7 methods to {photograph} the 2026 complete photo voltaic eclipse — from smartphone to telescope

The complete photo voltaic eclipse on Aug. 12, 2026, will carry hundreds of photographers to a slender path of totality by means of jap Greenland, western Iceland and northern Spain. For many, will probably be their first alternative to witness totality, the temporary interval when the moon fully covers the solar and divulges its delicate corona, a surprise of nature that usually stays hidden by daylight.

Some first-time eclipse chasers heading to the trail of totality pack costly gear they’ve by no means used earlier than, hoping to seize expert-level photos with none preparation. Others simply take a smartphone. Guess who often comes again with the very best photos? Practice and rehearsal — or simplicity — are key.

Remember, it is best to never look at the sun directly without specialist solar equipment (unless you are in totality), or you risk permanent damage to your sight.

Preparing for totality

Photographing a solar eclipse is unlike photographing anything else. Solar safety matters, exposure changes dramatically, and totality lasts only a few precious minutes. Despite that, memorable eclipse photographs can be taken with almost any camera. The best approach depends on your equipment, your experience and what kind of memory you want to bring home.

However, you don’t need to stand in the path of totality to photograph some of the event. Across much of Europe, a deep partial eclipse will occur near sunset, with more than 90% of the sun obscured in many locations. In northeastern North America, observers will see a smaller partial eclipse during the afternoon. While neither experience matches the drama of totality, both offer opportunities for striking photography.

1. Take a souvenir shot through eclipse glasses

(Image credit: Jamie Carter)

To watch any partial solar eclipse, you’ll need a pair of eclipse glasses or solar viewers; the former you wear and the latter you look through. Either works well as a solar filter for a smartphone. Simply wrap some eclipse glasses around your phone’s camera lens or hold a solar viewer in front, and you can take basic images of a partial eclipse.

The way to get more than just a rough souvenir shot is to put your smartphone on a tripod or purchase a Solar Snap, which not solely offers a photo voltaic filter that attaches to your telephone with Velcro but additionally consists of an app that zooms in on the eclipse.

If you need pinpoint sharpness with out having to spend an excessive amount of or journey with a lot gear, get your self a sensible telescope just like the ZWO SeeStar S30 Pro, DwarfLab Dwarf Mini or Vanois Vespera Pro.

2. Use a smartphone throughout totality

(Image credit score: Getty Images)

If you are touring to Greenland, Iceland or Spain to see the whole photo voltaic eclipse, take a easy smartphone {photograph} throughout totality. A smartphone can’t compete with a digicam’s zoom lens for close-up element, nevertheless it’s excellent for recording a large view of the panorama you are in.

In Greenland and Iceland, the eclipsed solar will hold about 25 levels above the western horizon, making it attainable to incorporate fjords, volcanic landscapes or distant mountains within the body. In Spain, the place totality happens late within the day, the low altitude of the solar presents alternatives to {photograph} the eclipse above villages, church towers, castles and mountain ridges.

Before the eclipse, change off auto-flash and allow RAW photos in case your telephone presents them. Burst mode works nicely — as does filming the occasion in 4K from a tripod and extracting stills later.

3. Take a wide-angle shot throughout totality

(Image credit score: Getty Images)

Many photographers utilizing a manual mirrorless or DSLR camera become obsessed with the corona and forget that the eclipse affects the entire environment. The resulting images often feel disconnected from the actual experience. A well-composed landscape photograph can communicate the atmosphere of totality far more effectively.

The image above was shot by expert eclipse photographer Alan Dyer, author of How to Capture the Coming Solar Eclipses, in Teton Valley, Wyoming, throughout the Aug. 21, 2017, complete photo voltaic eclipse. It was shot with a Canon 6D and a 14mm SP Rokinon lens at f/25 for 1/10 second at ISO 100. It’s one shot from a 700-frame time-lapse and was taken simply as totality started, moments after the diamond ring ended, and the darkish shadow of the moon is approaching from the west.

4. Capture crescent suns

(Image credit score: Jamie Carter)

When a partial photo voltaic eclipse reaches about 50% — one thing it’s going to solely do in excessive northeast Canada and Europe on Aug. 12, 2026 — it is attainable to mission crescent suns by means of something with outlined holes. It works rather well by means of a colander or spaghetti spoon.

By projecting crescent suns onto the ground, the partitions and folks round you, distinctive portrait photos of eclipse chasers will be created. Unlike images of the corona, which hundreds of individuals will seize, images like this, which doc the human expertise of an eclipse, will be actually particular.

5. Take a close-up of the photo voltaic corona

(Image credit score: Getty Images)

This is the traditional eclipse pictures setup and the one mostly utilized by skilled eclipse chasers — although it calls for some critical tools, dedication and follow.

A digicam fitted with a telephoto lens between 200mm and 600mm provides enough magnification to reveal detail in the corona while remaining portable enough for travel. At 400mm, the eclipsed sun fills a useful portion of the frame. At 600mm, the corona becomes significantly more prominent and fine detail begins to emerge. Lenses like the Canon RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS USM, Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS and SIGMA 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG DN OS Sport would be good options.

Focus carefully on the partially eclipsed sun through a solar filter, and leave the focus untouched thereafter. With a camera set to ISO 100 and f/5-f/8 aperture, exposure bracketing is essential because the corona spans an enormous range of brightness. Automated exposure sequences, or bracketing, allow photographers to capture multiple exposure levels to combine later, if desired.

It’s always best to rehearse in advance; the excitement of totality very often leads to basic errors — the classic being leaving the solar filter on during totality.

6. Shoot a close-up sequence of the eclipse

(Image credit: Getty Images)

If you want to shoot a sequence throughout the entire solar eclipse that shows all of the various stages, you need to be in position, ready to take images as soon as first contact occurs, and stay there until fourth contact.

Since the size of the sun won’t be huge in your finished image, you don’t need a huge telephoto lens. Instead, concentrate on imaging the partial eclipse at very specific times before and after totality, so that you can produce a mirror image on either side of an image of the solar corona.

7. Shoot a wide-angle sequence of the eclipse

(Image credit: Getty Images)

A wide-angle eclipse sequence is a different kind of image, showing not just the changing shape of the sun, but the landscape. Start with a base exposure taken during totality, when the eclipsed sun sits in a darkened twilight sky, then layer in the partial phases at regular intervals from first contact to fourth contact.

The result can show the sun’s path across the sky, the moon appearing to bite across it in the opposite direction, and even bright planets nearby. It’s a powerful way to tell the whole story of an eclipse in one frame, especially if you include water, mountains, people or a dramatic horizon.

Dyer’s image above is a single exposure taken with a Canon EOS Ra and a Canon RF15-35mm lens at ISO 125, f/2.8 and 1/6s. The partial phases were photographed every five minutes from start to finish of the eclipse.