Transit of Venus

[Geoff M]

Not sure if this cold be captured on a digital sensor?

http://www.transitofvenus.com.au/HOME.html

[Steffen]

Absolutely! I expect heaps of transit photos, videos and time-lapses to pop up all over the net later that day. If I can get organised and the rains stop till then I may try a few shots myself.

To make out Venus' silhouette you'll need a fair amount of magnification, many people will hook up their DSLRs to telescopes. Size-wise, the Sun appears as big as the full Moon, so if you have ever tried your hand at lunar shots you'll know what to expect.

It is of course very important to use full aperture solar filters (like Baader AstroSolar film), otherwise you'll burn a hole through the back of your camera

Cheers
Steffen.

[the foto fanatic]

We'll be SIC of the TRANSIT of Venus by the time this has come and gone.

Hoping for some GLORIAs photos though!

It's just a shame that it's not happening on a MUNDI.

[Big V]

Here is a pic from the last one eight years ago - this was taken with a Canon G2 hooked up to a 8 inch telescope with a full aperture solar filter on the front. This year will be far better as the equipment has improved so much. Note the Sun is around 109times bigger than Venus, so dont expect to see a large black dot!!!!

[Steffen]

Nice shot, if I get something like this I'll be very happy! I'm also hoping that my sharp-eyed sons will be able to make it out with their naked eyes (well, not naked but protected by solar film glasses).

And people, don't be fooled, this is a rare event, even though it tends to occur in pairs (like 2004/2012 this time around). If you miss it you ain't gonna see another one. The next Venus transit takes place in 2117.

Cheers
Steffen.

[the foto fanatic]

Here is a pic from the last one eight years ago - this was taken with a Canon G2 hooked up to a 8 inch telescope with a full aperture solar filter on the front. This year will be far better as the equipment has improved so much. Note the Sun is around 109times bigger than Venus, so dont expect to see a large black dot!!!!

Great image! I didn't realise the size differential but this photo shows it superbly.

[aim54x]

That is a very illustrative image...I have been asked about solar film constantly over the last fortnight....where can one get some?

[biggerry]

And people, don't be fooled, this is a rare event, even though it tends to occur in pairs (like 2004/2012 this time around). If you miss it you ain't gonna see another one. The next Venus transit takes place in 2117.

i am sure someone will get a picture of it...

That is a very illustrative image...I have been asked about solar film constantly over the last fortnight....where can one get some?

good question..

[Steffen]

i am sure someone will get a picture of it...

I'm sure they will, and I hope to be among them

I drove all the way to Cootamundra today to increase my chances…

Cheers
Steffen.

[Steffen]

Here's preliminary cut, shot at about 9:30h.



Cheers
Steffen.

[biggerry]

Here's preliminary cut, shot at about 9:30h.

nice Steffen !

heres what I wanted my effort to look like, but I did not have time to launch me satellite so i passed, maybe next century


SDO's Ultra-high Definition View of 2012 Venus Transit - 304 Angstrom by NASA Goddard Photo and Video, on Flickr

[photohiker]

I prefer this one:

[Mr Darcy]

Hey Steffen you need to clean your sensor. That is one of the worst cases of Dust bunnyitis I've seen.

[gstark]

Hey Steffen you need to clean your sensor. That is one of the worst cases of Dust bunnyitis I've seen.

Especially that big black one, near the bottom.

[Steffen]

Terrible, I know. The sensor clean function of the D7000 isn't very effective...

Cheers
Steffen.

[Mr Darcy]

Seriously, Well done. I'm jealous. All I saw was clouds.

[tasadam]

I had a bit of a play myself...
And it got used on the Australian Geographic site.
And I think it's going to be in tomorrow's paper, not certain.



I took it using a Nikon D200 and a very average zoom lens – the Nikon 70-300 f4 – 5.6 G lens, holding a neutral density filter and 3 polarising filters over the front of the lens, so I could cut out enough light to capture the detail.
The camera was set to 1/8000 second shutter speed and f45.
Still too bright to look at the sun through it, but it allowed me to squint a lot just to get the centre of the frame pointing at the sun so AF would lock on. I tried manual focus and took several shots when I saw the eyepiece illuminate, but MF wasn’t sharp enough.
It was a bit tricky holding the 4 filters over the front of the lens and keeping it extended to full zoom. On the D200, it gave me an equivalent 450mm focal length.
Did you guys use photoshop to bring the yellow into it or was it done another way?

[tasadam]

Comparing my image with Stefans brilliant one, it seems we took them at similar times. But me being further south, wondering whether that's why Venus is more centered in my image?

[Steffen]

Mid-transit was around 11:30ish, so if you took your shot later than me (9:30) the planet would have been further in. I've got a few images with Venus further in.

With only 700-odd km between Cootamundra and Devonport, and Venus 43 million km away, the parallax would only be 3 to 4 arcseconds, i.e. unnoticeable.

Cheers
Steffen.

[Big V]

Here is the famous tear drop effect...

[surenj]

Didn't realise the sun had a bad case of pimples. I guess in intergalactic time, it's only a teeenager.....

[Big V]

Actually it is in mid life crisis - half way through life cycle...