfect angle with its back to the sun and the camera at the same angle. How - Just find your shadow at 30 ft up set your angle on your drone shadow and then Go up to 400 and focus on something shiny on the ground, you will see an amazing rainbow. You can even present your camera angle ahead of time.
3.+ You can always cut out a piece of solar glasses plastic and tape it to the front of an NP Lens and you will be able to zoom in to the sun if you can get a direct angle but I suggest the first two options first. You have Less than 2 minutes during totality, even if you cant see the shadow you will see a clear change from Day to Night to Day in 2 minutes. Use 4k and video mode and you can always edit it into time-lapse later. May be better to have 4 drones up to do all of this. LOL