A composite of the August 21, 2017 total eclipse of the Sun, showing the second and third contact diamond rings and Baily’s Beads at the start (left)


A composite of the August 21, 2017 total eclipse of the Sun, showing the second and third contact diamond rings and Baily’s Beads at the start (left) and end (right) of totality, flanking a composite image of totality itself. The diamond ring and Baily’s Beads images are single images. The totality images is a blend of 12 exposures from 1/1600 sec to 1 second, stacked as a smart object and combined using the Mean stack mode to blend the images. Several High Pass filter layers were added to sharpen and increase the contrast in the coronal structures. Regulus is the star at lower left. Placement of the images only roughly matches the actual position and path of the Sun across the sky. However, the time sequence runs from left to right. All taken through the 106mm Astro-Physics Traveler refractor with a reducer/flattener, yielding f/5 at 500mm focal length, wide enough to capture Regulus at left. All with the Canon 6D MkII camera at ISO 100. Shot from a site in the Teton Valley, Idaho, north of Driggs.


Size: 5400px × 3600px
Photo credit: © Alan Dyer / VWPics / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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