Sun Photos (with Solar Filter)
So I finally got my solar filter cell made (from solar filter paper + set-up rings) and gave it a try. First shot (above) was around noon. You can see some sun-spots, so I rank it a success. Next, I took out my 500mm Gregorian Mirror Lens and tried to take the picture of the sun in three different set-ups. Visual using my stock Nikon D90, Infrared using my modified Nikon D70s-IR, and I also slapped a 950nm IR cut filter behind the solar filter again using the D70s-IR (if its in front the glass of the IR cut filter ruins the shot).
Warning – Never Look Directly at the Sun, even with a Solar Filter, sun observing can be extremely dangerous.
This is a nice capture. I sail the seas as a merchant marine and it just so happens, I was in a Celestial Navigation Course last week to refresh myself on marking my position via the sun. Both an ex Meridian Transit and a Local Apparent Noon (LAN) was observed. We used a Weems and Plath Sextant with a couple of various filters to view it as we derived of its declination. Nice blog you keep, by the way!