Guide to Solar Photography: How to Capture the Perfect Eclipse

Solar photography might seem challenging, but we can rely on—mostly—the same principles as any other style.

If you want to take great pictures of a once-in-a-lifetime solar event, you’ll need a few tips!

I’m always trying to explore the weirder, less snapped side of photography.

Usually, that means cooking up film soup or modifying old CCD cameras, but today that means reaching for the stars (or the nearest star as the case may be).

I’m going to walk you through the gear, the technique, and the safety of taking pictures directly of the sun.

By the end of this guide, you’ll have everything you need to capture the next total eclipse.

What is Solar Photography—A Quick Introduction

Solar photography, also called solar astrophotography, is the art of capturing pictures of our planet’s Sun.

Just like any other style of photography, you can shoot solar photography with gear as affordable as the smartphone you already own or you can spend thousands on high-end equipment.

Solar photography covers everything from pictures of the Sun during an eclipse taken with everyday camera gear to solar close-ups taken with purpose-built solar cameras.

In today’s guide, I’m going to focus on my fellow photographers who have mostly regular photography gear lying around.

• More: How to Photograph a Lunar Eclipse

Eclipse Photography Safety Tips

Before we start shooting, we should go over some mandatory safety tips.

Photography is typically a very safe hobby. With the exception of hazardous developing chemistry and dangerous photography jobs like war reporting, solar photography is one of the rare exceptions where things can get harmful.

Take note of these potential hazards before you try to shoot the Sun!

Wear Eclipse Glasses

Eclipse glasses protect your eyes during direct solar viewing. You want to make sure your glasses are ISO 12312-2 and CE certified and backed up by reputable organizations like ASTM.

You can also check the American Astronomical Society website, which has a database of certified solar glasses.

Photography is all about sight, gaze, and vision. It’s not worth jeopardizing that for any shot.

Shoot Through a Filtered Lens

Your lens also needs to be filtered, just like your eyes.

An unfiltered lens can damage sensors and optics. Aiming an unfiltered lens directly at the sun can wreck even modern cameras with an LCD viewscreen or digital viewfinder.

If your camera uses an optical viewfinder, NEVER LOOK THROUGH YOUR OPTICAL VIEWFINDER FOR SOLAR PHOTOGRAPHY.

The ND filter stops visible light, but not the other radiation caused by the sun. You could literally give your retinas permanent sunburn if you look through an optical viewfinder.

I’ve heard of photographers even taping over their optical viewfinders during an eclipse to prevent them from accidentally sneaking a vision-damaging peek. That’s not a bad idea if you ask me.

Never Look Directly at the Sun

This should go without saying, but avoid looking directly at the Sun for prolonged periods of time. Try looking in short glances while wearing your protective eclipse glasses to keep your eyes safe.

That should be enough to enjoy the astrological phenomena and compose your shot.

The Solar Photography Gear You Need

You’re going to need a few things beyond your trusty camera to safely and effectively photograph the Sun.

Here are your options for eclipse photography equipment:

Eclipse Glasses

I talked about these in the safety section, but it bears repeating. Protect your eyes with certified solar viewing glasses. Nothing else will do.

Don’t risk it with your favorite pair of sunnies. The eclipse and solar viewing are serious stuff, and we photographers have to protect our eyesight.

Remember, you want ISO 12312-2 and CE-certified glasses backed up by reputable organizations.

Solar ND Filter

A purpose-built solar ND filter is an absolute must for eclipse photography. Everyone from NASA to Nikon recommends only shooting the Sun through one of these 16.5 to 18-stop ND filters.

Brands you already know, like Tiffen, Neewer, and Hoya, sell these 100,000+ ND filters, as well as a few less common brands like MrStarGuy.

Keep in mind that 18-stop ND filters and purpose-built solar filters are technically different. Both block light, but only solar filters work to stop other types of solar radiation.

Mobile Solar Filter

You’ll have a hard time attaching a full-size ND filter to your smartphone unless you’re shooting with a threaded mount like the one from Moment. Luckily, there is another option.

Solar eclipse filters for smartphones are now everywhere. You can pick them up online or through your local photography store. These are little cards with a built-in filter that you can hold over your smartphone camera lens to get the right exposure for your shot.

I recommend getting some gaffer’s tape to securely hold these filters in place. Holding them by hand is going to be tricky with longer exposures.

I also recommend using an app that lets you set a manual exposure on your smartphone. The automatic settings in the default camera app tend to struggle with dim conditions and long exposures.

DIY Mylar Filter Sheet

Can’t find a lens filter or a smartphone solar filter that works? You can get DIY mylar filter sheets and make your own!

These are built of the same materials that you would find in the precut smartphone filters, only they come in sheets. They are a mainstay in astronomy, where they are cut to size to cover telescopes for safe daytime use.

Simply get a sheet, cut it to size, and secure it over your lens! Make sure it’s on there tight, as you definitely don’t want this mylar sheet slipping off while you’re composing your shot.

Tripod & Remote Release

Solar photography often involves longer exposures despite the fact that we are shooting directly into the brightest light source in the solar system! That 18-stop ND filter or mylar sheet is going to knock the light back a bit, and that means we need to stabilize our exposure.

A tripod and a remote release will ensure there’s no unwanted camera shake when you’re capturing the eclipse.

• More: Beginner’s Guide to Astrophotography

How to Photograph a Solar Eclipse with a Digital Camera

Ready to capture a shot of a solar eclipse? Here’s a step-by-step guide for getting the shot!

Step 1: Secure Your Filters

Safety first. Today that means making sure your filters are secured and ready to go. All solar and ND filters should be firmly attached before you start shooting.

If your lens has a bad habit of shaking loose a filter, I recommend renting a replacement just to stay on the safe side.

Here’s another tip: Filters on the front for solar photography. Rear filters offer much lower protection from the radiation coming off of the Sun, and this can damage your sensor.

Step 2: Stage Your Shot

You could be shooting something like a solar portrait or capturing the crowd in awe of the eclipse, but you want to frame the shot before the critical moment.

The total eclipse will be over in minutes, and the “95% eclipse” band only lasts a few hours. This is one of those shoots where you want to plan ahead and make the most of your time.

Step 3: Focus

Unless you’re using an LCD screen or digital viewfinder, you’re going to be focusing and composing with the “zone” method. I’ll get into that below, but here’s a general tip.

If you want the Sun in sharp focus (and who doesn’t during an eclipse) you’re safe with setting your lens to infinity.

Step 4: Shoot and Shoot Again

Take your shot and then take some more!

A solar eclipse is a rare event that might never come your way again. Enjoy the astronomical experience and make sure to take plenty of shots. You never know if you’ll get surprised by a unique pic or need that fifth shot for protection.

How to Photograph the Eclipse with Your Smartphone

You only need three things to catch a hot selfie with the hottest object in the solar system: a solar smartphone filter, a tripod, and optional gaffer’s tape.

I recommend firmly securing your smartphone solar filter with gaffer’s tape and then mounting your camera to a tripod. This will give you a safe and secure base to shoot from.

You can then use a Bluetooth remote release or just a self-timer function to capture solar selfies or longer exposures of your shot of choice!

• More: All About Lens Flares in Photography

How to Photograph the Eclipse on Film

You can absolutely shoot a solar eclipse with film! The secret is: Bracket. Bracket. Bracket.

Bracketing is taking one shot intentionally under-exposed, another with the exposure you feel is right, and a third slightly overexposed. This gives you a range of exposures and ensures your chances of getting the right exposure for your shot.

Another big difference with film is choosing the right ISO film stock. I recommend picking an ISO 100 or lower film stock to give yourself that extra protection.

Most, maybe all, film cameras use optical viewfinders. I wanted to mention again that it’s not safe to look through an optical viewfinder, even with a 20-stop ND filter in place. Just don’t do it.

Shooting the Total Eclipse VS a Partial Eclipse

There is a major difference between shooting the total eclipse versus any part of the parietal eclipse.

The total solar eclipse is a short span of time, around five minutes, where the moon fully blocks the light from the sun. While the partial eclipse can be viewed across entire countries, the total eclipse occurs only in a narrow band within the total range of the eclipse.

It is safe to remove filters during the total eclipse, but always remember that this only lasts for around five minutes and only for a small part of the geographic range covered by the eclipse.

Totality is nearly as dark as night, so a 20-stop solar ND filter would be just too dark to shoot with.

In short, total eclipse is the only time you should be doing solar photography without a filter. In partial eclipse and every other instance, keep those filters on!

How to Compose and Focus Without the Viewfinder

No viewfinder? No problem!

Composing and focusing with no viewfinder and no LCD screen might seem like an impossible task, but it’s actually pretty easy—sort of.

Focusing is the much easier of the two. All you need to do is use the zone-focusing system and prefocus your shots.

Zone focusing works by setting your camera’s lens to an aperture that keeps a solid “zone” in focus. If your aperture is too sharp, you’ll have trouble getting the zone system to work.

Then, you prefocus by locking in your aperture and focusing on a generic object like a tree or a friend. Write that focus and aperture combo down, or use gaffer’s tape to lock your lens in place to hold the focus.

We’re in luck with using the zone system for solar photography. The Sun is about as far away as it gets, which means you can set your lens to infinity, and the Sun will always be in focus.

As for composing your shot without being able to see it first, you’re just going to have to get good. Spend a lot of time practicing with your desired focal length and how it frames subjects and shots.

This will give you that all-important “eye” for a good shot—an eye that we protect by never using an optical viewfinder during solar photography!

5 Tips for Solar Eclipse Photography

Need some more sunny advice for your solar photography? Here are a few tips that are, dare I say, out of this world!

Tip 1: Practice Before an Eclipse!

Solar photography is tricky and you want to practice a bit before the big day.

The same principles for shooting an eclipse work during any sunny day. Take your gear out to your backyard, balcony, or even the spot you plan on doing your eclipse photography for a few practice shots just to get the hang of things.

You don’t want to be wrestling around with gaffer’s tape and settings while the eclipse is slowly fading from view.

Tip 2: Pick Your Focal Length

Different focal lengths have unique effects during solar photography.

200mm lenses will get you a nice wide shot capturing the sky, scenery, and a small star in an eclipse.

On the other hand, 2,000mm will get the Sun ready for its close-up and let you capture other unique features like a solar diamond ring or Baily’s Beads.

You can also play with focal lengths below, or even well above, those options. The reactions of people on the street can be captured beautifully with a 50mm and offer something just as unique as the Sun itself.

Tip 3: Remove Your Filter During the Total Eclipse Only!

The short moment of the total eclipse is the only time it is safe to remove your filters. This is when the moon nearly fully covers the Sun and blocks its light and harmful radiation.

You’re free to remove your filters—and you might need to in order to get your exposure right during the total eclipse.

Keep in mind the total eclipse is short, lasting just a few minutes. Once it’s over, the Sun is back to its usual vision- and sensor-damaging self.

Tip 4: Take in the Scenery

The Sun is, quite literally, the star of the show, but don’t neglect the world it illuminates.

Crowds gathered to watch the stellar show, changes in light and color, the reaction of wildlife, these are all great options to expand your eclipse photography palette.

This also gives you an option to explore taking your camera out during the eclipse if you’re not feeling solar photography itself!

Tip 5: Plan Your Shots

Planning is nearly the entire battle when it comes to solar photography. Depending on the type of camera and lens you have, you might not even be able to look through your viewfinder during solar photography itself.

Plan everything you can in advance so you can take the shot without worrying about the details.

• More: How to Photograph the Moon

Solar Photography FAQ’s

Can you photograph the Sun with a DSLR?

You can use a DSLR, mirrorless, or a film camera for solar photography. Just make sure to always use a solar ND filter to protect your camera and your eyes.

What is the minimum ND filter for Solar Photography?

A dedicated solar filter protects from both visible light and invisible radiation. If you’re okay with not looking through your viewfinder, an ND of 16 stops or higher should be enough to get the shot.

Is it safe to take a picture of the solar eclipse? 

Yes, solar photography is safe and fun as long as you follow a few simple rules. Always wear your eclipse glasses, use a 16+ stop ND filter or solar filter, and never look through your viewfinder at the sun.

What are the best camera settings for solar photography? 

The ideal camera settings are going to change based on lighting and your desired results. You can start as low as f/2.8 with a shutter speed of 1/4 and work your way from there, depending on your setup and the solar phenomena you wish to capture.

What is the best focal length lens for solar photography? 

Wide focal lengths will let you capture the landscape and the world around the eclipse, while telephoto focal lengths are ideal for closeups of the Sun itself. The more of a telephoto or ultra-telephoto lens you use, the more you can capture the cosmic details of the eclipse.

Wrapping Up Your Solar Photography Crash Course

You’re ready to get out there and, safely, capture pictures of the next solar eclipse!

These tips will get you started with the basics of solar photography, but just like every other style, you can get as deep into solar photography as you want!

Leave a comment below with your space-born photography questions and I’ll make sure to get to them in an upcoming article!