Photo op 2: Solar Eclipse

Image copyright 2014 Mike Kelso

I took this picture during the 2014 partial solar eclipse. It passed through Pennsylvania right around sunset. I was hoping to get a shot of the sun with a slightly bigger chunk taken out of it, but the clouds moved in, obscuring my last few moments before sunset. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m very happy with this picture and a few of the others I took that day. This is the best of the bunch, I was just hoping for a little more. 

Fast forward to 2017. Everyone who has ever looked through a telescope or worn a pocket protector is having a major conniption fit over the solar eclipse that will pass over North America in one month.  

Truth be told, I’m pretty excited myself. I live in Pennsylvania and I had considered driving to South Carolina just to get pictures. It would’ve been an all day and night affair. I would’ve had to start driving at 1 AM, get there, take my pictures, then drive straight back, arriving home around 2 AM, then getting up for work at my usual 4:30 AM.  

Needless to say, I scrapped that idea.  

The more I thought about it, the more it made sense to take pictures from where I live. We will still have a partial eclipse, but more importantly, the pictures I take will include the area that I call home. I’ll still be able to look online and see all the professional pictures of the total eclipse, but I won’t be able to see any that were shot from my town unless I take them.  

I’m looking forward to it and will start scouting locations in the following weeks. 

In the meantime, enjoy this pic from a few years back and cross your fingers that August 21st will be sunny all day, or at least until after the moon passes.

Just don’t forget, if you plan on taking pictures of the eclipse or even watching it, make sure you get some glasses for protection. I’m ordering mine today.

Have a great day.

I’m working on it

I’ve only recently begun blogging semi-regularly. So far it’s been interesting finding some of the awesome posts out there, even though I know I’ve only scratched the surface.

The problem lies with my own posts. So far I’ve been posting reviews, excerpts from my book, and a few (hopefully funny) rant posts. The problem is that my blog is called ‘mikesimages’ and to date, I have only posted one of my images (and that turned out to be a dismal failure).

It’s time to turn that around. For years I’ve posted my pictures on Facebook and my friends all said how much they enjoyed them, so I’ll start by sharing them here. I hope you enjoy them as well.

I took this picture years ago, at a lake near my house. I was very lucky with the timing of it. I had just driven through at twilight and was treated to this magnificent sight. The camera I used then was only a small 4 megapixel point and shoot. This picture remains one of my favorites to this day.

If you’d like to see more of my photos, here’s my website.

I hope you enjoyed today’s picture. Have a great day.