A Snowbird in Paradise

In anticipation of last night's eclipse, there were several articles about taking photos of night celestial events. I read them, checked my camera's manual and was ready!

The camera was set to "No Flash", the tripod was extended as far as possible, and the camera was firmly mounted on the tripod. I pointed it at the moon and then noticed the clouds skittering around the moon. Oh well...it is digital. I knew I could always delete them if I didn't get a good shot. The first one looked good on the screen. So for the next couple of hours, I alternated between watching TV and my every-10-minute shots of the disappearing moon. As less and less of the moon showed, the shot took longer and longer. I was using the 10-second timer to reduce camera shake and I noticed how much longer the aperture remained open. I wasn't at all sure I would have any usable photos. Finally, right at Totality, the clouds won and I couldn't get any more photos. The above digital scrapbook page shows what photos I did get. The clouds actually add interest.