Viewing Tips for the Total Solar Eclipse
By Andy Likes, TVG Senior Vice President
Short of living under a rock, everyone should know about this Monday’s eclipse. The St. Louis region will have a front row seat for the event, if the meteorologists are right. Here’s hoping for a mostly cloud-free view of the totality, but of course there are no guarantees.
Eye Safety
If you plan to view the eclipse Monday afternoon, you already know you need approved glasses (or risk permanent eye damage) to view the sun. Or, you could build one of those shoebox contraptions we built as kids to safely view it. If you plan to take pictures, we have a few things you will want to know.
Camera Safety
If you have a camera, video camera or smartphone, it needs to wear glasses, too. You’ll burn the lens if you take a photo or video without one. If you are looking through the viewfinder, it can also damage your eyes.
Smartphone Shooting
If you plan to use a smart phone, turn it on its side to shoot horizontally to get a larger, clearer image. You won’t have a great zoom, it might be a little grainy, but you will at least see the eclipse and capture the moment in time. You shouldn’t need the filter during the totality, but it’s awfully hard to take the filter off and put it back on, maybe just soak in the moment and catch the photos and videos online afterward.
TVG Live Broadcast
If you do not live in one of the cities that will see the eclipse in full, TVG has you covered. Our video production team will be broadcasting the eclipse live from our offices in Chesterfield, MO on TVG’s Facebook page, from the beginning to the end, so starting at 11:30 a.m. until the end. Totality is expected in Chesterfield at 1:23 p.m. CDT and should last for about 90 seconds. Feel free to like/follow our page now, and join us live beginning Monday morning.
Here’s hoping for clear skies!
TVG would love to help with your video needs. Give us a call, email us or send us a note on Facebook. We create videos long and short.