Video: PhotoPills Planning the (Partial) Annular Eclipse in Chicago – June 10, 2021

This is my plan for attempting to shoot the June 10, 2021 partial solar eclipse from Chicago. In this 10 minute video, I go over my eclipse plan in PhotoPills and talk a little about equipment selection and how that affects field of view and subject size. Wish me luck!

Our Gear

This is the gear that I’ll be using to try and shoot the solar eclipse. If you’re going to be in any part of the world where the sun is higher in the sky, be sure to use a solar filter for your camera lens to prevent damage to your equipment.

Eclipse Shooting:

For vlogging and as a backup:

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Legal Disclosure

We are a participant in the B&H Affiliate Program which also allows us to earn fees by linking to bhphotovideo.com. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. The SpyderX Pro was given by representatives of Datacolor to Lonely Speck for free.

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-Ian and Diana

3 Replies to “Video: PhotoPills Planning the (Partial) Annular Eclipse in Chicago – June 10, 2021”

  1. What are your planned camera settings? I assume you will be using a solar filter. Will you be looking to silhouette the lighthouse as a solar filter will be too dark to get any detail. I ask as I’m planning a similar project to shoot the eclipse with the city skyline but from Woodridge down I55. Thanks

    1. I plan to shoot without a filter because the sun will be very low and filtered by the atmosphere…in Chicago at least. Most places north or east of Maine will require a solar filter. I will likely be shooting in a “spray and pray” method with Aperture Priority at f/11, ISO 100 and bracketing with a 5 shot bracket with 2EV steps per bracket. I’ll be adjusting my exposure compensation such that the fastest shutter time of the bracket is about 1/2000th to 1/4000th to ensure that I get at least one frame that doesn’t blow out the sun. That will give me an extra 10 stops of dynamic range for whatever the conditions are and should allow me to get some detail in the lighthouse. Hope that helps. Hoping for some clearish skies.

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