2 0 2 4 T O T A L S O L A R E C L I P S E E X P E R I E N C E
T O T A L I T Y I N T E X A S
APRIL, 4th - 9th, 2024
CLASS LIMIT : FULL
INVESTMENT: $2,399.00 / $1,920.00 (ALUMNI)
TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE PANORAMA 2017Totality from the Pained Hills Unit of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in Oregon. East of Madras, Oregon.
ABOUT THIS WORKSHOP
We will spend 6 days and 5 nights in the Texas Hill Country planning out this once in a lifetime experience. We will have the opportunity to capture Texas Bluebonnets as they explode across the landscape, waterfalls, long horns, the night sky, a Total Solar eclipse and maybe some Texas storms. Some years the bluebonnets don't bloom well, and sometimes they do not appear in the same areas in back to back years, we may have to do some hunting to find good patches! We will have in depth discussions on how to create compelling compositions during the day, at night and for the eclipse itself.
Each day we will practice our solar photography, so that you are comfortable with the approach and the settings used to get the best images possible when the big day arrives. Custom 2024 solar eclipse viewing glasses are also provided for you. Recommendations for solar filters for your camera are also provided in addition to the best settings for capture the many phases of a Total Solar Eclipse. The days around the eclipse may be difficult to maneuver if large crowds are in the area, there is no way to tell how many people will be in the area. Texas is big, and there won't be a shortage of places to view it from. The final days we will all need to be flexible with the weather and with the situation around the eclipse path. I can not control other events, rules, or restrictions that are put into place by parks or or townships in the months, weeks or even days ahead of the Total Solar Eclipse that may cause issues with a planned shooting location. This is why "our location to shoot from" will be determined while we are there. If the weather is forecasted to be poor in our area for eclipse day, we do have the flexibility to chase this and get to another spot if the weather looks much better somewhere else, keep this in mind. I selected this area based on the great weather it receives, and that this area has the longest total eclipse phase times with nearly 4 minutes and 30 seconds.There is not a specific spot set in stone to photograph the eclipse at, Don't get me wrong, I have a many amazing locations in mind here to use as a foreground, we will scout out most of these locations in the days before eclipse day. Keep in mind this eclipse will occur when the Sun is fairly high in the sky, near 67 degrees. We will be looking up at it!
This is one diverse and exciting portfolio building workshop for anyone, beginner, or advanced. This eclipse will be the last of its kind in the US until 2044, so for many people, this is the last chance to experience one of the most amazing events anyone can witness here in the USA. We will observe, and photograph the 2024 Great American Total Solar Eclipse in all of it's Glory from the Hill Country near Austin, Texas. We will take daily drives to photograph the Hill County and scout out our potential shooting locations for the eclipse. This is an adventure with surprises around every corner and these are the trips that I love the most. After we photography the eclipse on the 8th, we will head back to town and download our images for review. We will all head out for some dinner and grab a couple celebratory drinks. We will photograph sunrise on the 9th and wrap it up after that!
TOTALITY AT THE PAINTED HILLSTotal Solar Eclipse from the Painted Hills in Oregon. August 21st, 2017
The image above was from the last US Total Eclipse over the Painted Hills in eastern Oregon. This eclipse is taking a different path than the one in 2017. In 2024, the eclipse will start over the south pacific and move onshore in Mexico. It will then move northeast into Texas, Indiana, Buffalo, and Burlington, VT before heading out of the country. We will have nearly 4 minutes and 30 seconds of totality during this workshop, that is more than double the amount of time we had compared to the US Total Solar Eclipse in August 2017!
In Texas, we have the best chance at seeing clear skies. It is never a given, but with an event like this I typically always choose a region where the odds of clear weather are the highest. The northeast is typically covered in clouds most of the time (nearly 70% of the time) and totality is more than 1 minute less in the northeast than it is in Texas, it is typically clear 70% of the time in Texas.
2021 SOLAR ECLIPSE | CAPE COD NATIONAL SEASHORE
(ABOVE) June 2021, Partial Solar Eclipse from Cape Cod National Seashore, MA
TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE 2017 | TOTALITY
TRAVEL
Travel to, from, and during the workshop is not included. The easiest airport to fly into is Austin, TX. From Austin, we can take a nice drive west into the hill country where we will stay for the duration of the workshop. You could also look at Dallas/Fort Worth or San Antonio as well. There might be portions of the tour where we can carpool to certain spots.
FIRST CAR IN LINE TO ENTER THE PAINTED HILLS UNIT OF JOHN DAY FOSSILE BEDS NATIONAL MONUMENT
BACK OF MY CAMERA
MOON PHASE
Since this is a solar eclipse, the moon will be moving close to, and directly in front of the Sun giving us dark, moonless skies for the entire workshop. the milky way rises early in the morning around 1am. So any milky way opportunities that we may have would be early morning before sunrise.
DIAMOND RING| OREGON 2017
WHAT IS INCLUDED / WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
- Sunrise, Sunset and Night Sky photo shoots
- Solar Photography each day
- 2024 Custom Solar Eclipse viewing glasses
- Tips and instruction to photographing a total solar eclipse
- Gear list for the eclipse
- Night Sky Photography
- Timelapse photography
- How to create compelling night sky and landscapes compositions
- How to balance positive and negative space in your image
- Post Processing Video Tutorials in Adobe CC/CS & Adobe Lightroom
- How to promote your work and get published
- Why the chicken crossed the road
- Maps of the areas we will be visiting
- Post processing help even after the workshop is over
- How and when to use filters to enhance your images
- Access to my brain 24/7!
PARTIAL SOLAR ECLIPSE 2014Partial Solar Eclipse from Lorain Lighthouse in Ohio on October 23rd, 2014.
LODGING
To ensure that we do not attract more people to certain locations than we want to, the exact locations will be kept off this workshop page. There are plenty of locations to camp in addition to hotels. Where and when to book rooms will be available in March 2023, 1 month before many hotels and motels open up their reservation windows.
CAMERA GEAR
A full list of camera gear will be supplied to upon registering, the basics are a DSLR camera / Mirrorless Camera, wide angle lens, a tripod and a cable release and a solar filter. You will need a minimum of 200mmf or the eclipse, a 400mm to 600mm equiv will also work great for closer, detailed images of the eclipse. You can also see the recommended equipment of most workshops on the Workshop Overview Page.
ABOUT ECLIPSES / IS THERE DANGER?
Viewing a total solar eclipse is one of the most beautiful, emotional, and mesmerizing experiences that one can be apart of. These events leave many in tears, and with all of that beauty comes an element of some sort of danger. The Sun is extremely bright and powerful, and this can damage your eyes, potentially leaving you blind, and it can cause damage to your cameras sensor if the proper precautions aren't taken seriously. You will receive instructions about how to safely view, and photographing the eclipse before we meet. We will also practice the techniques each day in the field leading up to the eclipse to make sure we have things dialed in tight. I will also supply you with a pair of custom 2024 Total Solar Eclipse Viewing Glasses to use, and to keep as a momento from this solar workshop experience. We will photograph the total solar eclipse from one of 7 spots that I have lined up. Depending on the situation we have there will determine which location we will capture it from when eclipse day arrives.
2017 TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE PROGRESSIONTaken in the Painted Hills of Oregon
PATH OF THE ECLIPSE
The total eclipse will start in the Pacific Ocean and will make its way on land in Mexico traveling around 1,500mph. When it reaches our location, the shadow of the moon (Umbra) will be moving at a staggering 1,700mph. When the umbra reaches the Montreal area will be moving at 2,600mph and over 4,400mph in Newfoundland... impressed yet? This eclipse will be moving faster than the 2017 eclipse, but viewing times will have doubled because of the geometry of Earth's shape. We will enjoy 4 minutes and 26 seconds of totality here in Texas!!! More than double the amount of time we had in eastern Oregon for the 2017 Great American Eclipse.
DEPOSIT
A non refundable deposit of ($1,000.00) is due to secure your spot on this tour. If for some reason you need to cancel, you will be credited that amount towards a future workshop with us. Due to the nature of this workshop, once a payment has been made, we can not offer you a cash refund. You will receive workshop credit in the full amount paid. ( If you need to cancel and I can fill your spot, I will then be able to offer you a refund minus any transaction fees). The remaining balance must be paid no later than Jan 8th, 2024. This workshop is expected to fill up quickly. The first 5 people who sign up will take the spots, if six or more people sign up before the registration closes, you will be refunded your full payment and placed on the waitlist. Sometimes payments may sneak through, especially when they all come in at the same time. Thanks for understanding!
JUNE 2021 SOLAR ECLIPSE| in camera multiple exposure
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Jeff Berkes Photography reserves the right to make changes to the schedule, dates if need be. We are not responsible for bad weather, delays or cancellations. We are also not responsible for unplanned events, lost or stolen items, injuries, sickness, death or damages to personal equipment and lost of personal travel expense, consider travel insurance as well. Failure to comply to park rules, regulations and will result in you being ejected from the workshop. While in some of these locations we may be able to car pool and have less impacts. The eclipse may bring some uncertainties if crowds fill the area. We may not be able to access certain areas, and back up plans will need to be implemented. These things are uncontrollable and can sometimes happen. I have a minimum of 6 locations to view and photograph the eclipse from. Some area's may schedule events there a couple months of weeks ahead of time changing plans. Either way, we will have no issue finding a spot to view and capture this spectacle.
ACTIVITY LEVEL
This workshop is pretty easy. There is some hiking involved. The longest possible hike would be 2 miles round trip on a decent trail with some elevation gains, not much.
RESERVE YOUR SPOT NOW!
| 2024 Total Solar Eclipse Workshop Experience |
For more information, or if you have any questions please contacts us here at [email protected]
