Waited too long to get eclipse glasses. Alternatives?

[BobsYourUncle]

Did the usual thing with the eclipse coming tomorrow that I've done with other stuff.
Waited too long to find suitable eyewear for protection. And its Sunday and places were closed. Everyone around that carried this item is sold out.
We are in a location in Southern BC where we will experience about a 90% viewing of the eclipse. Sure would be nice to be able to view it somehow. I don't have my welding goggles with me so can't use that.
Don't really feel like doing the pinhole in a paper thing either.

Anyone else in the same position?

Any ideas?

[jadatis]

Probably to late because the eclipse has already been, but you can also look trough a sack for the chips .
You wont beleve it , and think light wont go trough it, but for the eclipse yust enaugh to see it , but not to much so your eyes centre gets blind.
I mean that kind of chips that have mirror metal like on the inside.

[jarata1]

jwstrout wrote:
Try putting your back to the sun, and using the front facing camera on a smart phone. You should be able to view the eclipse on the phone screen.

Jeff

Are you kidding

[BobsYourUncle]

GaryKH wrote:
Get a pair of binoculars. Put them on your shoulder, with the big lens facing behind you. Now focus the small image onto a piece of paper in front of you and there it is! Safe and effective.

This worked the best. Great way to do it.
A little tough for wobbly hands to hold the binoculars still though!

[BobsYourUncle]

I just tried the suggestion of using a pair of binoculars.
Hey that works really well! Works better than the pinhole in the paper

[BobsYourUncle]

Mortimer Brewster wrote:
Got any Ritz Crackers? Built in pinholes!

:B
My favorite! With a piece of really stinky cheese on it!

[Mortimer_Brewst]

Got any Ritz Crackers? Built in pinholes!

[toedtoes]

It won't hurt the cell phone simply because the lens is too small to et in that much light. With a regular digital camera, the lens is mant times bigger allowing much more light to reach the sensor - that is why they can be damaged.

But whichever camer, the sun will be too small to appear in the image with the detail of the eclipse. If you'veever noticed, the sun and moon appear much smaller in a photograph than they seem to the naked eye. That size difference means you would have to use a very long telephoto lens on the phone or camera in order for it to be big enough for the camera to show the details (i.e., The big black dot in the middle of the very bright ring).

[SidecarFlip]

Wife and I are going shopping (now), stores will be empty.

[BobsYourUncle]

Watching it live right now on NASA via YouTube. Good coverage.
I made the pinhole thing too. It works but we can only see an outline. It's cool anyways!

[bobsallyh]

Wait until Tuesday, they will all be in the Dollar Stores with a big discount!

[Chris_Bryant]

It won't hurt a phone camera- think about it. There is no shutter, and I have used my phone in full sunlight. I've even left it on my dash.

Also- don't look through a pinhole- you will damage yourself. Use the pinhole to project the image.

[BobsYourUncle]

MFL wrote:

Earl E wrote:
In 1979 we were all told to poke a pinhole in a heavy piece of cardboard. Shut one eye and look at the eclipse through the other eye. What happened to that advice. It worked then, should work now.

Hey Bob...this ought to do it for you! Close your best eye, view with the worst eye. If you made the pin hole too large, you still have full use of your good eye!!:B

Jerry

Oh that's perfect Jerry! Thanks so much, why didn't I think of that! :B
But what if I'm a Cyclops?

[GaryKH]

Get a pair of binoculars. Put them on your shoulder, with the big lens facing behind you. Now focus the small image onto a piece of paper in front of you and there it is! Safe and effective.

[SidecarFlip]

ulvik wrote:
Use your smart phone. Simply switch the camera to like you were going to take a selfie and view it on the screen. No glasses needed and the phone will self adjust for the light.

Whatever. Not my phone, yours. It's the CMOS sensor (I think thats what it's called) that will be toast.

Not at all excited about it anyway. More interested in the asteroid that will pass near earth on Labor Day. 2 mile wide chunk of rock is more interesting than an eclipse to me.

[toedtoes]

Earl E wrote:
In 1979 we were all told to poke a pinhole in a heavy piece of cardboard. Shut one eye and look at the eclipse through the other eye. What happened to that advice. It worked then, should work now.

You weren't supposed to LOOK through the pinhole. The idea is to create a projection camera - the light of the sun goes through the hole and creates of shadow of the eclipse onto a second piece of paper/cardboard.


As for the cameras, per NASA the iphone and android camera lenses are too small to let enough light in to hurt the sensor. A straight digital camera can be damaged. And if you take photos via an eyehole, you can damage your eyes.

The other issue is that the camera will most likely end up not being able to properly expose for the image and won't be able to zoom far enough in and all you'll see is a bright glob instead of the eclipse image.